A characteristic of renewable energies (RE) is that they are generated in a fluctuating manner. The higher the share of RE in the electricity mix, the more likely it is that electricity supply and demand will not match and that RE generation plants will have to be shut down. One way to counteract this trend is to design processes that can react dynamically to electricity generation (demand side management).

The SAE-TTA (Sulfuric Acid Electrification, Tests and Technological Applications) project is investigating the continuous electrolysis of sulfuric acid. If the operating parameters are chosen appropriately, hydrogen peroxide (or another peroxide) is produced at the anode instead of oxygen. The peroxide is able to oxidise sulfur dioxide in a chemical absorption (scrubber) and further form sulfuric acid. Hydrogen is produced at the cathode.

With this approach, part of the sulfuric acid production could be electrified and the process adapted to fluctuating electricity production.