UK SBS Life Cycle Assessment of Ammonia as a Bulk Energy Storage Medium

The life cycle assessment of ammonia as a bulk energy storage medium

The STFC Futures Programme requires the provision of a full life cycle assessment (as defined by ISO 14040:2006 and 14044:2006) of the use of ammonia in the following systems:

1. An inter-day, grid-scale ammonia-based energy storage system. The ammonia is generated using the Haber-Bosch process and is used to generate electricity in a dedicated set of gas turbines.
2. An inter-day, distribution-scale ammonia-based energy storage system. The ammonia is generated using a solid-state synthesis process and is used to generate electricity using a fuel cell.

In both cases the system would accept electricity and use it to produce ammonia, which would be stored for some period of time and then used to generate electricity when required.

This study should compare the entire life cycle of the energy storage facility and all aspects of the system should be taken into account in both cases. The same is applicable to comparator sites, as it should be assumed that the energy storage facility is newly built in either case. The system boundary should include the following in both cases:

• The production of the ammonia synthesis equipment, storage facilities and electricity generation equipment. The equivalent processes should be included for comparators.
• The operation of the facility, including ammonia generation, ammonia storage and electricity generation, and the operation of comparators.
• The decommissioning of the equipment following the closure of the facility as well as the decommissioning of the comparator sites.

The system boundary should not include:

• The facilities required to produce the raw materials for construction.
• The electricity generation and transmission facilities operated by the National Grid.

The comparators will differ between the two proposed systems and should be as follows:

• For grid scale storage: pumped hydro energy storage, compressed air energy storage, flow batteries and hydrogen energy storage.
• For distribution-scale storage: lithium-ion batteries, sodium-sulphur batteries, flow batteries and hydrogen energy storage.

The following impact factors should be considered during this assessment:

• Global warming potential
• Abiotic resource depletion
• Primary energy consumption
• Non-renewable primary energy consumption
• Acidification potential
• Eutrophication potential
• Human toxicity
• Terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecotoxicity
• Photochemical smog formation

The output from the study should be presented to STFC as an electronic report in MS-Word and PDF formats. Delivery of the report should be made by 16.00 on Friday 24 March 2017.

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