Industrial Decarbonization
Today, heavy industry accounts for 24% of global greenhouse gas emissions.* As the leader in low carbon intensity hydrogen production and other decarbonization-ready technologies, like carbon capture, Air Products can help power generation, electronics, iron and steel, and other customers along their decarbonization journeys.
Working Together to Generate a Cleaner Future
To reach true net zero, the world needs solutions for deep decarbonization of the hardest-to-abate sectors such as steelmaking, chemical production and heavy-duty transportation. Clean hydrogen is the solution. As the leading global hydrogen supplier today, Air Products is applying our expertise and investments in clean hydrogen and clean fuels projects ($15B) to help accelerate the energy transition and generate a cleaner future for our world.
Explore our interactive graphic for some examples of how Air Products can help customers decarbonize and operate more sustainably.
Why hydrogen for decarbonizing heavy industry?
In energy-intensive sectors of our economy where electrification isn't practical―like heavy industry and heavy transportation―clean hydrogen molecules can provide a zero-emissions source of energy.
Swipe to learn how hydrogen can help decarbonize industry
What is hydrogen?
Hydrogen is the universe’s most basic element, with just one proton and one electron. It’s also the most abundant element in the universe, comprising 75% of all matter. It’s found chemically combined with other elements, such as water (which has two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom in every molecule of H₂O).
What is green hydrogen?
Green hydrogen—or hydrogen produced without emissions—is produced using renewable energy, like wind or solar power. The electricity generated using renewable energy can then be used to separate water molecules (H₂O) into hydrogen and oxygen gas (H₂ + O₂) in a process called electrolysis. Since the hydrogen is produced using renewable energy and the fuel produces no emissions, the hydrogen is considered a “green” energy.
What is blue hydrogen?
Blue hydrogen is hydrogen produced by conventional means—usually steam methane reforming, where natural gas or methane react with steam to produce hydrogen gas and carbon dioxide—but where the carbon dioxide byproduct is captured and permanently stored far below the earth’s surface. This process is called carbon capture for permanent sequestration. This reduces the emissions of the hydrogen generated by around 90%.
How can hydrogen help decarbonize industry?
In energy-intensive sectors of our economy like heavy industry, hydrogen is a practical, zero-emissions solution to provide power. Hydrogen will play a large role in decarbonizing a wide array of industries like steelmaking, chemicals processing, refining, electronics, power generation, and glass manufacturing. Hydrogen can be adopted as a 100% replacement for natural gas in the combustion process, or it can be introduced through on-site blending skids that can help incrementally begin the path to decarbonization.
What is Air Products' role in producing clean hydrogen?
To quickly scale clean hydrogen production to decarbonize heavy industry and heavy transportation and to support meeting the world’s 2050 net-zero goal, Air Products is building several of the largest low- and zero-carbon hydrogen plants in the world.
Industries and applications
Trials, testing and permanent use solutions for blending hydrogen into NG streams to decarbonize large and small generators.
Replace current "grey" hydrogen usage and expand applications into technologies such as EUV lithography.
Leverage hydrogen and CSS to decarbonize blast furnaces, basic oxygen furnaces, direct reduced iron, or electric arc furnaces.
Leverage CCS, replace current "grey" hydrogen usage, and expand applications to create clean feedstocks for further processing and use.
Leverage oxy-fuel, hydrogen and CSS to decarbonize glass melting operations.
Hydrogen is used to reduce metal oxides, prevent oxidation during heat-treating, and act as a fuel or process gas for spray applications.
Oxy-fuel technologies and hydrogen substitution or blending can help minimize the carbon footprint of your non-ferrous metals melting processes.
Leverage oxygen, oxygen enrichment, CCS and hydrogen to help increase production, use more alternative fuels, and lower the carbon footprint of your operation.
Hydrogen fuel cell and combustion applications to decarbonize trucks, buses, aircraft, watercraft and more.
Decarbonize with confidence.
Talk to one of our industry experts today.