Krystian Wójcik and Marcin Łojek from the Polish Geological Institute – NRI participated in the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia (September 12-13, 2024).

The Summit brought together over 700 delegates from around the world and over 100 speakers, interested in the development of hydrogen technologies and production of clean hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuels.

Hydrogen umbrella – different colours of hydrogen indicate different ways of production (Spectra, 2024; Wójcik, 2024; a rainbow is also a popular form of illustrating hydrogen colours, although it is difficult to imagine black in a real rainbow)

The Summit was chaired by Mick De Brenni, Queensland Minister for Energy and Clean Economy Jobs, accompanied by federal representatives (Chris Bowen, Minister for Climate Change and Energy), who were “proud to host the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit in sunny Queensland, bringing together experts and decision-makers across the global hydrogen supply chain to collaboratively achieve our collective decarbonisation ambitions”. They were supported by representatives of government delegations from Germany (Anja Hajduk, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action) and Lithuania (Daiva Garbaliauskaitė, Vice-Minister for Energy) and heads of hydrogen companies (e.g. Yuichiro Fujiyama, ENEOS Holdings, Inc.).

Marcin Łojek and Krystian Wójcik – PGI-NRI delegates at the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane

Inauguration of the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane by Aboriginal Australians (the instrument in the photo is a didgeridoo)

Fiona Simon (Australian Hydrogen Council CEO) speaks at the opening session

The plenary session was accompanied by a hydrogen technical series, attended by over 150 exhibitors, including representatives of BP, Toyota, Hyundai and smaller companies. There were also representatives of state governments (including the South Australian government), scientific institutions and industry related to exploration of natural hydrogen.

The experience of the Australian scientists and entrepreneurs and cooperation with PGI-NRI will be especially important during the realization of the Polish Geological Survey project dedicated to exploration of natural hydrogen in our country. Dr. Krystian Wójcik talked about the occurrences of this gas in various geological horizons, the possible origin and other aspects of hydrogen geology in Poland during special technical session.

Krystian Wójcik presents "H₂ geology in Poland: natural hydrogen exploration and storage in geological structures" at the technical session of the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane

One of the slides presented at the technical session: Petroleum subdivision of Poland – location of hydrocarbon fields that should be verified in terms of the presence of hydrogen admixtures (Wójcik, 2024). The map shows fields in which hydrogen content exceeds 1% by volume according to the MIDAS database (2024)

Diagram illustrating hypothetical systems of hydrogen generation, migration, and accumulation in Poland. 1 – migration from deep sources along tectonic faults; 2 – Variscan magmatism and volcanism; 3 – water radiolysis; 4 – metamorphism/hydrothermal gasification of coal seams; 5 – serpentinization and weathering of mafic/ultramafic rocks; 6 – hydrolysis in Fe²⁺-rich and water-saturated rocks; 7 – thermogenic and bacterial decomposition of organic matter in oil- and gas-bearing layers. Cmb – Cambrian, O+S – Ordovician and Silurian, D – Devonian, C – Carboniferous, Pcs – Permian Rotliegend, Pz – Permian Zechstein, Ca2 – Main Dolomite, T – Triassic, J – Jurassic, Mio – Miocene of the Carpathian Foredeep, FK – Outer Carpathianse

For several years, Australia has been emerging as a leader in exploration of natural hydrogen deposits. This is manifested, among the others, by quite numerous scientific reports that initiate and inspire hydrogen exploration around the world:

• AIMAR L., FRERY E., STRAND J., HEATH C., KHAN S., MORETTI I., ONG C. 2023 – Natural hydrogen seeps or salt lakes: how to make a difference? Grass Patch example, Western Australia. Frontiers in Earth Science, 11(1236673): 1–14.
• FRERY E., LANGHI L., MASION M., MORETTI I. 2021 – Natural hydrogen seeps identified in the North Perth Basin, Western Australia. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 46(61): 31158–31173.
• LEILA M., LOISEAU K., MORETTI I. 2022 – Controls on generation and accumulation of blended gases (CH₄/H₂/He) in the Neoproterozoic Amadeus Basin, Australia. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 140 (105643).
• MORETTI I., BROUILLY E., LOISEAU K., PRINZHOFER A., DEVILLE E. 2021. Hydrogen Emanations in intracratonic Areas: New Guide Lines for Early Exploration Basin Screening. Geosciences, 11 (145): 1–28.
• PEACOCK B. 2022 – Natural hydrogen exploration ‘boom’ snaps up one third of South Australia. PV Magazine. https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/02/02/natural-hydrogen-exploration-boom-snaps-up-one-third-of-south-australia/ [dostęp 02.08.2024 r.]

Research in Australia quite clearly shows two ways of exploration for natural hydrogen deposits. The first is provided in the areas with poorly recognized geology, where the presence of hydrogen in deeper parts of the crust can only be evidenced by its surface seepages (hydrogen as the smallest molecule in the natural environment migrates quite easily towards the Earth's surface, it is much more difficult to trap it than, for example, a methane molecule). In such cases, geochemical measurements are carried out on the ground to find the places with increased hydrogen concentration in the soil. Natural hydrogen seepages form quite characteristic structures – fairy circles, small depressions devoid of vegetation, somewhat resembling dried-out lakes.

The second method assumes reinterpretations or simply reaching for data from deep boreholes in areas of former oil and gas exploration, where hydrogen was sometimes noted as an accessory component of natural gas. This is the case of southern Australia. The Kangaroo Island and Yorke Peninsula were previously the subject of exploration for conventional hydrocarbon deposits, and are currently subjected to a concession for the exploration of hydrogen deposits (this is in fact the other kind of petroleum concession).

Areas prospective for the occurrence of natural hydrogen deposits in Australia. The map in the upper left corner (Moretti et al., 2021) shows places where hydrogen seeps occur on the surface (zones marked in red) and hydrogen shows in boreholes (stars). On the right side – the range of Petroleum Exploration Licence 687 dedicated to hydrogen exploration is marked on the map of the Adelaide area (https://www.energymining.sa.gov.au/industry/energy-resources/regulation/projects-of-public-interest/natural-hydrogen-exploration/gold-hydrogen-natural-hydrogen-exploration

The natural hydrogen research is becoming more and more common in the world, and a new boom in geology – the hydrogen boom – starts similar as dozen years ago the shale-gas exploration exploded. However, before large investment projects are born and large mining concerns flood Europe and Poland again, it is worth protecting the interests of our country at the very beginning by definition of appropriate strategies – exploration concepts adequate to local geology, hypotheses regarding the origin of natural hydrogen accumulations and methods of their verification. The basis for these activities is the work of the Polish Geological Survey, whose employees tried to use the experience of their Australian colleagues during the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane.

… next year the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition will be held in Sydney…

Text and photos: Krystian Wójcik, Marcin Łojek

The participation of PGI-NRI delegates in the Asia-Pacific Hydrogen Summit and Exhibition in Brisbane was financed by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.