Outside track: Boost for UK hydrogen rollout

London – In the UK, Atlas Copco has introduced its H2Y hydraulic booster for manufacturers, energy-project developers and infrastructure operators working with high-pressure hydrogen.

The oil-free compression system is designed to raise hydrogen to the pressures required for storage, distribution and dispensing, particularly for hydrogen mobility, refuelling stations, trailer filling and other high-pressure hydrogen applications.

The introduction, he noted, comes as the UK hydrogen sector faces a decisive shift from strategy and project announcements towards delivery, reported Chris Hyde, the company’s business line manager, air and gas applications.

“While hydrogen remains central to many industrial decarbonisation plans, the success of individual schemes increasingly depends on the supporting infrastructure around production, storage, transport and use,” Hyde set out at a Cadence First Friday Club press event.

“If hydrogen is going to be used in power generation or industrial applications it needs to be available at the right pressure and with the right level of control,” he said at the event held 11 Sept in London.

The high-pressure ‘boosting solution’, emphasised the presenter, is “designed for those realities, from variable inlet pressure to reduced gas losses and long-term serviceability.”

H2Y can be configured for discharge pressures of up to 1,000 bar(g): making it suitable for hydrogen refuelling stations and other applications where high-pressure performance, reliability and safe gas handling are critical.

Supplied as a plug-and-play or containerised package - it has been optimised to handle variable inlet pressure and flow rates, helping operators respond to changing production and demand conditions.

Other features include predictive maintenance, long service intervals, closed-loop water cooling, integrated control options and no gas blow-off on start and stop, explained Hyde.

Atlas Copco already supports hydrogen production, transportation and distribution projects through a portfolio including piston compressors, gas compressors, dryers, filters, chillers, control systems and monitoring technologies.

As Hyde concluded: “Hydrogen compression is not new to Atlas Copco. What is changing is the market around it.

"More companies are looking at hydrogen as a practical route to lower-carbon energy, and they need partners who understand both the technology and the process it supports.”