Natural Hydrogen Gas Found In Albanian Chromium Mine Requires New Tech to Extract

(Photo : Getty Images/ALEX HALADA)

A recent study reveals that a large hydrogen reservoir may exist deep beneath a chromium mine in Albania, however, scientists said a new technology is needed to take advantage of the natural hydrogen gas.

Hydrogen Reservoir

Hydrogen is an appealing alternative to traditional fossil fuels because it can generate energy without emitting carbon dioxide as a byproduct. However, natural hydrogen sources are scarce, and its production requires a significant amount of energy.

Currently, hydrogen is collected by capturing it when it is released during natural gas extraction, but it can also be created through a variety of methods, many of which emit greenhouse gases.

The Bulqizë chromite mine produces a significant amount of hydrogen gas, according to scientists.

This huge hydrogen flux is most likely the result of long-term accumulation in a faulted reservoir. The reservoir is located within a part of the Earth's crust and mantle that was originally at the bottom of the ocean but was scraped away as the tectonic plate it was riding on slid beneath another plate.

The crumpled slab of crust and mantle was driven onto land between 45 million and 15 million years ago, forming a 1,900-mile (3,000-kilometer) rocky band known as an ophiolite that stretches from present-day Turkey to Slovenia.

The researchers conducted this new study in response to reports of significant volumes of hydrogen seeping through vents and boiling up in mine drainage pools, resulting in multiple explosions.

They analyzed seepage at numerous points in the mine and utilized the results to determine the overall amount of hydrogen escaping-their figures suggested that roughly 200 metric tons escape the mine each year, making it the greatest natural flow ever recorded.

The discovery also sheds light on the geological circumstances that keep vast amounts of natural hydrogen underground. Hydrogen from the Bulqizë mine most likely accumulated in tectonic fissures between two blocks of rock deep within the ophiolite.

An ophiolite is a sort of rocky belt produced as a result of this land stretch. Several such ophiolites have been discovered throughout the world, the majority of which are thought to contain hydrogen reservoirs.

The reservoir beneath the mine may contain up to 55,000 tons (50,000 metric tons) of hydrogen, which would be sufficient to maintain the high flow rate for 238 years.

Prior studies have shown that a significant hydrogen reservoir exists beneath the mine in Albania, which formed when a part of the Earth's crust changed millions of years ago, pushing it up and onto the crust next to it.

New Technology

The researchers believe that new technology is required to take advantage of such reservoirs in order to absorb massive amounts of hydrogen in a clean and cost-effective manner, potentially lowering dependency on carbon-based fuels.

Natural hydrogen deposits, if extractable and large enough, hold promise as a source of carbon-free energy.

"What sets our discovery apart is the large flux of almost pure [hydrogen] gas we have observed. In the context of energy transition, our findings could substantially affect the ongoing search for new energy resources," the study said.