Hydrogen production from biomass

The demand for hydrogen is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years, especially for environmental reasons such as achieving decarbonization and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, most hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels, which is not sustainable. Alternative sources and methods for hydrogen production are required, and one of the most promising sources is biomass. Thermochemical and biological methods are the two main categories for hydrogen production from biomass. Thermochemical methods include gasification and pyrolysis: in these processes the raw material is treated at high temperatures to produce hydrogen together with solids, liquids and other gases. Biological methods are mainly bio-photolysis, photo fermentation, dark fermentation and microbial electrolysis cell. The biological method utilizes microorganisms to convert water and organic substrates into hydrogen: hydrogenase and nitrogenase are key enzymes in these processes.