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Hydrogen gas is anticipated to play a central role in phasing out fossil fuels, particularly in industries that are proving more challenging to decarbonise, such as chemical production, shipping and steelmaking. But producing hydrogen synthetically is energy intensive and costly. In order for the hydrogen economy to take off, we need to find reliable natural sources of this gas. Could it be hidden in the mountains?

Researchers used plate tectonic simulations to investigate the Pyrenees, Alps and Baetic mountain ranges to assess if their mountain-building processes were likely to have resulted in hydrogen being produced and stored. Their findings, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, showed that the Alps and Pyrenees could be strong natural hydrogen exploration sites.

In both cases, the models suggested mountain building brought deep mantle rocks to the surface at just the right speed, where they reacted with water to release hydrogen, which subsequently accumulated in porous rock layers above. By contrast the Baetics, in southern Spain, showed faster rates of uplift and erosion, suggesting insufficient time for large volumes of hydrogen to have been produced, and the likely removal of potential reservoir rocks. These methods could now be applied to other mountain ranges to help identify other potential sources of natural hydrogen.