Multiscale Engineering of Chemical Processes for Distributed Hydrogen Storage in Sustainable Biomass-Based Carriers

About This Grant

This project focuses on new ways to store hydrogen so it can be used as a clean energy source. Hydrogen is a powerful fuel, but it is hard to store on its own because it is a very light gas. One solution is to combine hydrogen with certain liquids, which makes it easier to store and transport. For this to work, scientists need new technology to create special hydrogen-storing liquids from natural sources like plants. They also need better ways to add hydrogen to these liquids and remove it when needed. This project will create new methods to turn plant materials into hydrogen-storing liquids. It will also study the chemical processes needed to store and release hydrogen more efficiently. Their work includes both laboratory experiments and computer simulations. The project will also look at how this technology could be used in the United States to improve energy systems. The project outcomes could help make the U.S. more energy independent and prepared for future energy needs. The project will also train college students in advanced science and engineering, and support educational programs to teach others about energy storage. Hydrogen is an alternative energy carrier useful for grid energy storage, transportation, and the chemical industry, but storing and transporting pure hydrogen faces major technical hurdles. Liquid hydrogen carriers (LHCs) store hydrogen for long durations in chemical bonds through catalytic (de)hydrogenation. This project will develop the fundamental knowledge to enable new technologies for the storage and transport of distributed hydrogen resources in organic molecules using an integrated experimental reaction engineering and computational process systems engineering approach. First, the researchers will design reaction processes for LHC synthesis from biomass-based carbon feedstocks, using kinetic and process modeling to identify improved conditions, catalysts, and reactor schemes. Next, they will design modular reaction processes for efficient, reversible hydrogen storage and release from LHCs, considering both LHC stability and catalyst performance. Finally, they will perform multiscale modeling, energy integration, and sensitivity analysis of reactor, process, and infrastructure-level supply chain models to evaluate and optimize the feasibility of LHC technologies for different energy demand cases. Leveraging novel reaction engineering approaches including the design of modular catalytic reactors based on alternative carbon and energy inputs, and novel process systems approaches including new mathematical tools to bridge information across length and time-scales, this project will yield fundamental new insights into the design of molecules, reactors, processes, and systems for chemical energy storage. This award is supported by the Process Systems, Reaction Engineering, and Molecular Thermodynamics program, the Environmental Sustainability program and the Catalysis program. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.