Tue, 02 August, 2022
TWI is one of eleven organisations working on a new project to mature a new generation of ultraporous materials for high-density hydrogen storage.
The project, ‘Maturing the production standards of ultraporous structures for high density hydrogen storage bank operating on swinging temperatures and low compression (MAST3RBoost),’ will bring this new generation of ultraporous materials with a 30% increase of the working capacity of hydrogen at 100 bar.
The 48-month project will turn lab-scale synthesis protocols into industrial-like manufacturing processes. Densified prototypes of activated carbons (ACs) and MOFs will be produced beyond 10 kg for the first time using existing pre-industrial facilities, with the process actively guided by unsupervised machine learning. In addition, the project will also establish the foundations for in-depth supervised learning in the hydrogen storage sector with harmonised procedures.
The project partners will pursue the use of recycled raw materials for the manufacture of the ultraporous materials. The recycled materials will be sourced from agroforestry waste biomass and solid urban waste. In parallel, new lightweight Al and Mg-based metal alloys will be adapted for additive manufacturing via the WAAM technology.
There will also be improvements to the mechanical property databases for pressure vessel design, so that they cover gaps for testing under compressed hydrogen.
WAAM and engineering capacities (using COMSOL numerical calculation) will allow the production of an innovative type I vessel demonstrator, including balance of plant and with a dedicated shape to better fit on-board. A unique combination of maximum pressure (up to 100 bar) and carefully selected temperature swing will allow the production of a system storage density as high as 33 gH2/lsys. The system will be manufactured to embed 1 kg of hydrogen, becoming a worldwide benchmark for the adsorbed storage at low compression with a highly competitive projected cost for the automotive sector.
This demonstrator will embody an actual and techno-economically feasible solution for transportation sectors that require storage capacities beyond 60 kg of hydrogen, such as trucks, trains and aeroplanes.
LCA and risk and safety assessment will be performed with high-quality data and shared with stakeholders from the sector.
TWI are joined by Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Spike Renewables SRL, EDAG Engineering Gmbh, Nanolayers OU, Fundacion Cidetec, LKR Leichtmetall Kompetenzzentrum Ranshoffen Gmbh, the University of Pretoria, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Peugeot Citreon Automoveis Portugal SA, and the University of Nottingham for this collaborative project.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe's research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101058574. TWI's work in this project is funded by Innovate UK under grant no 10040807.