Question 11: How are hydrogen filling stations supplied with hydrogen?

Answer: Usually, filling stations are supplied with compressed hydrogen using special trailers. The pressure in the tanks of such trailers is usually 200 bar, and the entire transported volume of hydrogen is divided into several sections.

Individual hydrogen filling stations are supplied with hydrogen from transport trailers by pumping hydrogen from separate sections of the transport trailer tank to the working supply of the filling station. The working stock can be stored at high pressures up to 200 bar, large volume tanks with working pressures up to 50 bar are also used. Large volume tanks have a higher capacity as the transport trailer will leave the filling station with a lower residual hydrogen pressure in the tank.

In large countries with long distances, hydrogen is transported in a liquefied state. Its disadvantage is the significant energy consumption for liquefaction (the boiling point of hydrogen is -253 ° C). The advantage of liquefied hydrogen is the significantly higher volume of transported gas. In this case, hydrogen filling stations are equipped with reservoirs for liquefied hydrogen, which serve as a source of gaseous hydrogen. Atmospheric evaporators are used to convert liquefied gas into gaseous form. This technology is used primarily in the United States. In the countries of near Europe, the supply of liquefied hydrogen is of little use. There are currently no projects with liquefied hydrogen in the Czech Republic.