Research Progress of Cryogenic Materials for Storage and Transportation of Liquid Hydrogen

Abstract

Liquid hydrogen is the main fuel of large-scale low-temperature heavy-duty rockets, and has become the key direction of energy development in China in recent years. As an important application carrier in the large-scale storage and transportation of liquid hydrogen, liquid hydrogen cryogenic storage and transportation containers are the key equipment related to the national defense security of China’s aerospace and energy fields. Due to the low temperature of liquid hydrogen (20 K), special requirements have been put forward for the selection of materials for storage and transportation containers including the adaptability of materials in a liquid hydrogen environment, hydrogen embrittlement characteristics, mechanical properties, and thermophysical properties of liquid hydrogen temperature, which can all affect the safe and reliable design of storage and transportation containers. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to systematically master the types and properties of cryogenic materials for the development of liquid hydrogen storage and transportation containers. With the wide application of liquid hydrogen in different occasions, the requirements for storage and transportation container materials are not the same. In this paper, the types and applications of cryogenic materials commonly used in liquid hydrogen storage and transportation containers are reviewed. The effects of low-temperature on the mechanical properties of different materials are introduced. The research progress of cryogenic materials and low-temperature performance data of materials is introduced. The shortcomings in the research and application of cryogenic materials for liquid hydrogen storage and transportation containers are summarized to provide guidance for the future development of container materials. Among them, stainless steel is the most widely used cryogenic material for liquid hydrogen storage and transportation vessel, but different grades of stainless steel also have different applications, which usually need to be comprehensively considered in combination with its low temperature performance, corrosion resistance, welding performance, and other aspects. However, with the increasing demand for space liquid hydrogen storage and transportation, the research on high specific strength cryogenic materials such as aluminum alloy, titanium alloy, or composite materials is also developing. Aluminum alloy liquid hydrogen storage and transportation containers are widely used in the space field, while composite materials have significant advantages in being lightweight. Hydrogen permeation is the key bottleneck of composite storage and transportation containers. At present, there are still many technical problems that have not been solved.

Hydrogen energy production, storage methods, and applications for power generation

“…Hydrogen liquefaction technology has long been mature in some developed countries. According to statistics, more than 85% of the world's liquid hydrogen is produced and stored in North America [23]. However, in China, there are only three liquefaction plants, all of which serve space rocket launches [24].…”

Metallic Materials and Their Applications in Aerospace and Advanced Technologies

“…The first addresses cryogenic materials used in the storage and transportation of liquid hydrogen, presented by Qiu et al [28] and funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China. In this paper, the authors assert that "liquid hydrogen and the hydrogen energy industry have become the key direction of energy development in China" for defense, space, and energy purposes.…”

Desain dan Analisis Tanki ISO LNG Kapasitas 40 feet Menggunakan Teknik Finite Element Analysis

“…LNG didistribusikan ke pengguna akhir pada temperatur cryogenic sekitar -165 o C. Sehingga hanya material tertentu yang dapat digunakan untuk menyimpan fluida pada temperatur ekstrim tersebut (Włodek, 2017). Pemilihan material cryogenic tersebut harus dilakukan secara hatihati dikarenakan akan terjadi perubahan sifat material yang sangat drastis ketika diekspos pada temperatur rendah ekstrim (Qiu dkk., 2021). Material yang biasanya bersifat duktil pada temperatur atmosfer dapat menjadi sangat getas ketika dikondisikan pada temperatur yang sangat rendah, sementara material cryogenic keuletannya lebih meningkat.…”