JX unit lowers carbon content in fuel cell hydrogen

JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp. has developed refining equipment to purify hydrogen for use in automotive fuel cells, the company said.
The JX Holdings Inc. unit will begin operational tests in September, aiming to commercialize the low-carbon technology in fiscal 2016 or thereafter. Fuel-cell-powered vehicles are already on the radar, with automakers planning to release them as early as 2015.
The new purifier consists of two membranes: one that allows only hydrogen to pass through and another that traps and eliminates carbon dioxide. It boosts the hydrogen recovery rate by about 20% compared to conventional technology, while lowering the production cost by around 10%.
JX is modifying some gas stations in the Tokyo and Nagoya areas to offer hydrogen, with plans to establish 40 hydrogen stations by fiscal 2015. It also intends to install hydrogen-generating equipment at oil facilities in the middle of the decade, thereby creating a hydrogen infrastructure from production to sales.