Written by Andrew Ellis, Field Application Engineer – Automation & Renewables

Following on from Andy’s blog post on the All Electric Society. I thought it would be a good time to talk about one element that will be critical to this future change and that is Power to X.

For the All Electric Society to become a reality, a lasting solution is needed that addresses the storage and transportation of energy generated by renewable sources – although liquid and gaseous fuels will still be needed in the immediate future, primarily by the mobility sector. However, in the future, these fuels will also be produced using renewable electricity.

If we take the examples of solar or wind power. There are plenty of locations where these renewable sources can produce an excess of electricity. However we cannot control the weather and solar production is greatly reduced at night. The solution is Power to X, where X represents energy rich, gases, liquids and chemicals.

This is where surplus capacity from renewable energy gets transformed into these e-fuels. These e-fuels such as hydrogen, or climate neutral synthetic fuels can then be stored and transported using existing infrastructure such as pipelines and tankers.

Some of these e-fuels may also be generated as a by-product of other processes. However these processes will also use renewable energy, or their waste products (such as CO2) captured and used elsewhere in other processes.

In short, Power to X is a key enabler for a CO2 neutral society by:

• Making renewable energy storable, distributable and available on demand.
• Store large amounts of energy over longer periods
• Enable sector coupling between the different fuel producers
• Carbon capture of CO2

Phoenix Contact is heavily invested with the Power to X concept to bring forward the dream of an All Electric Society. We have a multitude of solutions to help our partners in creating a better future for our planet in all areas of renewables and Power to X. We work with all sectors to couple them together and make the most of the opportunities this represents.

From simple terminals and relays,  wireless communication and full process solutions including automation, IO and monitoring, feel free to contact us to help you with your Power to X project.

For more information, contact Andrew on 07584 514958 or email aellis@phoenixcontact.com