Materials and techniques for hydrogen separation from methane-containing gas mixtures

Abstract

Because hydrogen is a high-quality, clean energy carrier, it is and will continue to be one of the key elements/fuels to help solve the climate problem. In addition, new chemical production processes and the development of high-efficiency fuel cells require high-purity hydrogen, as it is one of their critical components. The production of hydrogen from natural gas makes it possible to smoothly transition to “green energy”. However, synthetically produced hydrogen contains other impurities and some unreacted substituents such as CO2, N2,CH4, etc.We have reviewed the main technologies for hydrogen purification, such as pressure swing adsorption (PSA), and cryogenic distillation. The focus of the article will be on the description of hydrogen separation, including a membrane module and an electrochemical hydrogen compressor. The scalability of the technology and the high degree of purification make membrane technology a promising method for hydrogen purification and separation. Different properties of membranes, such as high resistance to poisoning in ceramic membranes or a high degree of purification in dense metal membranes, make it possible to create mixed technologies for hydrogen separation and purification.