Addiction to imported petroleum carries with it huge economic, environmental and national security risks for the United States and other developed countries. The search for a domestically produced, economical and environmentally friendly fuel has led to one acceptable solution, anhydrous ammonia. Also known as "the other hydrogen", ammonia is the closest thing to a perfect transportation fuel.

Ammonia is an ultra-clean, energy-dense alternative liquid fuel. Along with hydrogen, ammonia is the only fuel that does not produce any greenhouse gases (GHG) on combustion.

Hydrogen combustion: 2H2 + O2 2H2O (water vapor)

Ammonia combustion: 4NH3 + 3O2 2N2 + 6H2O (nitrogen and water vapor)

Also, ammonia is...

Practical

  • Ammonia (anhydrous, NH3) is 18% hydrogen by weight
  • Ammonia is a liquid fuel at ambient temperatures and moderate pressures (~125 psi)
  • Ammonia has 52% of the energy density of gasoline, and is over 50% more energy dense per gallon than cryogenic liquid hydrogen
  • It can be used directly to drive fuel cells, or directly in internal combustion engines (ICE), it can also be used in combustion turbines
  • Conversions of gasoline and diesel ICEs to run on ammonia are relatively straightforward
  • Ammonia is easy to store and deliver in large quantities
  • Ammonia represents a sustainable, carbon-free fuel for back-up and peaker capacity generation
  • Ammonia fuel can help free us from dependence on imported oil

Available

  • Current worldwide annual production of ammonia is ~130 million tons, primarily from natural gas and coal; China is the #1 producer at 30 million tons annually
  • ~ 20 million tons of NH3 and NH3-based fertilizers are consumed annually in the US as fertilizer (equivalent in energy to ~3.5 billion gallons of gasoline)
  • A storage and delivery infrastructure of pipelines, barges, rail and truck already exists for ammonia, with 3000 miles of pipeline in the US heartland; retail ammonia outlets exist in practically every state, 800 outlets in Iowa alone
  • Ammonia can be produced cleanly from coal and natural gas with carbon sequestration, and also from biomass, renewable energy sources and nuclear power, using nitrogen from the air
  • Ammonia can also be recovered from agricultural animal waste
  • Ammonia is also produced naturally in legumes by nitrogenase bacteria
  • Ammonia is covered as an alternative fuel under the Energy Policy Act of 1992, so ammonia vehicles qualify for fleet sale requirements

Low/Stable Cost

  • Ammonia is comparable to or lower in price than gasoline on an equal energy basis
  • Ammonia made using renewable or nuclear source electricity will be more stable in price and will grow increasingly cheaper per Btu versus fossil based fuels

Environmentally Friendly

  • Ammonia contains no carbon, so releases no GHGs on combustion; also any NOx is easily neutralized
  • In accident scenarios, ammonia is not flammable and is lighter than air so will dissipate into the atmosphere
  • Ammonia is not itself a GHG in the atmosphere
  • Ammonia will not damage the ozone layer
  • Anhydrous ammonia itself is used as the active chemical reactant in NOx reduction, and CO2 and SO2 capture

Properties of Selected Fuels in their Liquid State (sorted by H2 Density)



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