Sealing expertise for industrial hydrogen applications

Hydrogen, a key driver of decarbonization

Hydrogen (H₂) is the most abundant element in the universe. On earth, it is found primarily in bound form in fossil raw materials such as crude oil or natural gas, in many minerals, and in water (H₂O). It has the highest energy content per kilogram of all molecules and is often referred to as the "Swiss Army Knife" of fuels due to its role as a fuel/energy storer for renewable electricity and its widespread use in various industrial applications.

To date, hydrogen has been used primarily in refining, chemical processes, and fertilizer production. It is also useful in energy-intensive applications, especially those that cannot be electrified, such as steel and cement production (otherwise known as hard-to-abate sectors), and in long-haul and heavy-duty transportation where batteries are less feasible due to weight and range limitations. Renewable energy can be used to produce hydrogen as a fuel but also as a storage medium when surplus renewables are available.

As a versatile energy carrier, hydrogen therefore plays an important role in the industry and energy transition and can make a significant contribution to reducing emissions in the major CO₂ emitting sectors. Furthermore, the use ofhydrogen and its derivatives in the transition away from conventional fuels can help stimulate competitiveness and innovation among companies in the energy sector.

However, the production pathway of hydrogen dictates how environmentally friendly it is.

1. Desalination: Depending on the water source, desalination is necessary to remove salt and other contaminants.
   One of the most advanced methods is reverse osmosis (RO).

2. Electrolyzers split H₂O molecules into hydrogen and oxygen using electric current. Three types of electrolyzers are currently mainly used: Alkaline electrolyzers, PEM electrolyzers (proton exchange membrane) and solid oxide electrolyzers (SOFC).

3. Green hydrogen is produced electrolytically using renewable energy.
   Yellow hydrogen is produced using solar energy.
   Pink hydrogen is produced using nuclear energy.

4. Gray hydrogen is produced from methane (natural gas) using the steam methane reforming or autothermal reforming process. However, this process emits CO₂

5. Blue hydrogen is produced in the same way as gray hydrogen, but the resulting CO₂ is captured and stored using carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology

6. Turquoise hydrogen is also produced from methane (natural gas) by a process called methane pyrolysis in which methane is split into hydrogen and solid carbon, emitting no CO₂.

7. Ammonia (NH₃):
   The production of ammonia is done by the well-established Haber-Bosch process. Ammonia can be used as a transport vector for hydrogen and has the advantage of being somewhat easier to handle than liquified hydrogen (LH₂). It is currently transported at scale.

EagleBurgmann, the reliable sealing technology partner for your hydrogen project

EagleBurgmann en­gi­neers has been involved in over 200 hydrogen projects in which com­pa­nies, from a wide range of in­dus­tries have ben­e­fited from our ex­ten­sive ex­per­tise and in-depth knowl­edge of sealing ap­pli­ca­tions.

Our offering to end users, OEMs and EPC com­pa­nies includes a broad port­fo­lio of superior sealing tech­nology for vir­tu­ally every type of in­dus­trial ap­pli­ca­tion. In addition, we provide con­sult­ing, en­gi­neer­ing, and valuable tech­ni­cal services wherever you operate in the world.

Our in­ter­na­tional team of qual­i­fied en­gi­neers support with ex­e­cu­tion of low-car­bon hydrogen projects and offer project specific tech­ni­cal support. To learn why it is worth choosing a qual­i­fied sealing partner from the start of a project, click here.

Hydrogen production

Hydrogen was first dis­cov­ered in the 18th century and has been produced for more than 100 years. In the past, little at­ten­tion has been paid to the pro­duc­tion process and the as­so­ci­ated CO₂ emis­sions. However, the fight against an­thro­pogenic climate change demands action. Cli­mate-friendly methods are needed to produce hydrogen.

Various processes are cur­rently being re­searched and worked on to meet the growing hydrogen demand with eco­nom­i­cal and cli­mate-friendly so­lu­tions. Re­gard­less of the pro­duc­tion process, the re­sult­ing hydrogen is always the same.

EagleBurgmann sealing technology for any production process

EagleBurgmann has always been a reliable full-ser­vice partner for industry and the energy sector and is actively involved in the latest de­vel­op­ments.

You can choose from a wide range of largely stan­dard­ized seals to equip water pumps for cooling, cir­cu­la­tion, or de­sali­na­tion. Of course, cus­tomized designs are also possible. For more in­for­ma­tion on our range of sealing so­lu­tions for water ap­pli­ca­tions, click here.

When hydrogen is con­verted to ammonia (NH₃) for trans­porta­tion purposes, NH₃ of­fload­ing pumps are used. We can provide the right sealing tech­nol­ogy here too.

