Low-carbon ammonia production powered by wind energy has been launched in Minnesota

The production facility located at the University of Minnesota (UMN) Research and Outreach Center in Morris has begun its first season of operation. Currently, the plant is being commissioned in phases, with a target output of one ton of ammonia per day. The technology utilizes wind energy to power electrolyzers, which supply hydrogen to the Haber-Bosch process unit.

Special modeling and control systems are used to optimize operations under the conditions of unstable wind energy generation. According to Professor of Chemical Engineering Prodromos Daoutidis, the dynamic operating mode avoids the costs associated with hydrogen storage, making the plant's design more economical compared to traditional chemical facilities built for steady raw material supplies.

This project is a progression of a 2013 pilot plant and is being implemented through the efforts of UMN, the company Casale, and RTI International. The main goal of the initiative is to combat high fertilizer prices and supply chain instability. The resulting product can be stored in special tanks or used to produce urea by adding carbon dioxide, which is obtained as a byproduct of ethanol production.

Michael Reese, director of the green ammonia research program at UMN, notes that the state's lack of internal production capacity for nitrogen fertilizer makes this project strategically important. Stable production of affordable fertilizer will allow farmers to better plan their budgets and produce sales. In the future, the project could be scaled into a network of commercial green ammonia generation centers owned by agricultural cooperatives, supported by government loans and programs.