In a virtuous circular economy context, BiH2 is the biorefinery for the production of renewable hydrogen with zero carbon emissions.
An entirely biological process, implemented through the combined action of two distinct axenic cultures of microorganisms which, in addition to the production of renewable hydrogen, generate high added value co-products for use in the pharmaceutical, food, animal husbandry and agricultural sectors.
The opportunities related to the full exploitation of process co-products give BiH2 undisputed economic advantages, while contributing to the development of new sustainable supply chains, capable of generating a significant social impact.
Favourable operating conditions, together with high production efficiency, make the technology suitable for an industrial scale-up and for its potential dissemination on a global scale.
BiH2 represents a solution which is fully compatible with the objectives of decarbonisation of hydrogen production processes and the spread of this energy source as a replacement for fossil fuels set by the European Commission in its plan "A hydrogen strategy for a climate-neutral Europe", officially presented in July 2020.
An extremely ambitious strategy, in line with the Next Generation EU recovery package and the European Green Deal. By 2050, renewable hydrogen should become an integral part of the EU energy system and be applied on a large scale in all those sectors which are difficult to decarbonise. By this date, renewable hydrogen could cover 24% of global energy demand, with a total industry turnover estimated at EUR 630 billion.
The reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG) represents a priority at global level in order to keep temperature increases within the limits indicated in the Paris climate Agreement of 2015.
The biological absorption system of carbon dioxide, foreseen in PHASE 2 of the BiH2 process, is an innovative upgrading device, capable of eliminating the carbon dioxide present in the gas mixture produced in PHASE 1, thus favouring the generation of renewable hydrogen purified from this component.
The same system can also be used to absorb carbon dioxide from external sources. In this case, PHASE 2 of the BiH2 process represents an important and efficient way of using carbon dioxide which, in a way complementary to "capture" and as an alternative to "storage", can contribute to the reduction of the current high levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, transforming a problem of global importance into additional resources.
The development of BiH2 technology is conducted with the advice of DISTAL - Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (MIUR Department of Excellence 2018-2022) of Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna.
From the in vitro experiments begun in 2016, research and development activities have continued with the implementation of a bench-scale pilot plant. The first scale up of the technology made it possible to simulate the operating conditions of the process in the laboratory, as well as maximise its levels of efficiency and production stability.
Biorenova started designing the first industrial prototype plant with the aim of achieving a further important scale-up of the technology and validating its full functionality in a real environment.
