Development of 1 L hr(-1) Scale Hydrogen Liquefier Using Gifford-McMahon (GM) Cryocooler

Abstract

Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) have collaborated to develop a demonstration-scale hydrogen liquefier for future liquid hydrogen research in Korea. A 1 L hr(-1) liquefaction rate, direct-cooling type hydrogen liquefier using a commercially available GM cryocooler has been designed, fabricated, and tested at KIST. The liquefier consists of a GM cryocooler, finned heat pipe, liquid nitrogen precooler, ortho-para hydrogen converter, and vacuum jacketed internal storage tank. The system successfully demonstrated more than 1 L hr(-1) of hydrogen liquefaction rate from ambient temperature gas. A detailed design method, loss analysis, overview of component fabrication, and experimental results are discussed in this paper.