Safe and efficient hydrogen liquefication and plant design
With funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), and in partnership with Future Energy Exports CRC, the University of Western Australia and industry, University of Melbourne researchers are helping make hydrogen processing and storage more cost competitive and safe.
Hydrogen is all around us but challenging to harness as a fuel. By using renewable energy to isolate hydrogen from other elements, we can produce a sustainable fuel with zero carbon emissions: green hydrogen.
Green hydrogen is a key component in Australia’s transition to net zero. It can be stored as a gas or liquid to fuel heavy transport such as trucks, ships and planes; to burn for heat production for example in steelmaking; to store electricity for distribution and export; and as a component in industrial processes such as fertiliser production.
Australia’s hydrogen pipeline is the largest in the world, with up to $300 billion in potential investments. Estimates show that demand for hydrogen exported from Australia could be over 3 million tonnes each year by 2040, which could be worth up to $10 billion each year to the economy by that time.
However, research is still needed to identify the most safe and efficient ways to process, store, transport and use this promising alternative fuel source.
"A good way to store and transport hydrogen, is by liquefying it," said Dr Joe Berry, a fluid dynamics researcher at the University of Melbourne.
As a liquid, hydrogen takes up less volume than as a gas, while maintaining high energy density and versatility in how it can be used. But liquifying hydrogen involves cooling it to -253oC which requires significant energy input. And then, once it is liquefied, it must be stored under strict conditions to avoid both leakage and potential damage from uncontrolled losses.
In comparison to conventional fuel sources, such as petrol and liquified natural gas, hydrogen is more flammable and ignites easily over a broader range of concentrations. Accidental releases are complex to understand due to the significant temperature difference between the cold hydrogen and the surrounding ambient air. As a result, liquid hydrogen remains expensive to produce and comes with significant precautions to ensure safety and avoid potential damage to equipment.
Dr Joe Berry leads a team of University of Melbourne researchers from Chemical and Mechanical Engineering who, in partnership with the Future Energy Exports CRC, the University of Western Australia and industry, are investigating ways to reduce the energy input needed to liquefy hydrogen. This will improve the efficiency of technologies for large-scale storage and improve safety.
The team is using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Molecular Dynamics (MD), and experiments to predict the physics of very cold hydrogen hitting warm air, important for understanding the consequences of accidental leakage. This will inform the risk of flammability and determine more accurate safety guidelines for handling liquid hydrogen, including ways that industry can build smaller and even safer plants.
They are also conducting simulations of the machinery required to cool and liquify hydrogen on a large scale. Using machine-learning and simulation data, they will develop more cost-effective models for efficient hydrogen processing. This will help to identify ways to reduce energy consumption from the process of liquefying hydrogen, and support the adoption and scaling of crucial equipment.
“Ultimately, this will provide industry with the tools and knowledge to safely and efficiently scale-up hydrogen liquefaction, in support of Australia’s clean energy future,” Dr Berry said.
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Research team:
- Dr Eirini Goudeli, Chemical Engineering
- A/Prof. Yi Yang, Mechanical Engineering
- A/Prof. Mohsen Talei, Mechanical Engineering
- Prof. Richard Sandberg, Mechanical Engineering
- Prof. Michael Brear, Mechanical Engineering
For more information, contact the University of Melbourne’s Dr Joe Berry