Generating climate-gentle heat and electricity with green hydrogen

Allendorf (Eder), Apr 16, 2021 – According to a survey, two thirds of Germans are willing to heat with CO₂-neutral hydrogen and make an important contribution to climate protection. This was indicated in a report from the information service energate from December 2020, which refers to a survey of the energy group E.ON. Thousands of hydrogen heat generators have already been installed. Approximately 150,000 customers have chosen new gas condensing boilers from the Vitodens 300 and Vitodens 200 series in the past year alone, which can use at least 20 percent hydrogen in natural gas and can even convert a 30 percent admixture simply and efficiently into heat

This is good news for the operators of these heat generators. They are very well prepared for the future. “All new Viessmann condensing boilers are H₂-ready,” explains Thomas Heim, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Viessmann Climate Solutions SE. “Our customers have made a conscious decision to choose hydrogen solutions and in doing so are making a positive contribution towards shaping living spaces for future generations.”

No transition to sustainable thermal energy without hydrogen

The heating market is an extremely large and important lever for decarbonization and for achieving climate goals. The necessary CO₂ reduction is only achieved by using all technological options. Not least because this is the only way the transition to sustainable energy and thermal energy will be affordable for citizens. After all, you can only make a contribution to the environment that you can also shoulder economically. The balanced mix of climate solutions based on electricity and green gases including CO₂-free hydrogen is thus the right step.

The current dena pilot study clearly revealed that a mixture of electricity and hydrogen in the building sector will reduce energy system costs by as much as EUR 260 billion by 2050. This is because the expansion of power grids and reserve power plants will be considerably lower if the existing gas infrastructure for hydrogen is strengthened.

Significant CO₂ reductions can also be achieved immediately by using hydrogen in the heating market in order to achieve climate-neutral buildings by 2050. As an innovation leader in the industry, Viessmann already provides a large portfolio of efficient H₂-ready energy systems and solutions.

Vitodens 300 and 200 series: Certified for the new fuels

The gas condensing boilers from the Vitodens 300 and 200 series are the best-selling heat generators in Europe with 150,000 devices sold. The devices are now certified according to ZP 3100 of DVGW Cert GmbH. This means they may be operated with up to 20 percent hydrogen and thus offer their operators maximum sustainability.

With the innovative electronic platform and integrated WLAN, the wall and compact devices also have a forward-looking, cross-system digital basis. This enables seamless connections to be made to digital services such as the ViCare app and the Vitoguide service tool, allows for single room control and communicates with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

Vitovalor PT2 and PA2: Even lower CO2 emissions with hydrogen

The current generation of this high-efficiency technology is already capable of nearly halving the CO₂ emissions of a typical household. The next Vitovalor generation takes things one step further: it can be operated with a proportion of up to 20 percent hydrogen in its natural gas, which even succeeds in reducing CO₂ emissions by a total of 65 percent.

The hydrogen fuel cell in the new compact device Vitovalor PT2 with integrated peak load boiler and the new additional solution Vitovalor PA2 has an electrical output of 705 watts and a thermal output of 1000 watts. Its lifespan amounts to 85,000 operating hours, which corresponds to a service life of approx. 15 years. The increase in running time until the renewing of the stack from 45 to 120 hours contributes to a higher electricity yield. Servicing for the fuel cell is now only required every six years.

Vitobloc 300: Compact, fully-wired combined heat and power generation units

The new compact Vitobloc 300 NG 15 and NG 20 CHP modules can be operated simply with up to 20 percent hydrogen in natural gas. Vitobloc 300 NG 15 (15 kWel/39.6 kWth) and Vitobloc 300 NG 20 (20 kWel/45.4 kWth) are compact and fully-wired units with a water-cooled synchronous generator for generating three-phase current. They are equally suited to new buildings and modernization with their low operating noise of below 49 dB(A) and low space requirement. The new modules will be launched on the market from the fourth quarter of 2021.

Vitocrossal 200: Universally usable gas condensing boiler

The Vitocrossal 200, Type CIB, is a universally usable gas condensing boiler with outputs of 80 to 318 and as a twin boiler up to 636 kilowatts. The Vitocrossal 200, Type CIB, is also expected to be available for operation with up to 20 percent hydrogen in natural gas from mid-2021.

The gas condensing boiler has the Inox-Crossal heat exchanger and a MatriX cylinder burner. The Lambda Pro Control combustion control automatically adjusts the burner to the gas type and ensures constantly efficiently combustion with low emissions and operating costs.

Vitomax: Even more climate-friendly with 100 percent hydrogen

The reduction of greenhouse gases and the switch from fossil fuels to alternative and environmentally friendly solutions are also increasingly important when using industrial boilers. The Vitomax hot water and steam boilers can thus also be operated with pure hydrogen, which is sometimes produced during chemical processes and otherwise often released into the environment without being used. Aside from avoiding climate-damaging CO₂ emissions, this is also a very profitable solution.

Complete solutions for hot water and steam generation in industry and municipal authorities are available with the modular industrial boiler product range Vitomax. Extensive accessories and complete system solutions ensure the safe operation and financial added value of a system.

Further information

You can find out about the contribution that the heating market can make to the energy transition and to sustainable climate protection, with detailed information on the new Viessmann solutions, on the virtual platform www.viessmann.live