Optimization of Hydrogen Utilization Ratio in Hydrogen Filling Stations

High pressure hydrogen storage is widely used in hydrogen filling stations and fuel cell automobiles. Currently, single filling is the main method for hydrogen transfer from stationary storage tanks to cylinders of fuel cell automobiles. Along with the wide application of hydrogen the multistage filling will be adopted in hydrogen filling stations due to its high hydrogen utilization ratio. The hydrogen utilization ratio of single or multistage filling can be determined by various parameters such as the pressure and volume of the stationary tanks and cylinders of fuel cell automobiles. In this research, the utilization ratios of hydrogen in different filling methods are analyzed using the algorithm established in this article based on the real gas law of hydrogen and the corresponding hydrogen utilization ratios are obtained. The results show that it can be significantly improved using multistage filling method and reaches a maximum as the ratio of the volume of higher-pressure stationary tank to the lower one is 0.5.Copyright © 2008 by ASME