Prospects for implementation of hydrogen filling stations in the Russian Federation

The economy of the Russian Federation is aimed at developing a fuel and energy complex that uses environmentally friendly energy, which corresponds to the global trend of reducing emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere during the production of various types of products. Decarbonization is one of the biggest challenges of modern society. To solve this problem, renewable energy sources are being actively introduced, as well as various types of fuel, the combustion of which produces a minimum content of emissions. Among them, we can highlight the fuel that has the greatest prospects; this is hydrogen, a fuel with the highest energy content, reaching a value of 120 MJ/kg. Unlike renewable energy sources, the practice of which in a number of countries has caused a crisis in the reliability of the energy system, hydrogen technologies make it possible to achieve the task of decarbonization with minimal impact on the environment at all stages: production, transportation, combustion, without compromising reliability. The main problems of mass introduction of hydrogen technologies are the difficulty in obtaining, transporting and storing hydrogen fuel. Following the signing of hydrogen strategies, most developed countries are considering using hydrogen as a vehicle fuel. Hydrogen transport, unlike electric transport, is not limited by range, but the high cost of hydrogen transport and the lack of refueling infrastructure hinder the development of this type of technology. Currently, the most common fuel cell system is FCV (fuel cell vehicle).

The article presents the concept of hydrogen refueling, taking into account different technologies for the production of hydrogen fuel. Hydrogen must be stored at a filling station at a pressure of 300–800 bar, in a gaseous or liquid state. An analysis of the cost of construction and subsequent operation of hydrogen filling stations revealed criteria for the economic efficiency of their implementation depending on the amount of fuel consumed and storage methods.