Life cycle assessment of biohydrogen production as a transportation fuel in Germany

The goal of this work was to study the assessment of the life cycle of hydrogen production from biomass for transportation purposes concerning greenhouse gas emissions, emissions with an acidification potential and the fossil energy demand. As feedstocks woody biomass from forestry or short rotation coppice, herbaceous biomass (i.e., straw), energy crops (mainly maize and grain), bio-waste and organic by-products (e.g., glycerol) were considered and their potential in Germany assessed. The results showed that hydrogen produced from woody biomass emitted the least emissions due to the low emissions caused by the provision of the biomass. Regarding the cumulative fossil energy demand biomass from short rotation coppice showed the lowest values. The highest biomass potential for hydrogen production could be identified for woody biomass from forests as well as from short rotation coppice.