Challenge #72

Safely storing and transporting hydrogen.

As an essential chemical energy carrier, hydrogen can be stored in different forms (as a gas or as a liquid, or absorbed into solid or liquid LOHCs). We are working on technical solutions and developing new standards for this purpose.

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To be available as an energy carrier in the short term, hydrogen must be able to be stored safely and transported reliably around the world. This can be done in underground storage facilities, in the existing natural gas networks, or with the help of innovative technologies such as the LOHC technology that our scientists have developed.

This technology allows hydrogen to be chemically absorbed into a liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC). The carrier liquid thus serves as a kind of liquid storage bottle for hydrogen, storing 650 liters of hydrogen in a single liquid liter. In terms of handling and physical properties, the oily substance is quite similar to common fuels and can be safely and easily transported by tanker and train.

(Photo: HI ERN/Lucas Reinhardt)