The company’s liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) technology uses a chemical process to combine hydrogen gas with a liquid carrier that is compatible with existing refining assets and infrastructure. The carrier can then be transported in the same way as gasoline or similar hydrocarbons.
Once at its destination, the hydrogen is recovered from the carrier using the Honeywell UOP methylcyclohexane dehydrogenation process in existing idle oil refining assets.
According to the company, a low-density, explosive gas such as hydrogen “cannot be transported efficiently in a gaseous form” because it requires costly vessels and new dedicated infrastructure, while ammonia also raises safety and environmental concerns and would require additional infrastructure to accommodate new volume.
Bryan Glover, president of Honeywell UOP, said the long-distance transport option offered by the LOHC technology could “kickstart hydrogen ecosystems”.
By using existing refining assets and offering solutions across the hydrogen value chain, from production and conversion to transmission, storage, distribution and use, the LOHC solution could “make operations safer, more efficient, and more reliable”, Glover added, which would enable hydrogen to play a major role in the energy mix.
