# Hydrogen Materials and Technologies in the Aspect of Utilization in the Polish Energy Sector
## 6 The Future of Hydrogen in Poland
In addition, activities leading to the gradual replacement of diesel trains and locomotives by their hydrogen-powered equivalents in places where traction electrification is not planned will also be supported. PESA Bydgoszcz created the first approved hydrogen locomotive in Poland. The vehicle can be used to its full extent and will ultimately operate on a siding of the production plant in Plock. The launch of pilot programmes aimed at implementing the use of hydrogen in heavy road, rail, sea, and river transport, as well as their further development until 2030, is also planned. Moreover, in the 2030 perspective, the hydrogen strategy provides for further development of the network of hydrogen refuelling stations and the implementation of 800 to 1000 more hydrogen-powered buses in addition to the production of synthetic fuels based on hydrogen [2]. The ecological effect of implementing the hydrogen strategy will be a reduction in the emissions of certain greenhouse gases and air pollutants. Reducing air pollution emissions should improve air quality, reduce the risk to human health, and improve living conditions. In order to determine the impact of the implementation of the hydrogen economy in Poland on the reduction in pollutant emissions, a detailed analysis [83] was carried out, which shows that at the national level, the implementation of the Polish hydrogen strategy will not produce significant ecological effects in the years 2030-2040 in terms of reducing greenhouse gases, nor will it have a measurable impact on reducing the costs of health and social care. In the Silesian Voivodeship and areas of Poland where PM2.5 dust emission standards are exceeded, it will be justified to increase the use of hydrogen in the heating sector in order to improve the health and quality of life of residents and reduce the external costs of energy production [83]. The penultimate group of activities supported in PHS concerns the efficient and safe transmission, distribution, and storage of hydrogen. Especially in the initial phase of development of the hydrogen market, its transport will take place primarily using road and rail transport (tank trucks, cylinder trucks). As the consumer demand for hydrogen grows, its transport in gaseous form can be carried out via new or existing gas infrastructure pipelines after appropriate modifications [85]. Suitable metallic materials for hydrogen pipelines are austenitic stainless steels resistant to hydrogen embrittlement. Lightweight composite materials based on carbon fibre-reinforced polymers, which are characterised by adequate resistance to hydrogen operating pressures, can also be used for hydrogen transport [86]. According to Poland's national energy policy until 2040 [87], by 2030, Poland is to achieve the ability to transport through gas networks a mixture containing approximately 10% gases other than natural gas, e.g., hydrogen. Poland's participation in the European Hydrogen Backbone Initiative, in which European companies cooperate to plan a pan-European dedicated hydrogen transport infrastructure, certainly has a very positive impact on the development of the hydrogen economy. In turn, both aboveground and underground tanks can be used for storage. The former includes depleted oil and gas fields, caverns (empty spaces in rock), and abandoned mines [88]. It should be emphasised that in the world, only storage facilities in salt caverns are currently used to store large amounts of hydrogen [89]. At present, there are no underground hydrogen storage facilities in Poland. The research results presented in [90; 91] confirm that there are real possibilities of hydrogen storage in underground geological structures in Poland. As part of a research and development project, a cavern in Baligoard was selected as a place to store hydrogen for electricity production. The maximum capacity of the cavern used in the project assumptions may range from 190,000 to 350,000 m\({}^{3}\), which allows from 2000 to 3000 tons of hydrogen to be stored.