Junior Diamant Ngando Ebba

Given the decline in fossil energy reserves and the need for less pollution, achieving carbon zero is challenging in major industrial sectors. However, the emergence of large-scale hydrogen production systems powered by renewable energy sources offers an achievable option for carbon neutrality in specific applications. When combined with energy storage systems, static power converters are crucial in these production systems. This paper offers a comprehensive review of various power converter topologies, focusing on AC– and DC–bus architectures that interface battery storage units, electrolyzers, and fuel cells. The evaluation of DC/AC, AC/DC, and DC/DC converter topologies, considering cost, energy efficiency, control complexity, power level suitability, and power quality, represents a significant advancement in the field. Furthermore, the subsequent exploration of battery aging behavioral modeling, characterization methods, and real-time parameter estimation of the battery’s equivalent electrical circuit model enhances our understanding of these systems. Large-scale hydrogen production systems most often use an AC–bus architecture. However, DC–bus configuration offers advantages over AC–bus architecture, including high efficiency, simpler energy management, and lower system costs. In addition, MVDC or HVDC DC/DC converters, including isolated and non-isolated designs based on multiple cascaded DABs and MMC-type topologies, have also been studied to adapt the DC–bus to loads. Finally, this work summarizes several battery energy storage projects in the European Union, specifically supporting the large-scale integration of renewable energy sources. It also provides recommendations, discussion results, and future research perspectives from this study.

To achieve a more ecologically friendly energy transition by the year 2050 under the European “green” accord, hydrogen has recently gained significant scientific interest due to its efficiency as an energy carrier. This paper focuses on large-scale hydrogen production systems based on marine renewable-energy-based wind turbines and tidal turbines. The paper reviews the different technologies of hydrogen production using water electrolyzers, energy storage unit base hydrogen vectors, and fuel cells (FC). The focus is on large-scale hydrogen production systems using marine renewable energies. This study compares electrolyzers, energy storage units, and FC technologies, with the main factors considered being cost, sustainability, and efficiency. Furthermore, a review of aging models of electrolyzers and FCs based on electrical circuit models is drawn from the literature and presented, including characterization methods of the model components and the parameters extraction methods, using a dynamic current profile. In addition, industrial projects for producing hydrogen from renewable energies that have already been completed or are now in progress are examined. The paper is concluded through a summary of recent hydrogen production and energy storage advances, as well as some applications. Perspectives on enhancing the sustainability and efficiency of hydrogen production systems are also proposed and discussed. This paper provides a review of behavioral aging models of electrolyzers and FCs when integrated into hydrogen production systems, as this is crucial for their successful deployment in an ever-changing energy context. We also review the EU’s potential for renewable energy analysis. In summary, this study provides valuable information for research and industry stakeholders aiming to promote a sustainable and environmentally friendly energy transition.