HIDRA-Clean energy platform / Reference Nº: O-2018-T1-1

Level of development of Proposal

What is looking for?

Development of a new Clean Energy Platform that will enhance the energy transition, given that the technology to be developed is characterized by being clean, without generation of polluting gases or CO₂, efficient, with lower costs than conventional ones (a smaller order of magnitude) and favoring the distributed generation.

This Platform could be the basis of a revolution in the global energy model. We are looking for:

• Establish strategic alliances with entities, institutions and companies
• Financing for project development
• Involve stakeholders to support the project
• Support the energy transition, demonstrating the feasibility of a new disruptive technology to generate clean energy, based on plasmonic systems
• Promote de-carbonization, efficiency and power generation in a distributed manner
• Promote an economy based on H₂ as an energy vector
• Expand the technology to be developed with H₂ to other applications
• Involve benchmark companies to scale the technology

Objective and description of the proposal

By means of plasmonic nanoparticles it is possible to locate energy efficiently. In this way it is possible to overcome the activation barrier of various reactions and promote efficient catalytic routes. The production of hydrogen by solar energy is proposed. For this it will be necessary to identify and optimize the most relevant parameters to generate and control the reactions required by plasmonic systems.
It is necessary to control the effect of plasmon that results in:
• High electronic density
• Catalytic effect
• Conversion of solar energy into H2, through processes (photo-) thermo-chemicals
Given the incipient level of development, it will be necessary to carry out proof of concept prior to the development of prototypes.

Description of the innovative nature of the proposal and advantages over competing technologies

The selection of H2 as the first step in the development of the HIDRA Platform is based on the advantages of distributed generation, which would eliminate the need for expensive infrastructures, helping to boost an economy based on H2 as an energy vector.
Once the proof of concept (H2) was successfully carried out, the foundations were laid to develop compact systems for the generation and accumulation of modular energy, with a very attractive cost and without CO2 production.
In heat applications, no additional conversion system would be necessary. Numerous industrial applications (e.g., refineries) or their use in EV with fuel cell (PC), would also not require further conversion. If electricity generation is required, the accumulated H2 could be converted into electricity, on demand, through proven, high-performance PC-based systems.