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WE-NET hydrogen refueling station, Japan |
Hydrogen powers automotive fuel cells. Hydrogen can be generated through the processing, or "reforming," of natural gas or liquid fuels. Given the limited pipeline network for hydrogen, on-site generation of hydrogen at the refueling station is the most likely solution for supplying fuel cell vehicles. Two technologies have been proposed to date for "distributed hydrogen production": methane (natural gas) reforming and electrolysis. While hydrogen generation by electrolysis is competitive for small refueling applications, a number of studies have shown that reforming is the most cost-competitive method for providing hydrogen at larger refueling stations.
A number of hydrogen refuelling demonstration projects are currently under way or are planned in the near future. These include hydrogen refuelling stations for the Clean Urban Transport for Europe (CUTE) project in Europe, the Canada Hydrogen Highway in British Columbia, the Japan Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Demonstration Project (JHFC) project, and 37 stations either planned or operational in California.
QuestAir Technology
Generating hydrogen at a service station from natural gas requires equipment to separate and purify the hydrogen. QuestAir's PSA systems can offer a compact and low-cost purification solution to reformer-based hydrogen refueling stations. In particular, the compact size of our PSA systems will be a key differentiating factor in the emerging hydrogen refuelling market, given that space is likely to be at a premium for the retrofit of hydrogen refuelling systems into existing service stations.
To date, the Company has supplied 14 of its first generation H-3100 and H-3200 PSA systems to hydrogen fuelling demonstration projects in the United States, Canada and Asia, including hydrogen fueling stations located in Oakland, California and Tokyo, Japan.
QuestAir™ H-3200
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