Energy

The distribution

According to the quantities, hydrogen can be transported through tankers and hydrogen pipelines. The two possibilities significantly differ in costs and therefore only technical-economic assessments can determine the best solution for each case. The long experience in the gas sector can be directly used to create hydrogen distribution networks, which are quite similar to natural gas existing networks. The main differences include the materials used (some types of steel are more compatible with hydrogen) and the design criteria for pumping stations. In fact, hydrogen requires three times as much pumping pressure as methane due to its lower density. Moreover, if the ideal diameter of a gas pipelines is 1.4 metres, the ideal diameter for hydrogen pipelines is 2 metres. However, although it has a lower energy density than natural gas, hydrogen is less viscous than natural gas. As a consequence, the energy needed for its pumping is similar to the energy required for the same quantity of natural gas. Large hydrogen pipelines are present in several countries. In northern France there is a network of around 170 km, while in Europe the total length amounts to more than 1500 km. North America has more than 700 km of pipes for the hydrogen transport. The distribution networks for liquid hydrogen result to be particularly expensive and difficult to manage. They were created only for highly specialized applications, like the refuelling of space ships