Interest in hydrogen as a clean source of energy has grown considerably over the past decade. With its ambitious climate goals and a vibrant economy, California looks poised to become one of the major hydrogen hubs in the country. However, insufficient infrastructure to support demand and lack of economies of scale, are critical factors that have impeded the uptake of hydrogen in California. Infrastructure requirements span across the supply chain including production, delivery, and distribution. Strong early investments are required, with a clear vision of where and when the future hydrogen system buildout will happen.
The first chapter in this dissertation employs a suite of hydrogen supply chain (HSC) models developed by the US Department of Energy (DOE), to explore technology feasibilities (particularly for California) and identify factors that are most critical for achieving the lowest levelized costs of hydrogen across the supply chain. The author finds that feedstock prices, size of the hydrogen market and infrastructure utilization are the prominent parameters that affect the levelized costs of hydrogen. In the last chapter of this dissertation, the author reviews the status of hydrogen policies globally. They identify major economies like Japan, South Korea, Germany, and California as early adopters with specific policies that have encouraged hydrogen across different sectors, but with varying levels of adoption. Hydrogen is identified as a potent decarbonization vector by all these jurisdictions and there are substantial opportunities for collaborations that could help scale up a global hydrogen economy.