CRIGEN -Stage de 6 mois

Iron fuel as a flexible energy carrier for industrial heat applications

Description du sujet proposé :

ENGIE is a global energy player committed to “Net Zero Carbon” in 2045. Lab Crigen is the corporate R&D center having the mission to support the business providing cutting edge expertise. One of the core activities of the ENGIE-group is the “utility-as-a-service” (production of energy in decentralized assets for industrial clients). To achieve carbon neutrality, ENGIE considers a wide panorama of low-carbon solutions. In the near future, one of those could be Metal Fuels (MFs) [1]. MFs are a new and efficient energy carrier produced via green hydrogen (H2) allowing to stably and safely store excess of renewable energy with a high volumetric energy density in a cost-effective way.

Within the panorama of MFs, ENGIE Lab Crigen selected Iron Fuel as an attractive energy carrier for steam production in industrial boilers:

• Due to its physical properties (energy density, safety, combustion properties), it allows to stably store high quantities of renewable energy with a high volumetric energy density (15 MWh/m3)
• Technological maturity is considered the most attractive one for market development
• It can be transported over long distances (round-trip “sunbelt” to EU)
• It can be a new commodity to be supplied for steam industrial boilers (paper, chemical, agri-food industry, etc.) and District Heating.

By using an innovative burner/boiler concept, Iron Fuel allows to produce medium/high temperature steam for industrial usages and therefore it is of interest for ENGIE group. 

This internship proposes a techno‑economic analysis of Iron Fuel technology to assess its business potential, evaluate its economic viability, and identify the most relevant business models for industrial heat supply.

By relying on a value chain cost estimate tools already developed at ENGIE Lab Crigen, the candidate should evaluate at which conditions and in which scenario Iron Fuel is an attractive solution for ENGIE business. Several hypotheses on the production, transport, storage and utilization of Iron Fuel should be combined and optimized. In parallel, the candidate could directly collaborate with ENGIE Business Unit to compare and challenge Iron Fuel with the other flexibility solutions. The key parameters to monitor are energy efficiency, CO2 emissions and Levelized Cost Of Heat. Finally, the candidate is also expected to further develop the internal tool if new conditions are found relevant.

[1] Bergthorson, J. M., Goroshin, S., Soo, M. J., Julien, P., Palecka, J., Frost, D. L., & Jarvis, D. J. (2015). Direct combustion of recyclable metal fuels for zero-carbon heat and power. Applied Energy, 160, 368-382.

Ce stage sera soumis à accord de confidentialité

Niveau d’étude : Bac +5 (Master 2, 3e année d’école d’ingénieur, césure)

Spécialité : Energie, Simulation, Efficacité énergétique, Economie de l’énergie

Informatique : Bureautique, Excel, programmation (Python)

Localisation : ENGIE Lab CRIGEN, 4 rue Joséphine Baker, 93240 STAINS

 Accès : 5 min du RER D Gare de Pierrefitte – Stains, 15 min de Gare du Nord