ACCEPTABILITY ENVELOPE FOR METAL HYDRIDE-BASED HYDROGEN STORAGE SYSTEMS

The design and evaluation of media based hydrogen storage systems requires the use of detailed numerical models and experimental studies, with significant amount of time and monetary investment. Thus a scoping tool, referred to as the Acceptability Envelope, was developed to screen preliminary candidate media and storage vessel designs, identifying the range of chemical, physical and geometrical parameters for the coupled media and storage vessel system that allow it to meet performance targets. The model which underpins the analysis allows simplifying the storage system, thus resulting in one input-one output scheme, by grouping of selected quantities. Two cases have been analyzed and results are presented here. In the first application the DOE technical targets (Year 2010, Year 2015 and Ultimate) are used to determine the range of parameters required for the metal hydride media and storage vessel. In the second case the most promising metal hydrides available are compared, highlighting the potential of storage systems, utilizing them, to achieve 40% of the 2010 DOE technical target. Results show that systems based on Li-Mg media have the best potential to attain these performance targets

Metal hydrides for concentrating solar thermal power energy storage

The development of alternative methods for thermal energy storage is important for improving the efficiency and decreasing the cost for Concentrating Solar-thermal Power (CSP). We focus on the underlying technology that allows metal hydrides to function as Thermal Energy Storage (TES) systems and highlight the current state-of-the-art materials that can operate at temperatures as low as room-temperature and as high as 1100 oC. The potential of metal hydrides for thermal storage is explored while current knowledge gaps about hydride properties, such as hydride thermodynamics, intrinsic kinetics and cyclic stability, are identified. The engineering challenges associated with utilising metal hydrides for high-temperature thermal energy storage are also addressed

Outlook and challenges for hydrogen storage in nanoporous materials

Considerable progress has been made recently in the use of nanoporous materials for hydrogen storage. In this article, the current status of the field and future challenges are discussed, ranging from important open fundamental questions, such as the density and volume of the adsorbed phase and its relationship to overall storage capacity, to the development of new functional materials and complete storage system design. With regard to fundamentals, the use of neutron scattering to study adsorbed H2, suitable adsorption isotherm equations, and the accurate computational modelling and simulation of H2 adsorption are discussed. The new materials covered include flexible metal-organic frameworks, core-shell materials, and porous organic cage compounds. The article concludes with a discussion of the experimental investigation of real adsorptive hydrogen storage tanks, the improvement in the thermal conductivity of storage beds, and new storage system concepts and designs.Scopu

"Sulphur-Iodine Plant for Large Scale Hydrogen Production by Nuclear Power"

The Sulfur–Iodine (S_I) cycle, driven by nuclear power, seems to be one of the main candidates to produce hydrogen on a large scale. A new S_I process flowsheet is proposed, set up at CEA and simulated by ProSim code and, based on that, data and results on the coupling of the thermochemical plant with a Very High Temperature Nuclear Reactor (VHTR) are presented. The scale up to industrial level, the conceptual design and cost estimation of the plant are then presented and discussed. In order to support a high temperature aggressive environment, well established chemical engineering methods as well as non traditional materials, devices and technologies have been selected. The influence of the adopted technology on the H2 cost has also been investigated and is widely discussed, comparing two different cases. An economic sensitivity analysis carried out by varying the hydrogen production level is presented, showing that an optimum H2 production exists and, due to relevant heat recovery processes, the minimum cost is not achieved for the maximum allowable H2 production rate. Finally an optimized layout for the minimum cost plant, set up adopting the pinch technique, is presented leading to a further reduction of H2 production costs

Hydriding characteristics of NaMgH2F with preliminary technical and cost evaluation of magnesium-based metal hydride materials for concentrating solar power thermal storage

A simplified techno-economic model has been used as a screening tool to explore the factors that have the largest impact on the costs of using metal hydrides for concentrating solar thermal storage. The installed costs of a number of paired metal hydride concentrating solar thermal storage systems were assessed. These comprised of magnesium-based (MgH2, Mg 2FeH6, NaMgH3, NaMgH2F) high-temperature metal hydrides (HTMH) for solar thermal storage and Ti1.2Mn1.8H3.0 as the low-temperature metal hydride (LTMH) for hydrogen storage. A factored method approach was used for a 200 MWel power plant operating at a plant capacity factor (PCF) of 50% with 7 hours of thermal storage capacity at full-load. In addition, the hydrogen desorption properties of NaMgH2F have been measured for the first time. It has a practical hydrogen capacity of 2.5 wt% (2.95 wt% theoretical) and desorbs hydrogen in a single-step process above 478 °C and in a two-step process below 478 °C. In both cases the final decomposition products are NaMgF3, Na and Mg.Only the single-step desorption is suitable for concentrating solar thermal storage applications and has an enthalpy of 96.8 kJ mol-1 H2 at the midpoint of the hydrogen desorption plateau. The techno-economic model showed that the cost of the LTMH, Ti1.2Mn1.8H3.0, is the most significant component of the system and that its cost can be reduced by increasing the operating temperature and enthalpy of hydrogen absorption in the HTMH that, in turn, reduces the quantity of hydrogen required in the system for an equivalent electrical output. The result is that, despite the fact that the theoretical thermal storage capacity of NaMgH2F (1416 kJ kg -1) is substantially lower than the theoretical values for MgH 2 (2814 kJ kg-1), Mg2FeH6 (2090 kJ kg-1) and NaMgH3 (1721 kJ kg-1), its higher enthalpy and operating temperature leads to the lowest installed cost of the systems considered. A further decrease in cost could be achieved by utilizing metal hydrides with yet higher enthalpies and operating temperatures or by finding a lower cost option for the LTMH