The overall objective of SO-FREE is the development of a fully future-ready solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)-based system for combined heat and power (CHP) generation. This means a versatile system concept for efficient, near-zero-emission, fuel-flexible and truly modular power and heat supply to end users in the residential, commercial, municipal and agricultural sectors. Beyond the primary objective required by the call topic – i.e. the delivery of a pre-certified SOFC-CHP system allowing an operation window from zero to 100% H2 in natural gas and with additions of purified biogas – the SO-FREE project will endeavour the realization of a standardized stack-system interface, allowing full interchangeability of SOFC stack types within a given SOFC-CHP system. This interface design will be taken to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) as a new work item proposal (NWIP) for international standardization. In such a way all commercial barriers to full and free competition between SOFC stack suppliers and system integrators aim to be levelled. Furthermore, this interoperability will be proved by doubling the required demonstration period: two systems will be run for 9 months each, each operating, alternately, two different stacks, which will be exchanged between the two systems. One system will be operated to assess compliance with all applicable certification requirements of a TRL 6 prototype, defining the outstanding pathway to full product certification; the other system will run at TRL7 (demonstration in operational environment) providing combined heat and power with natural gas with injections of hydrogen. As a final proof of robustness and flexibility, the two stacks integrated in each of the two systems (one designed by AVL, the other by ICI Caldaie) will be characteristic of the extreme ends of the spectrum of SOFC operating temperatures: 650°C (Elcogen) and 850°C (Fraunhofer IKTS).

Facing the urgent challenges of climate change and the necessity for a transition towards more sustainable and efficient energy systems, the industrial sector, with the steel industry at the forefront, is compelled to significantly cut energy consumption and CO2 emissions. The steel sector, accounting for 9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions and consuming an average of ~5.2 MWh of primary energy per ton of steel produced, is at the heart of this challenge. The SYRIUS project, spanning 54 months, aims to revolutionize this landscape by integrating a 4.2 MWel Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell (SOEC) for producing 100 kg/h of green hydrogen into a real Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) plant. Hydrogen will feed a 280tsteel/h – 84 MWth slab reheating furnace, demonstrating the potential to reduce steel reheating process CO2 emissions by 5,600 t/year during the project and up to 100% with full hydrogen feeding. By generating steam through furnace off-gas heat recovery, implementing by-product oxygen recovery in the furnace (allowing additional savings of 430 tCO2/year in SYRIUS and of 2% fuel input in future expansion) and analysing options for water recycle, SYRIUS seeks to minimize external energy consumption and sets industrial circularity at the project core. With a viable business case centred on process integration, SYRIUS aims to strongly enhance market opportunities in the short to medium term by driving industrial green hydrogen costs below 2.2 €/kg, surpassing the SRIA targets for 2030. By preserving end-product quality at competitive costs, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, lowering hydrogen costs, and creating new direct and indirect jobs, SYRIUS will play a pivotal role in enhancing the circularity of the EU steel sector. A first-of-its-kind TRL7 plant, ready to be scaled up, extended to other industries, and replicated globally thanks to the unique geographic coverage of the technology providers in the SYRIUS consortium, will showcase innovation in action.

In the past, fuel cell (FC) systems have been successfully developed for city buses. No activities towards the development of coaches are known in Europe so far. The target of this project is both to carry the experience from the development of FC city bus systems one step further into the more challenging constraints of typical coaches as well as to strengthen the European vehicle manufacturing base and supply chain of hydrogen components. The project presents two coach solutions to solve the challenges of longer driving distances of regional and long-distance coaches (400-800 km), the more stringent packaging constraints, less favourable driving patterns (lower recuperation) and higher auxiliary powers (air conditioning & heating) and demonstrates the coaches at two regions in 2 to 3-year demo phases. The project is based on a coherent structure and balanced partnership, addresses all call specific requirements and aims for the highest benefits from a technological and market perspective: -both coach types being equally addressed by applying a common hybrid system concept and preparing for the development of FC drive system synergies, -comparing different and modular FC packaging concepts by the use of multiple and single FC units being tested in fulfilment of the 100 kW power requirement, -one set of coaches to develop an OEM-based new-built FC coach and another one an existing coach retrofit to also provide answers for the second life use of environmentally outdated coach chassis, -partnering with established FC manufacturers promising to reach the required 25,000 operating hours minimum, and validated in the project possibly with used stacks. -an experienced composite tank manufacturer to discuss the design option of potentially applying 350 bar and 700 bar technology for the coaches in fulfilment of targeting the required driving ranges at lowest costs and -experienced automotive system developers to search for operational minimum energy consumption patterns.

AMON project aims at developing a novel system for the utilization and conversion of ammonia into electric power at high efficiency using a solid oxide fuel cell. High temperature electrolysers have demonstrated in several activities the capacity to outreach high performances in lab scale prototypes and validation tests. The project will deal with the design of the basic components of the system including the fuel cell, the ammonia cracker, the ammonia burner and an anode gas recirculation, the engineering of the whole Balance of Plants, and the validation of the compliance with ammonia use for all the specific parts and components. For the development of the solid oxide fuel cell, a G8X cell from SOLIDpower will be utilized, first validated in a laboratory at the level of single cells, for electrochemical properties, degradation and post mortem analysis, at the level of single repeating units for the validation of interconnects and sealing components, and at the level of stacks and stack modules. An overall Ammonia fuel cell system will be engineered and manufactured to be tested in a relevant environment in a port area. The final system will be in the size of 8 kW stack module, with an ammonia cracker and a heat management system. It will aim at an overall electrical efficiency in the range of 70%. AMON will be supported alongside the engineering by horizontal strategic support on critical and open issues involving use of ammonia with fuel cells, such as safety assessment, on techno-econmic analysis, on modelling at a multiscale and multiphysic levels, to consolidate, confirm and direct the engineering of the technology. Despite the small pilot demostration scale, AMON will propose a scaled engineering for a system suitable to be applied in end uses such as ports, interports, maritime environment, besides autonomous power systems. AMON will promote the use of ammonia as a hydrogen carrier, to enhance the flexibility of the energy system.

According to market studies scouted within the HyLaw project, by 2050 hydrogen will represent 18% of the total worldwide energy consumption. This would decrease the amount of CO2 released in the atmosphere by 6 gigatons per year and create 30 million jobs within an industry worth 2.5 trillion dollars annually. Given the systemic role that hydrogen can fulfil in integrating all energy sectors (production, transmission, storage, distribution and consumption) and the central role hydrogen can play in decarbonising our society., The need for producing, storing and distributing hydrogen in high quantities and in new locations is growing rapidly. For more efficient and lower cost hydrogen distribution, hydrogen refuelling stations (HRS) can be integrated on already existing refuelling stations. In this context, the safety recommendations for including hydrogen in a multi-fuel refuelling stations requires in depth investigation. The aim of MultHyFuel project is to contribute to the effective deployment of hydrogen as an alternative fuel by developing a common strategy for implementing HRS in multifunctional contexts, contributing to harmonize laws and standards based on practical, theoretical and experimental data as well as on the active and continuous engagement of key stakeholders. To this purpose, the project will: 1) contribute to the existing knowledge base underpinning safety rules on hydrogen dispensing by providing experimental data from engineering research and smart mitigation measures/barriers; 2) define zoning thresholds and safety requirements (e.g. separation distances, validation of safety barriers, permitting and technological requirements) based on experimental and modelling approaches, 3) contribute to the harmonization of rules applicable to HRS co-located alongside other fuels by implementing an extensive cross-country assessment of the regulation in place, performing a gap analysis, and building relevant and efficient network of stakeholders.