Namibian hydrogen microgrid uses by-product oxygen and filtration tech to treat wastewater, whitepaper explains | Technology

By-product oxygen from green hydrogen generation, when combined with wire mesh filtration, could play a pivotal role in wastewater treatment, according to a new whitepaper by Haver & Boecker.

The whitepaper, hosted on h2-view.com, describes how the company’s mechanical water filtration technology has been integrated into a hydrogen microgrid system in Namibia.

This system not only produces and uses hydrogen for off-grid, clean power, but also purifies wastewater, which is then supplied to local farmers for irrigation and livestock purposes.

Funded by the German Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology (IWU), the HygO project, expands on a previous microgrid project in South Africa.

Read more: Hydrogen microgrid project gets underway in Cape Town

The 8kW Namibian microgrid includes solar cells, an electrolyser, hydrogen storage, and fuel cells, allowing it to produce, store, and utilise energy as needed.

A key innovation in this project is the use of oxygen released during the hydrogen production process to aid in the purification of wastewater. This purified water is intended for agricultural use, benefiting local farmers by providing an additional water source.

The wastewater treatment process involves multiple stages, with Haver & Boecker’s wire mesh filtration technology playing a crucial role.

The whitepaper explains that “metallic foams retain coarse dirt particles while filter cartridges equipped with the MINIMESH® RPD HIFLO 5-S filter out all particles from 5-40 μm in size, thereby preventing clogging of the final textile membrane.”

While the HygO project is a pilot, the whitepaper suggests that this combination of hydrogen production and advanced water filtration technology could represent a significant breakthrough for hydrogen projects in regions facing extreme water scarcity – regions that also offer some of the best renewable energy resources.

With growing concerns of water contamination globally from ultra-fine particles, chemical residues and more, the whitepaper says precise mechanical water filtration is a “decisive factor” in efficiently and economically treating water.

“The more solids including the finest of microplastics that can be separated straight away, the less effort is required for the intermediate and downstream cleaning processes.

“The associated savings in energy and space requirements as well as the reduced use of chemicals not only mean significant cost savings, but also a significant reduction in the impact on the environment,” it said.

You can access the full whitepaper here.