Power-to-X!

What our world could look like in 2045 with hydrogen.

By 2045 Germany should be climate neutral. The Kopernikus projects make a major contribution to this: partners from science, business and civil society are developing solutions for a clean, safe and affordable energy supply: Power-to-X!

The conversion of electricity from renewable energy sources into other substances is called Power-to-X, in short: P-t-X. Electricity (power) is converted to “X” (other substances). This means: With power-to-gas, electricity is converted into gaseous substances such as hydrogen or hydrogen carbon. With power-to-chemicals, electricity is converted into chemical starting materials that can be further processed industrially and replace crude oil as a raw material. With power-to-fuel, electricity is converted into synthetic fuel. Here, carbon dioxide (CO2) and water separated from the air or from production processes are converted into synthetic fuels with the help of electricity from renewable energies. In this way, a significant overall reduction in emissions is achieved when the synthetic fuel is burned, since they are no longer based on fossil raw materials.

The phasing out of fossil fuels towards renewable energies is a decisive factor in limiting global warming to 1.5 or a maximum of 2 degrees. The aim of the Kopernikus project P2X is to develop technologies and processes that can convert and store renewable energy. This energy can then be used in the form of hydrogen or its derivatives as an energy carrier or as a direct resource or as e-fuels in high-emission sectors such as transport (shipping and air traffic) and industry, as well as a heat source for industrial processes, making them more climate-friendly.

As part of the "P2X" joint project, WWF Germany provides applications to make the opportunities and risks of Power-to-X accessible to the general public. The joint project includes WWF Germany, RWTH Aachen University, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Dechema e.V. and other partners. The project is funded by the BMBF (Federal Ministry of Education and Research).

The Kopernikus project P2X, as a broad alliance of researchers, industry representatives and NGOs from all over Germany, is researching the opportunities, risks and future applications of this new technology and is outlining a path to a CO2-neutral future. It is an expression of Germany's efforts to meet the social challenge of climate change with research initiatives.