Handling of liquid hydrogen at filling stations

Within the industrial-scale solar hydrogen demonstration facility operated by SWB at Neunburg vorm Wald in Germany, a liquid hydrogen (LH(2)) filling station has been installed for optimization of the LH(2) transfer process to various vehicle fuel tank systems. New types of coupling systems for LH(2) filling lines were tested. Designed for positive self-closing, these systems can be disconnected while containing LH(2). Time needed to fuel LH(2) vehicles and hydrodynamic losses of liquefaction energy are greatly reduced with these coupling systems. An optimized concept for an advanced LH(2) filling station and a vehicle LH(2) tank are described.