Development and Operation of a 1.5 t/d Hydrogen Liquefaction Plant

This 1.5 t/d hydrogen liquefaction plant, applying reverse-Brayton cycle refrigeration process, is the first to be independently developed, designed, integrated and marking an important breakthrough in China’s civilian hydrogen liquefaction technology field. This paper primarily introduces the liquefaction process, performance, and system composition of this hydrogen liquefaction plant, and presents the operational and performance test results. By analyzing remote monitoring data, operational performance data such as the liquefaction rate, ortho-hydrogen content, liquid nitrogen consumption, compressor power consumption, and specific energy consumption were obtained. The measured liquefaction rate under full load conditions is 1.59 t/d, with a specific energy consumption of 15.1 kW·h/kg, and the para-hydrogen content in the product liquid hydrogen is 98.5%, all of which are superior to the design values. There will be important academic significance and engineering value for the independent development, integration, and operation of large-scale hydrogen liquefiers based on the research results of this hydrogen liquefier.