화학공학소재연구정보센터
International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol.43, No.46, 21451-21463, 2018
Simulation of boil-off losses during transfer at a LH2 based hydrogen refueling station
Losses along the LH2 pathway are intrinsic to the utilization of a cryogenic fluid. They occur when the fluid is transferred between 2 vessels (liquefaction plant to trailer, trailer to station storage, station storage to pump or compressor, then possibly onto fuel cell electric vehicles ...) and when it is warmed up due to heat transfer with the environment. Those losses can be estimated with good accuracy using thermodynamic models based on the conservation of mass and energy, provided that the thermodynamic states are correctly described. Indeed, the fluid undergoes various changes as it moves along the entire pathway (2 phase transition, sub-cooled liquid phase, super-heated warming, non-uniform temperature distributions across the saturation film) and accurate equations of state and 2 phase behavior implementations are essential. The balances of mass and energy during the various dynamics processes then enable to quantify the boil-off losses. In this work, a MATLAB code previously developed by NASA to simulate rocket loading is used as the basis for a LH2 transfer model. This code implements complex physical phenomena such as the competition between condensation and evaporation and the convection vs. conduction heat transfer as a function of the relative temperatures on both sides of the saturated film. The original code was modified to consider real gas equations of state, and some semi empirical relationships, such as between the heat of vaporization and the critical temperature, were replaced by a REFPROP equivalent expression, assumed to be more accurate. Non-constant liquid temperature equations were added to simulate sub-cooled conditions. The model shows that under environmental heat transfer only the liquid phase of a LH2 vessel would experience cooling, while the boil-off is mainly a result of evaporation from the saturation film onto the vapor phase. Under the conditions assumed for this work, it was also concluded that the actual LH2 density was lower than the corresponding saturation density given by the working pressure of the vessel. During a bottom fill transfer, for example from a LH2 trailer to an on-site stationary vessel, it is shown that the boil-off losses are due to the compression of the vapor phase ("pdV" force). The model indicates that the magnitude of those losses is not dependent on the regulated pressure in the receiving vessel but is rather a function of the initial pressure in the vessel, amounting to more than 12% of losses for a vessel initially at 100 psia. At last, the model is used to estimate the amount of vapor H-2 vented when depressurizing a LH2 trailer following a LH2 delivery. (C) 2018 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.