Environmental impacts of Hydrogen Energy

Our Researcher, Alex Tweedie, a 4th year undergraduate at University of Edinburgh studying environmental geoscience recently attended and presented at the Møller Institute, at the University of Cambridge.

"I am very proud to have presented at the Impacts of Hydrogen Energy Conference at the Møller Institute, University of Cambridge on 12/13 March 2025. I think that this meeting marked a good end to the current hydrogen research projects, and brought together lots of very interesting people."

To me, it highlighted the importance of hydrogen in the future energy mix and the need for further collection of field data for global climate models - Alex Tweedie

Background

Interest in hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuels is rapidly increasing worldwide. However, while there is strong support for transitioning to a hydrogen-based economy, the environmental implications of this shift remain poorly understood. To ensure the adoption of hydrogen energy systems is both sustainable and beneficial, it is crucial to thoroughly assess the potential impact on the climate and environment.

The Atmospheric Chemistry Special Interest Group organised the in-person meeting at the

Møller Institute, Churchill College, Cambridge, dedicated to exploring hydrogen’s chemistry and its effects on atmospheric composition and climate. The event marked the conclusion of the UK Hydrogen Environmental Impacts Programme, funded by NERC and the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero.

Environmental Impacts of hydrogen energy

A second day, led by the programme, focused on additional aspects related to the environmental impacts of hydrogen energy, including global and UK scenarios of hydrogen use, fugitive hydrogen emissions and the uptake of atmospheric hydrogen by soils - a key factor regulating atmospheric hydrogen levels.

Quantifying the soil sink of atmospheric Hydrogen

During her internship at UK CEH, Alex worked within a team exploring the factors controlling hydrogen soil uptake using a full year of field measurements from grassland and forest soils in the UK. The research paper was published in December 2024 on the EGUSphere portal here. The CEH team along with Alex attended the event and presented some of the research findings.

Snapshot of Alex's poster session

"The opportunity to share my research with experts was a significant milestone for me personally. I especially valued the poster session and flash talk, where I had the chance to exchange ideas and gain fresh perspectives on my findings. It was an enriching experience, and I look forward to applying these insights moving forward."

Considerations & Takeaways from the conference discussions

Hydrogen is an indirect greenhouse gas as it removes hydroxyl (OH), increasing the lifetimes of harmful species such as methane (CH4), Ozone (O3) and VOC
It is a good energy carrier, and can be used to store excess energy from renewables ( green hydrogen).
Hydrogen can be made by electrolysis of water.
A growing hydrogen economy will increase atmospheric hydrogen concentrations by accidental leakages, the response of global warming to which has been modelled.
Models suggest that the climatic benefit of wide scale hydrogen use is dependent on both the method of production, and the leakage rate.
To be environmentally beneficial hydrogen will need to be produced greenly from renewable energy sources, rather than by steam reformation of methane with/without carbon capture (grey/ blue hydrogen), and leakage should not be excessive.
The largest sink for atmospheric hydrogen is the poorly constrained, soil sink, which may be responsible for 70-90% hydrogen removal.
Data seems to suggest that the soil sink may be able to adapt to increases in atmospheric hydrogen and remove more with increased concentrations, however more research is needed to definitively conclude this.
Hydrogen has been thought of as a "silver bullet" to decarbonise energy, however we have likely overestimated its uptake by industry based on recent figures. It is more likely that hydrogen will only really be used by hard to abate sectors (e.g. steel production), rather than for more ubiquitous application as was previously thought.
Further efforts are needed to improve our understanding of hydrogens climatic impacts, and develop the necessary technologies for its wide scale application. Funding for which is far more likely to come from the private sector than the public sector.
Hydrogen Energy could allow the opportunity for job creation and ease the just energy transition, as well as provide greater energy security.
Alex's Poster Session

Conclusion

"I found the talks very compelling, inspiring me to re-examine some of my own findings under a wider contextualized lens of increased knowledge. The opportunity to present alongside the CEH team, sharing my findings and gaining new perspectives on what may be occurring was a fantastic experience. Overall, I found the conference to be an excellent platform giving me new insights that I will build on to support more informed decisions about the future of energy security—while carefully balancing the needs of food security, soil health, biodiversity and tackling climate change."

Alex would love to hear from others in this space—what do you see as the biggest challenges or opportunities for hydrogen energy?

Discuss on LinkedIn

Environmental impacts of Hydrogen Energy

Our Researcher, Alex Tweedie, a 4th year undergraduate at University of Edinburgh studying environmental geoscience recently attended and presented at the Møller Institute, at the University of Cambridge.

"I am very proud to have presented at the Impacts of Hydrogen Energy Conference at the Møller Institute, University of Cambridge on 12/13 March 2025. I think that this meeting marked a good end to the current hydrogen research projects, and brought together lots of very interesting people."

Background

The Atmospheric Chemistry Special Interest Group organised the in-person meeting at the

Environmental Impacts of hydrogen energy

Quantifying the soil sink of atmospheric Hydrogen

Snapshot of Alex's poster session

Considerations & Takeaways from the conference discussions

Hydrogen is an indirect greenhouse gas as it removes hydroxyl (OH), increasing the lifetimes of harmful species such as methane (CH4), Ozone (O3) and VOC

It is a good energy carrier, and can be used to store excess energy from renewables ( green hydrogen).

Hydrogen can be made by electrolysis of water.

A growing hydrogen economy will increase atmospheric hydrogen concentrations by accidental leakages, the response of global warming to which has been modelled.

Models suggest that the climatic benefit of wide scale hydrogen use is dependent on both the method of production, and the leakage rate.

To be environmentally beneficial hydrogen will need to be produced greenly from renewable energy sources, rather than by steam reformation of methane with/without carbon capture (grey/ blue hydrogen), and leakage should not be excessive.

The largest sink for atmospheric hydrogen is the poorly constrained, soil sink, which may be responsible for 70-90% hydrogen removal.

Data seems to suggest that the soil sink may be able to adapt to increases in atmospheric hydrogen and remove more with increased concentrations, however more research is needed to definitively conclude this.

Further efforts are needed to improve our understanding of hydrogens climatic impacts, and develop the necessary technologies for its wide scale application. Funding for which is far more likely to come from the private sector than the public sector.

Hydrogen Energy could allow the opportunity for job creation and ease the just energy transition, as well as provide greater energy security.

Conclusion

Alex would love to hear from others in this space—what do you see as the biggest challenges or opportunities for hydrogen energy?

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