Integrated quantitative assessments of urban hydrogen refueling stations in economic, environmental, and safety aspects

As the hydrogen society emerges, hydrogen refueling stations (HRSs) should be installed to accommodate the demand for fuel-cell electric vehicles. In this study, to determine the acceptable HRS for urban areas, off-site and on-site HRSs were investigated using techno-economic, life-cycle, and quantitative risk assessments to evaluate their economic, environmental, and safety performances. Five promising hydrogen sources (compressed hydrogen, liquid hydrogen, ammonia, natural gas, and water electrolysis) were selected for a defined urban HRS capable of producing 600 kg of hydrogen daily. The results revealed that gaseous HRSs are the most dangerous HRS because of the explosion risk of the compressed hydrogen stored in the tube; however, their lack of hydrogenation or liquefaction processes makes them the most cost-effective and environmentally friendly, with a levelized cost of 7.32 $/kgH2 and a carbon intensity of 13.72 kgCO2-eq/kgH2. When renewable energy systems become commercialized and the use of green electricity and hydrogen becomes popular, liquid HRSs will perform best, with 5.73 $/kgH2 and 1.47 kgCO2-eq/kgH2 owing to their simple process structure and low energy consumption.