Author: Zhang Yundong, Sun Naida, Liu Shuaiqi, Yang Yan
In the context of the energy transition, hydrogen is expected to be a clean, efficient and resource-rich new energy source. Among them, the exploration and development of natural hydrogen, known as "golden hydrogen", has quietly emerged, attracting global attention. The United States, Australia, Canada, Russia, the European Union and other countries have formulated plans for the development and utilization of natural hydrogen, and the development of natural hydrogen resources in mainland China is still in the research and exploration stage. tackling key technologies such as natural hydrogen accumulation mechanism and exploration, drilling and storage; Establish a natural hydrogen innovation alliance and establish the status of a source supplier of the hydrogen energy industry chain.
The development of natural hydrogen in mainland China is still in the exploratory stage
There are currently only some sporadic and scattered studies on natural hydrogen on the continent. According to the literature, hydrogen content was found to be as high as 85.54% in individual drilling wells in the Songliao Basin. Some experts believe that China has the geological conditions to evaluate and find natural hydrogen compared with the signs and characteristics of natural hydrogen detection around the world. For example, the serpentinization area (peridotite of Panshishan in Jiangsu), the fault area (Yilan-Yitong fault, Fuyu-Zhaodong, Binzhou, Hulanhe and other faults), the coal basin (Qinshui Basin), the hot spring area (Tengchong, Changbaishan Tianchi in Yunnan), as well as the tectonically active area and the continental rift area have the geological conditions for the development of high-content hydrogen, and the Songliao Basin, Bohai Bay Basin, and Northern Jiangsu Basin can be regarded as breakthrough areas for natural hydrogen exploration, and theoretical research and investigation work with hydrogen as the goal can be carried out.
At present, the global understanding of natural hydrogen is still in the early stage, and there are still a lot of problems to be solved in exploration and development. First of all, the generation mechanism and migration mechanism of natural hydrogen need to be studied in depth, and it is difficult to evaluate resources. Secondly, the detection and analysis technology of natural hydrogen samples is not perfect; Third, there is no mature natural hydrogen mining and separation technology and safe production technology.
Oil and gas companies have the advantage of natural hydrogen extraction
In recent years, with the world's attention to hydrogen energy and the continuous advancement of technology, people have gradually realized that hydrogen can be independently deposited in the earth's crust under specific geological conditions. There are three types of natural hydrogen: free hydrogen, inclusion hydrogen, and dissolved hydrogen. Free hydrogen is the main source of natural hydrogen explored at home and abroad, which is generally distributed in shallow surface and can be freely diffused and transported in underground rocks or formation pores and fissures. Hydrogen inclusions are generally distributed in deep geology with high pressure, and are excavated with geological changes and mineral extraction. Dissolved hydrogen is generally found in the surrounding groundwater in formations rich in radioactive elements such as uranium and thorium.
Since the 80s of the 20th century, West African countries such as Mali, Russia, Australia, the United States and Brazil have successively discovered a "mixed gas" mixed with hydrogen, carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons. Some surveys around the world have found that there are three main geological environments with a natural hydrogen content greater than 10%: ophiolite belt, rift zone, and precambrian iron-rich strata. At present, there is a consensus on the formation mechanism of serpentinization, deep mantle degassing, rock fracture, water radiation, and biodegradation.
Natural hydrogen is widely distributed in the world, and there is no agency that has given an exact total amount of natural hydrogen resources in the world. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is producing a map of the world's natural hydrogen distribution, suggesting that the Earth could contain 1 trillion tons of natural hydrogen. According to Nature Communications, global hydrogen production was 94 million tons in 2020 and is expected to reach 530 million tons in 2050.
Natural hydrogen reservoirs also have accumulation elements such as "production, storage, capping, encirclement, transportation and protection", and their exploration and exploitation methods are similar to those of conventional oil and gas reservoirs. The technology used in the exploration of natural hydrogen resources in foreign countries generally uses remote sensing technology and sampling to study the characteristics of surface hydrogen leakage, and then applies geochemical, geophysical and petrophysical techniques to identify the thickness of the sediment in the upper basement and estimate the volume of magmatic rock inductions. The drilling data were used to identify and demarcate the areas where high concentration hydrogen escaped, and the analysis of gravity anomalies, magnetic anomalies and deep seismic data was used to draw a structural map to determine the favorable strata for hydrogen generation and hydrogen storage. After production, hydrogen samples are sampled, stored, and analyzed. The oil and gas company has mature oil and gas exploration and development technology, and can coordinate the exploration and development of conventional natural gas and natural hydrogen.
Recommendations for future developments
The first is to strategically lay out the development of the natural hydrogen industry and seize the leading position as the source supplier of the hydrogen energy industry. Closely follow the development trend of global natural hydrogen, strategically attach importance to the development of natural hydrogen industry, strategically deploy natural hydrogen resource investigation as soon as possible, incorporate natural hydrogen into the normalized gas detection of oil and gas fields, carry out natural hydrogen resource potential evaluation, and find out the resource background. Deploy hydrogen exploration wells in areas with high hydrogen content, make good use of the national mining rights policy of "should be mined as much as possible", and establish a demonstration development and utilization base after maturity.
The second is to deploy the research and development of key technologies such as natural hydrogen detection, exploration, drilling, storage and transportation in advance, and seize the commanding heights of natural hydrogen development technology. Innovate and carry out basic research on the generation mechanism, migration mechanism, resource distribution, and mining threshold of hydrogen sources, and develop applicable technologies and equipment for natural hydrogen detection, exploration, drilling, storage and transportation; Plan the technical specifications and standards for exploration and exploitation as soon as possible, and seize the commanding heights of natural hydrogen exploration and development.
The third is to strengthen exchanges and cooperation at home and abroad, and establish an innovative ecology for the development and utilization of natural hydrogen. Internationally, it can establish exchange and cooperation mechanisms with scientific research institutions such as the USGS of the United States, the French National Center for Scientific Research, and the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In China, we can establish natural hydrogen innovation alliances with China Geological Survey, Sinopec, National Energy Group, Peking University and other units to carry out basic research, promote the formulation of relevant standards and norms, and explore the linkage of natural hydrogen exploration and development industries in different scenarios.
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Editor: Han Luyu
Proofreader: Meng Ying
Review: Chang Fei Lu Xiangqian