Natural hydrogen: a sustainable energy source in mountain ranges
02/18/2025
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The solution may be found in nature, since various geological processes can generate hydrogen. Yet, until now it has remained unclear where we should be looking for potentially large-scale natural H₂ accumulations.
A team of researchers led by Dr Frank Zwaan, a scientist in the Geodynamic Modelling section at GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, present an answer to this question: using plate tectonic modelling, they found that mountain ranges in which originally deep mantle rocks are found near the surface represent potential natural hydrogen hotspots. Such mountain ranges may not only be ideal geological environments for large-scale natural H₂ generation, but also for forming large-scale H₂ accumulations that can be drilled for H₂ production. The results of this research have now been published in the journal Science Advances. Also part of the team are Prof. Sascha Brune and Dr Anne Glerum of GFZ's Geodynamic Modelling section. The other team members are based at Tufts University (Dr Dylan Vasey) and New Mexico Tech (Dr John Naliboff) in the USA, as well as at the University of Strasbourg (Prof. Gianreto Manatschal) and Lavoisier H₂ Geoconsult (Dr Eric. C. Gaucher) in France.
Natural H₂ potential in tectonic environments
Natural hydrogen can be generated in several ways, for instance by bacterial transformation of organic material or splitting of water molecules driven by decay of radioactive elements in the Earth's continental crust. As a result, the occurrence of natural H₂ is reported in many places worldwide. The general viability of natural hydrogen as an energy source has already been proven in Mali, where limited volumes of H₂ originating from iron-rich sedimentary layers are produced through boreholes in the subsurface.
However, the most promising mechanism for large-scale natural hydrogen generation is a geological process in which mantle rocks react with water. The minerals in the mantle rocks change their composition and form new minerals of the so-called serpentine group, as well as H₂ gas. This process is called serpentinization. Mantle rocks are normally situated at great depth, below the Earth's crust. In order for these rocks to come in contact with water and serpentinize, they must be tectonically exhumed, i.e. being brought near the Earth's surface. There are two main plate tectonic environments in which mantle rocks are exhumed and serpentinized over the course of millions of years: (1) ocean basins that open as continents break apart during rifting, allowing the mantle to rise as the overlying continental crust is thinned and eventually split (for example in the Atlantic Ocean), and (2) subsequent basin closure and mountain building as continents move back together and collide, allowing mantle rocks to be pushed up towards the surface (for example in the Pyrenees and Alps).
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