Hydrogen com­pres­sion is another crucial part of the pro­duc­tion value chain. Our dry gas seals are con­stantly being tested for the latest hydrogen ap­pli­ca­tions and are avail­able for hydrogen as well as NH₃ com­pres­sion. We have even com­pleted ex­plo­sion and flame trans­mis­sion re­sis­tance testing on our proven CobaSeal for pipeline blending ap­pli­ca­tions along with multiple fea­si­bil­ity studies for cus­tomers.

Hydrogen conversion

Hydrogen con­verted to ammonia (NH₃) has been used for decades in a wide range of in­dus­trial processes. With global efforts to de­car­bonize the economy, ammonia is now becoming more relevant as a trans­port vector for hydrogen.

Although hydrogen has the highest energy content per kilogram of any molecule in the universe, it is also the smallest molecule in the universe. Its vol­u­met­ric energy density under normal at­mos­pheric con­di­tions is ex­tremely low (0.09 kg/m³). There­fore, to trans­port hydrogen cost-ef­fec­tively, it must be liq­ue­fied to increase its energy density, a tech­nol­ogy that is being de­vel­oped. However, liquid hydrogen (LH₂) has a boiling point of about -253 °C, thus the energy required to keep it that cold is quite sub­stan­tial.

The boiling point of liquid ammonia is about -33°C. Liquid ammonia is already being shipped at scale world­wide, which is why projects are being de­vel­oped globally to convert hydrogen to ammonia.

Other storage media, such as liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHC) or bio­methanol, are also options for trans­port­ing hydrogen over long dis­tances.

EagleBurgmann has been involved in numerous projects such as ammonia and methanol pro­duc­tion. Our en­gi­neers are ready to assist you with your project and provide their ap­pli­ca­tion ex­per­tise to seal your machines and systems safely and reliably.

Hydrogen storage

In the future, hydrogen storage will play an im­por­tant role in ensuring a reliable supply of elec­tric­ity, heat, and fuels, re­gard­less of the weather, time of day or season. Energy surplus can be stored long term by con­vert­ing the elec­trons produced to hydrogen and storing it as a gas. The gas can either be used directly for in­dus­trial ap­pli­ca­tions, such as direct re­duc­tion of iron ore (DRI) in steel pro­duc­tion, or it can be used in fuel cells or turbines to generate elec­tric­ity in periods when re­new­able energy is not avail­able.

Various methods for hydrogen storage are avail­able such as com­pressed gas storage, cryo­genic liquid storage or solid storage. The possible storage lo­ca­tions are equally diverse, ranging from above-ground tanks or metal hydride storage fa­cil­i­ties to un­der­ground caverns and pore storage fa­cil­i­ties.

EagleBurgmann provides con­sult­ing and en­gi­neer­ing services for the correct se­lec­tion and ap­pli­ca­tion-spe­cific design of sealing tech­nol­ogy to ensure that the pumps and com­pres­sors used operate ef­fi­ciently and safely.

Hydrogen transportation

For the trans­port of hydrogen over long dis­tances, pipelines are con­sid­ered the most cost-ef­fec­tive option. The use of the existing gas network for blending purposes and the de­vel­op­ment of pure hydrogen pipelines are there­fore the subject of in­ten­sive research e.g., sim­u­la­tion testing to de­ter­mine suitable ma­te­ri­als and the de­f­i­n­i­tion of stan­dards.

Existing natural gas pipelines have the po­ten­tial to trans­port a 20 percent hydrogen blend without major mod­i­fi­ca­tions to the pipeline itself. EagleBurgmann products, such as  and the as­so­ci­ated bearing oil seal CobaSeal, have already un­der­gone ex­ten­sive safety tests, and have proven their suit­abil­ity for such mixed gas ap­pli­ca­tions.

Com­pres­sor OEMs and other equip­ment man­u­fac­tur­ers still face several tech­ni­cal chal­lenges to develop a safe and func­tional hydrogen in­fra­struc­ture. Our ex­pe­ri­enced design and project en­gi­neers are ready to apply their tech­ni­cal ex­per­tise to sealing tech­nol­ogy issues.

Our various sealing so­lu­tions are cur­rently being tested for ap­pli­ca­tions with pure hydrogen (>99.9 % by volume), in­clud­ing cryo­genic hydrogen. Several fea­si­bil­ity studies have also already been carried out.

Working together for the safe use of hydrogen

EagleBurgmann is not only your supplier of ex­cel­lent sealing tech­nol­ogy, but also your service and de­vel­op­ment partner for hydrogen ap­pli­ca­tions. Com­pa­nies benefit from our prox­im­ity to cus­tomers, our high level of in­no­va­tion, and our com­pre­hen­sive tech­ni­cal ex­per­tise.