Hydrogen can be produced in many different ways from many different sources. Regardless of the source and method, pure water is a fundamental requirement for hydrogen production, and every parameter, from the way pure water is obtained to its purity level, is a primary criterion in hydrogen production processes.
Enarsis develops systems with high energy efficiency and low waste levels that can meet the pure water requirements for hydrogen production plants.
Key Features
Our Technologies Used in Hydrogen Production Processes
Water Treatment in Hydrogen Production Plants
Water purification systems are used to obtain the high quality and purity water needed in hydrogen production processes. Minerals, organic compounds and impurities in water degrade water purity, reducing the lifetime of equipment in hydrogen plants and significantly reducing efficiency. In hydrogen production by electrolysis, impure water lowers the conductivity of the electrolytes, negatively affecting the hydrogen generation process. In the steam methane reforming process, the use of impure water leads to inactivation of catalysts and rapid wear of equipment. For these reasons, it is important to use treatment systems such as filtration, reverse osmosis, ion exchanger in order to operate hydrogen production facilities efficiently and safely. The treatment systems will increase the production efficiency and equipment life of hydrogen plants by meeting the need for high quality water.
Advantages of using a water purification system in hydrogen plants
- Increased process efficiency
- Increased equipment lifetime
- High process reliability
- Increase in product quality
- Reduction in downtime due to maintenance and repair
In hydrogen production processes by electrolysis, water is used as the main hydrogen source. Electrolysis is carried out by passing an electric current through water, thus separating hydrogen and oxygen. The resulting hydrogen is used in areas such as fuel cells and industrial processes. Hydrogen can also be produced by steam methane reforming and coal gasification. While water plays an important role in all these production methods, its role in these processes becomes much more important when considered together with its environmental impact.
The use of untreated water in hydrogen production applications can cause serious damage to equipment. Water in nature contains high amounts of organic matter, ions and minerals. The impurities created by all these components directly affect the process efficiency and significantly reduce the benefit from the process. For example, dissolved minerals and salts accumulate on the electrodes, reducing the effective surface area of the electrodes and, in parallel, the electrolysis efficiency decreases. In addition, some organic compounds and heavy metals can reduce or completely eliminate the performance of catalysts. For all these reasons, water treatment systems are one of the key pillars of operating a safe and efficient hydrogen production plant.
