Thermodynamic analysis on para-ortho hydrogen conversion and chemical energy recovery coupled in vapor-cooled shield for liquid hydrogen storage
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18686/cest820Keywords:
liquid hydrogen storage , Thermal insulation materials , cold shield , chemical energy recovery , para-ortho hydrogen conversion heat recoveryAbstract
A liquid hydrogen storage has been widely applied due to its high volumetric hydrogen density and purity, yet achieving overall efficient hydrogen storage remains a key challenge for the widespread adoption of hydrogen energy. The significant temperature difference between liquid hydrogen and the ambient environment results in substantial and continuous evaporation even under minimal external heat flux, posing a major challenge to long-term liquid hydrogen storage. Developing efficient passive thermal insulation technology is therefore critical for maintaining the stability of liquid hydrogen storage. Passive insulation systems typically employ insulation materials combined with a vapor-cooled shield (VCS) to recover sensible heat of the evaporated low-temperature hydrogen gas, and further optimization is needed considering the unique thermophysical properties of hydrogen. Novel passive insulation systems for liquid hydrogen storage were proposed based on four optimization strategies: optimization of insulation material combinations, sensible heat recovery, chemical energy recovery, and para-ortho hydrogen conversion heat recovery. The effects of each optimization strategy on improving insulation performance were evaluated quantitatively. Additionally, the effects of cold shield position, recovery efficiency of the cold shield, vacuum rupture, hot boundary temperature, and storage pressure on the system’s insulation performance have been investigated. The results show that the proposed system integrates hollow glass microspheres (HGMs), variable-density multilayer insulation (VDMLI), a cold shield, para-ortho hydrogen conversion catalysts, a hydrogen fuel cell (HFC), and a refrigerator, enhances insulation performance by 88.1% compared to a conventional HGMs + MLI system. Theoretical foundations were provided for the design of high-performance passive insulation systems for long-duration liquid hydrogen storage.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Xiafan Xu, Zhongli Zhang, Zhaozhao Gao, Liubiao Chen, Junjie Wang
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