A development-stage Canadian nickel company and a Colorado mining school have teamed up to investigate the potential of hydrogen extraction in Newfoundland.
On Wednesday, First Atlantic Nickel Corp (CVE: FAN) (OTCMKTS: FANCF) revealed that it would be researching the potential of geologic hydrogen, otherwise known as natural or gold hydrogen, as an additional resource at the company’s Atlantic Nickel Project. First Atlantic has partnered with the Colorado School of Mines to complete this exploratory work.
This type of hydrogen is known to be found in geological formations called “ophiolite complexes.” First Atlantic has two of these within its Atlantic Nickel and Atlantis projects.
“Ophiolites—sections of oceanic crust and upper mantle thrust onto continental crust—are globally recognized as prime sources of geologic hydrogen,” First Atlantic explained in its announcement. “Within these ophiolite settings, ‘serpentinized peridotites’ are the most promising targets, with peridotites producing significantly more hydrogen than other rocks.”
However, despite a proven scientific basis for gold hydrogen extraction, technology needed to extract it from ophiolites at a commercial scale is currently unavailable. More research is necessary and a great deal of capital would need to be invested to turn these projects into feasible nickel-hydrogen assets.
Getting geologic hydrogen out of the ground would involve a process similar to fracking, the researchers say. They think it could be a valuable energy resource in the future.
“Geologic hydrogen has the potential to be a large-scale source of hydrogen that is cheaper and safer than traditional methods of hydrogen production that rely on oil and gas,” First Atlantic specified.
Diagram: First Atlantic Nickel
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Majority of hydrogen comes from natural gas
In modern times, hydrogen is primarily used for several industrial processes like ammonia production in the fertilizer industry, chemical production and metal processing. It has also been attracting attention for its value as an alternative energy source in vehicles and machinery through usage in fuel cells.
Grey hydrogen, the most common type (95 per cent of the world’s), is produced from fossil fuels. Meanwhile, “green” hydrogen, produced through a process called electrolysis using electricity generated from renewable sources, only accounts for a small percentage of the global supply.
The Colorado prospecting school says it brings an expansive knowledge base to the table for their research into geologic hydrogen.
“In our group, we have the unique combination of expertise from both the mining industry and oil and gas industry to advance geologic hydrogen exploration and stimulated hydrogen monitoring” said Yaoguo Li, a professor from the Colorado School of Mines.
rowan@mugglehead.com
