Targeting oil-free hydrogen compressor solution for 7977 psi (550 bar) discharge pressure and mass flows above 150 kg/h, Burckhardt Compression (Burckhardt) has added a new compressor to its lineup, the Hydrogen Compressor Type 3C4S. This high-pressure piston compressor is specifically designed for hydrogen trailer filling and fuel stations with high mass flows and helps reduce the required number of deployed compressors per hydrogen trailer filling or fuel station.
“High pressure levels for piston compressors are applied in many of Burckhardt’s target markets such as gas transport and storage, refinery, petrochemical, upstream oil and gas, and industrial gas applications,” said Thorsten Harder, product manager, Systems Division, at Burckhardt. “The requirements for the increased pressure ranges of hydrogen mobility applications, such as hydrogen trailer filling and fueling reaching up to 550 bar with highest requirements on hydrogen purity, triggered our oil-free high-pressure piston and packing sealing system development.”
Rated 430 hp (320 kW), the new compressor was tested at Burckhardt’s testing facility in Switzerland. Critical components, oil-free high-pressure piston sealing, and packings proved their mechanical and sealing performance at 7977 psi discharge pressure.
“Outstanding sealing system performance was demonstrated with an oil-free operated compressor running for 27,000 hours at lower pressures with a single set of wear parts,” said Harder. “A hydrogen trailer filling compressor with oil-free hydrogen compressed to 230 bar (3335 psi) has been in operation since 2001 with 12,000 hour mean-time-between-overhaul reached. Burckhardt Compression’s proprietary Persisto materials and Redura piston and packing configurations have proven, by extensive testing, that they can solve the challenges of high-pressure oil-free compression specified for the upcoming, larger hydrogen filling and fuel stations.”
Redura stands for reliable, durable, and advanced sealing elements. A heterogeneous sealing system, the product line was developed by Burkhardt includes standard rings and packings, as well as custom designed products.
As the hydrogen economy advances worldwide, cost remains a hurdle. “The main challenge of the industry today is to get the costs of hydrogen down to competitive levels in order to create an environment that attracts enough hydrogen producers and consumer to generate broad acceptance for hydrogen as fuel,” said Harder.
“Something else that must be addressed is solution-development partnerships. Joint development across the value chain of this industry will help to standardize solutions with low engineering costs, leveraging economies of scale, increasing the reliability/availability, and consequently lowering the hydrogen costs at the dispenser,” added Harder. “Burckhardt Compression has been investing in high-pressure oil-free compression technology research and development for more than 20 years, mainly in developing robust, long-lasting piston and piston rod sealing systems that are crucial for these applications. While other existing technologies used for these applications are limited, piston compressors have the potential to scale up to the required mass flows which minimizes the quantity of installed compressors, which ultimately reduces capital spending and operation costs.”
According to Harder, Burckhardt’s Hydrogen Compressor Type 3C4S is the next step in helping the industry to drive hydrogen costs to a competitive level. “Utilizing our oil-free high-pressure piston compressor sealing technology, Burckhardt will continue support the hydrogen economy to scale up the volumes in hydrogen trailer filling and fuel stations in the most cost-efficient way over the installation’s lifetime. Bringing hydrogen technology to scale is critical for this industry to succeed. And this is exactly what Burckhardt is doing with this oil-free, high-pressure piston compressor.”
This article appears in the February 2022 issue of Gas Compression Magazine. Available in print and digit formats, subscribe for free and never miss an issue!
