Power solutions company, Mitsubishi Power, will establish the Takasago Hydrogen Park, a dedicated centre for validation of hydrogen-related technologies, from hydrogen production to power generation.
The center will be co-located at the gas turbine development and manufacturing facility of Mitsubishi Heavy Industry’s (MHI) Takasago Machinery Works in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, and will support the commercialisation of hydrogen gas turbines using hydrogen as fuel.
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The facility began long-term verification testing on 1 July 2020 as a 566MW class gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) power generation facility. Now, Mitsubishi Power is beginning to test and demonstrate operations of technologies including hydrogen production and storage and hydrogen fueling of gas turbines, aiming to commence operations in fiscal year 2023.
Mitsubishi Power has already announced its 30% hydrogen co-firing for large frame gas turbines and will use Takasago Hydrogen Park to commercialize small and large frame gas turbines on a path to 100% hydrogen firing starting in 2025.
The hydrogen production facility utilizes a water electrolysis system, and will test hydrogen production technologies such as turquoise-hydrogen production by pyrolysis of methane into hydrogen and solid carbon, etc.
An integrated system for all aspects of hydrogen-related technologies, from development to demonstration and verification, will be established at the Takasago Machinery Works. For the combustion chamber, the key component of hydrogen gas turbines, Mitsubishi Power will create a work-flow that includes development at the development center (Research and Innovation Center), design, production of an actual machine at the manufacturing plant, and validation testing at the demonstration facility.
Mitsubishi Power’s gas turbine development process encompasses verification testing of all elements at the basic design stage, the incorporation of those results in the detailed design, and finally validation using an actual machine. Completing this development cycle within the same plant will allow for quicker and more certain product development and commercialization.
The T-Point 2 facility conducts long-term reliability validation of newly developed technologies, including verification of the next-generation JAC (J-series Air-Cooled) large frame gas turbines, high-efficiency systems that have achieved the world’s first turbine inlet temperature of 1,650°C, conducting operations equivalent to an actual power station while connected to the local power grid.
To support the commercialization of hydrogen gas turbines by 2025, verification of large gas turbines is being conducted at the T-Point 2 facility for power generation using a JAC class turbine initially starting at 30% hydrogen co-firing and increasing hydrogen co-firing over time. Testing for 100% hydrogen firing of small- and mid-sized turbines will be conducted using a H-25 class gas turbine.
