Hazer Group, an Australian cleantech company founded in 2010, develops HAZER Process that converts natural gas into hydrogen and high-quality graphite using iron ore catalyst. The hydrogen produced is considered “clean” as it has significantly lower carbon dioxide emissions compared to alternative fossil fuel-based hydrogen production methods like Steam Methane Reforming (SMR).
Challenges: hydrogen fuel
The majority of the world’s hydrogen (over 60 million tons) is currently produced via steam methane (CH₄) reforming (SMR) process. This process requires a significant amount of energy input and emits a substantial amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂). The SMR process emits between 5 and 9 tons of CO₂ per ton of hydrogen (H₂) produced.
Thermo-catalytic methane decomposition (TCMD) converts methane into hydrogen gas and solid carbon without emitting CO₂. The catalyst considerably reduces the activation energy of the pyrolysis reaction and lowers the temperature from over 1,200 ºC to below 1,000 ºC. Additionally, the catalyst promotes the production of graphite, which is in greater demand on the market than amorphous carbon. The high cost of recovering the solid catalyst from the solid carbon product is, however, the primary disadvantage of using a catalyst in this process.
Hazer Group Technology
Hazer Group develops systems of thermo-catalytic methane decomposition that convert methane into hydrogen gas and solid graphitic carbon without requiring catalyst recovery, thereby enhancing the economics of the process. At a temperature between 600 ºC and 1,000 ºC, a low-cost iron oxide catalyst catalyzes the pyrolysis of methane, producing cost-competitive hydrogen gas and pure graphite material.
Hazer process
The schematic diagram below depicts a fundamental thermo-catalytic methane decomposition system, which converts natural gas feedstock into hydrogen gas and graphitic carbon without the need for catalyst recovery.
Before entering the reactor chamber, the natural gas feedstock is introduced into a pre-reactor conditioner that performs at least one of the following operations: heating, pressurization, plasma treatment, cooling, desulfurization, drying, purification, and expansion. Preheating the natural gas feedstock maintains a constant temperature in the reactor, suppresses side reactions (such as Fischer-Tropsch reactions), and reduces the thermal load required to heat the reactor. The plasma treatment of the natural gas feedstock generates predominantly one radical form that favors one morphology of graphite.
Before being introduced into the reactor, the iron oxide catalyst is processed by a catalyst conditioner that performs at least one of washing, drying, crushing, milling, sieving, purification, and heating. The washing process eliminates water soluble impurities and smallest catalyst particles. The drying process removes moistures and improves the efficiency of pyrolysis. Crushing/milling/sieving can narrow the particle size distribution that assists in maintaining a fluid state. The purification/chemical treatment can increase the purity of catalysts. Heating the catalyst reduces the reactor’s heat load.
The reactor receives the conditioned natural gas and iron oxide. Between 600 ºC and 1,000 ºC, methane dissociates into hydrogen and carbon on the surface of the iron oxide catalyst. As the reaction progresses, carbon deposits on the surface of the catalyst. Once the outer layer is saturated with carbon, it forms metal carbide and then precipitates as graphite carbon from the metal grain boundaries. Over time, this causes intergranular pressure that separates the metal carbide particles from the catalyst, which causes the metal structure to disintegrate by “dusting”. As a result, the process can have high catalytic activity without requiring catalyst recovery, which significantly improves its economics.
A post-reactor conditioner receives the output stream of the and performs at least one of dewatering, cooling, and/or extraction of volatiles of the mixed phase stream.
A solids/gas separator receives the conditioned output stream from the post-reactor conditioner and separates it into solid carbon (graphite) and a mixed gas stream.
A solids conditioner receives graphitic carbon from the solids/gas separator and performs at least one of the following operations: packaging (pelletizing, compressing), functionalizing, and/or purifying the solid stream.
A portion of the separated gas stream is either recycled back to the pre-reactor conditioner for further pyrolysis or supplied to an electricity generator that heats the reactor or powers the system.
A pre-gas separation conditioner receives another portion of the separated gas stream from the solids/gas separator and performs at least one of the following operations: pressurization, cooling, scrubbing/purification.
A gas separator receives the conditioned mixed gas stream from the pre-gas separation conditioner and separates it into a stream of purified hydrogen and a stream of mixed gas containing unreacted CH₄, CO, and CO₂. The purified hydrogen is either stored or supplied to the electricity generator. The gas mixture (CH₄, CO, and CO₂) is either recycled back to the pre-reactor conditioner or supplied to the electricity generator.
The multi-reactor system
The thermo-catalytic methane decomposition system may have two or more reactors in series to increase the efficiency of pyrolysis reaction by increasing gas residence time in the reactors. The schematic diagram below depicts a two-reactor system that does not require catalyst recovery.
In the above system, the second reactor receives a portion of conditioned catalyst and the conditioned mixed gas phase output (H₂, unreacted CH₄, CO, and CO₂) from the first reactor, which has been sequentially passed through the first post-reactor conditioner, the first solids/gas separator, and the second pre-reactor conditioner. In the second reactor, the unreacted methane can be decomposed into hydrogen gas and solid carbon.
The output of the second reactor is introduced into the second post-reactor conditioner, which performs at least one of the following operations: dewatering, cooling, and/or extraction of volatiles. The conditioned mixed phase output is then introduced into the second solids/gas separator, where solid carbon and mixed gas stream are separated.
A solids conditioner receives graphitic carbon from the first and second solids/gas separators and performs at least one of the following operations: packaging (pelletizing, compressing), functionalizing, and/or purifying the solid stream.
A portion of the separated gas stream is either recycled back to the pre-reactor conditioner for further pyrolysis in the first reactor or supplied to an electricity generator that heats the reactor or powers the system.
A pre-gas separation conditioner receives another portion of the separated gas stream from the second solids/gas separator and performs at least one of the following operations: pressurization, cooling, scrubbing/purification.
A gas separator receives the conditioned mixed gas stream from the pre-gas separation conditioner and separates it into a stream of purified hydrogen and a stream of mixed gas containing unreacted CH₄, CO, and CO₂. The purified hydrogen is either stored or supplied to the electricity generator. The gas mixture (CH₄, CO, and CO₂) is either recycled back to the pre-reactor conditioner or supplied to the electricity generator.
Hazer Group Patent
- US11505458B2 Process for producing hydrogen and graphitic carbon from hydrocarbons
- US20180237303A1 Process of controlling the morphology of graphite
- WO2018170543A1 System for the production of hydrogen and graphitic carbon
Hazer Group Technology Applications
The Hazer Group hydrogen production process can provide an innovative solution for the global industrial hydrogen market by producing hydrogen at a lower cost than alternative options while reducing users’ carbon footprint. The technology provides a gateway for hydrogen to more effectively penetrate the sustainable energy market for both vehicle fuel and stationary power applications.
The high-quality synthetic graphite produced by the Hazer Group technology can be used in energy storage applications, such as batteries.
Hazer Group Products
Hazer Group has completed the construction of a Commercial Demonstration Plant (CDP) in Perth, Western Australia, which will demonstrate Hazer’s proprietary hydrogen production technology. The CDP will convert biogas from sewage treatment into hydrogen and graphite. The plant is expected to have a hydrogen production capacity of 100 tonnes per annum, with the hydrogen being fuel cell grade, suitable for use as a low emissions transport fuel.
Hazer Group Stock
Hazer Group is publicly held. Share price see here.
Hazer Group Founder
Andrew Cornejo is Co-Founder.
Hazer Group CEO
Geoff Ward is CEO.
Hazer Group Board Member and Advisor
Tim Goldsmith is chairman. See more.
