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Green Hydrogen Grid Stabilization

A hydrogen-based energy storage concept for firming renewable generation — and the bench-scale embedded system that proved it, demonstrated at the WERC Environmental Design Contest.

Role Built the bench-scale embedded proof-of-concept demonstrated at the contest
Timeline September 2024 – April 2025
Outcome 1st Place, Task 2 Overall Design
Arduino Relay Switching N-MOSFET Drivers Digital Potentiometers MCP41010 Electrolyzer Hydrogen Fuel Cell Power Firming

The concept

Storing surplus renewable energy as hydrogen.

Solar generation peaks when demand does not. The proposal routes that surplus into an electrolyzer, stores the resulting hydrogen, and runs it back through a fuel cell when demand climbs — turning curtailed energy into dispatchable power.

Flow diagram: solar energy feeds an electrolyzer during low demand, hydrogen goes to storage, and a fuel cell returns power to the grid and homes during high demand.
The plant-level concept — surplus solar to electrolyzer to hydrogen storage to fuel cell, dispatched back to the grid on demand.

The team modelled the economics against real utility load data for El Paso Electric and Imperial Irrigation District, sizing hydrogen storage to the point where additional tanks stopped paying for themselves.

Line chart of cumulative dollars over a year: money earned climbs steadily above money spent with and without storage, while money saved stays near zero.
Modelled financial impact of the storage system over a year of utility load data.

What I built

The bench-scale power-firming system.

My contribution was the physical proof of concept: an embedded system that holds a load steady while its solar input swings, and diverts genuine surplus into hydrogen production. This is the hardware that travelled to New Mexico State University and ran in front of the judges.

The bench-scale board: a labelled panel with fuel cell, hydrogen storage balloon, electrolyzer, solar farm panel, two Arduinos on breadboards, an LCD, and a row of lit green Community LEDs.
The demonstration board as built — solar farm, electrolyzer, hydrogen storage, and fuel cell wired to the Arduino control stage, with the Community load lit at left.
Electrical schematic of the bench-scale system: solar panel and Arduino Uno driving three SRD-05VDC relays via 2N2222A transistors, two MCP41010 digital potentiometers setting IRL3713 MOSFET gate voltages, plus electrolyzer, hydrogen fuel cell, status LEDs, a second Arduino, pushbuttons, and an LCD.
Full electrical schematic. Inputs in blue — solar panel, two pushbuttons, 9 V battery. Outputs in pink — the status LEDs, electrolyzer, and hydrogen fuel cell.
The team presenting the bench-scale system at the WERC Environmental Design Contest, with the demonstration board and solar panel on the table and the project poster behind them.
Demonstrating the system to a judge at the WERC Environmental Design Contest, New Mexico State University.

How it regulates

An Arduino Uno continuously monitors solar panel voltage across a 0–20 V range. Based on that reading it sets relay states and adjusts MCP41010 digital potentiometers, which in turn set the gate voltages on IRL3713 N-channel MOSFETs to regulate current flow. Relays act as the coarse switches; the digital potentiometers do the fine control.

Four operating cases

  • Insufficient solar. Solar path relays open, battery relay closed — the load runs entirely from storage.
  • Partial solar. Solar and battery relays both closed — the load is supplied from both sources simultaneously.
  • Optimal solar. Only the solar relay closed — the load runs directly off the panel with no draw on storage.
  • Excess solar. Surplus is diverted to an electrolyzer, splitting deionized water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen feeds a fuel cell that recombines it with atmospheric oxygen to produce water and electricity.

Through the first three cases the digital potentiometers hold MOSFET gate voltages statically, limiting current to protect the components. In the surplus case they modulate dynamically, keeping load power stable while the solar input varies. A pair of pushbuttons and an LCD let an operator see live generation against demand and vary the demand level, so the demonstration responds to realistic conditions rather than a fixed script.

Recognition

Outcome.

1st Place — WERC Environmental Design Contest, Task 2 Overall Design, New Mexico State University
Published in IEEE Xplore — “Sustainable Grid Stabilization Via Green Hydrogen Technologies”
View the publication on IEEE Xplore