The Role of Decentralised Waste-to-Resource Conversion in the Hydrogen Economy

The development of the hydrogen economy does not depend on a single hydrogen production pathway. Renewable electricity and electrolysis play a key role in renewable hydrogen production, but regional hydrogen systems are increasingly being developed as integrated ecosystems connecting different energy sources, hydrogen production technologies, infrastructure and end users.

Within such a system, decentralised thermochemical conversion of non-recyclable waste streams can play a complementary role, connecting local waste management with syngas production and its further processing for hydrogen recovery.

Local Waste Streams as an Energy Resource

Some waste streams are not suitable for material recycling but still contain carbon and energy value. Instead of being transported over long distances, decentralised systems allow them to be processed closer to where they are generated.

LOOPER was developed precisely for this approach. Selected non-recyclable waste streams are thermochemically converted into hydrogen-rich syngas which, depending on the system configuration, can be used for energy production or further processed for hydrogen recovery.

Decentralised Production as Part of a Wider System

The advantage of a decentralised approach is not to replace electrolysis or other hydrogen production technologies, but to enable the use of locally available resources where suitable waste streams and energy demand exist.

Such a model can connect waste processing, hydrogen production, storage and local energy use within a single integrated system. This concept is being developed within the North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley, where Indeloop leads a demonstration testbed in Zagreb for hydrogen production from non-recyclable waste streams such as sewage sludge, plastics and textiles.

From Waste Management to a Circular Hydrogen Economy

The hydrogen economy requires more than hydrogen production alone. It requires local energy sources, infrastructure, storage, end users and the efficient use of available resources.

Connecting the conversion of non-recyclable waste with hydrogen production is one potential way of integrating waste management into such a system. In this way, the same local material stream can be viewed not only as a disposal challenge, but also as a potential source of energy and raw materials for new value chains.