1600
SQUARE METERS
Mercure Hotel MOA Berlin with pioneering energy concept
Heating with self-generated hydrogen ensures exemplary carbon footprint | Starting this summer, two of the total of five Vitocrossal 200 CIB condensing boilers will initially be operated with a mixture of natural gas and up to 20 percent hydrogen by volume | The carbon produced can be used elsewhere and permanently captured
The Mercure Hotel MOA Berlin is unique in many respects. In the middle of the capital, it offers its guests a 1600-square-meter green refuge as a meeting place as well as a place to relax from the hectic city. In addition to the more than 330 comfortable rooms, a total of 40 meeting and conference rooms for up to 2000 people are available. But what makes it truly unique is its forward-looking energy concept: starting this summer, an innovative process will be used to generate hydrogen itself and use it to heat the building in a climate-friendly way. This will remove up to 800 metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere each year. Viessmann is supplying the advanced heating technology required for this.
The facts at a glance:
336
Rooms
40
CONFERENCE ROOMS
5
GAS CONDENSING BOILERS
- Mercure Hotel MOA Berlin: 1600 sqm atrium, 336 rooms, 40 conference rooms, gym, restaurant, bar
- By using self-generated hydrogen from biomethane, up to 800 tons of CO2 are removed from the atmosphere per year
- Building heating with CHP and 2 highly efficient, hydrogen-capable Viessmann Vitocrossal 200 CIB gas condensing boilers (320 kW each), operating with natural gas and up to 20% hydrogen
- Graforce GmbH, Berlin, innovative methane plasma analysis: electricity from renewable sources is used to generate a plasma in which natural gas or biomethane (biogas) is broken down into hydrogen and carbon.
- The resulting carbon can be used for other purposes and permanently sequestered.
- Gas condensing boiler for operation with hydrogen
Gas condensing boilers for operation with hydrogen
The building is supplied with heat by a total of five highly efficient Vitocrossal 200 CIB gas condensing boilers, each rated at up to 320 kilowatts. Starting this summer, two of these heat generators will initially be operated with a mixture of natural gas and up to 20 percent by volume of self-generated hydrogen. This significantly reduces CO2 emissions compared to operation with pure natural gas.
This operation with a gas mixture is made possible primarily by the innovative Lambda Pro Control combustion controller. It measures the ionization current directly in the flame. This provides information on the combustion quality and allows optimum adaptation of burner operation with the aim of achieving efficient, low-emission combustion. Lambda Pro Control thus enables automatic adaptation to the different gas types without compromising efficiency.
Innovative methane plasmalysis produces hydrogen from natural gas or biomethane
To produce the hydrogen it needs, the hotel relies on a novel process developed by Berlin-based Graforce GmbH. Founded in 2012, the company is a technology leader in power-to-X plants for generating CO2-free and CO2-negative hydrogen.
Instead of conventional electrolysis, in which water is split into hydrogen and oxygen with the help of electricity, the significantly more energy- and cost-efficient methane plasma lysis is used. In this process, electricity from renewable sources is used to generate a plasma in which natural gas or biomethane (biogas) is broken down into hydrogen and carbon. If biogas is used and the carbon is subsequently bound in asphalt, for example, up to 800 tons of CO2 can be removed from the atmosphere each year.
Other pilot projects and use cases:
From so-called smart quarters, which in the future will supply themselves with almost completely climate-neutral energy, to hydrogen-fired steam boilers in Jordan: Here you'll find pilot projects and application examples for hydrogen operation from around the world.
SmartQuart Kaisersesch relies 100 percent on hydrogen
In Kaisersesch, Rhineland-Palatinate, a complete infrastructure for the supply of pure hydrogen is being built by 2023.
Large boiler project in Jordan with 100 percent hydrogen operation.
Hydrogen-fired steam boiler at National Chlorine Industries (NCI) in Jordan, manufacturer of chlorine for the chemical industry and for water treatment projects.
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