Plug Power and Uline expand partnership to supply hydrogen and fuel cells at four additional sites
24 February 2024
Plug Power and Uline, a distributor of shipping, industrial and packaging materials to businesses throughout North America, announced an expanded partnership to deploy Plug’s hydrogen infrastructure and fuel cell solutions at Uline’s new campus in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
This expanded partnership includes the integration of on-site hydrogen infrastructure with the installation of a 18,000-gallon hydrogen storage tank and 17 hydrogen dispensers to service four distribution centers within the campus.
The partnership also includes the addition of 250 fuel cell forklifts that will operate on hydrogen generated on-site through Plug’s infrastructure.
Plug’s hydrogen infrastructure to support the entire campus is set to be commissioned and fully operational within the next ten months, with the first new distribution center in the campus slated to be completed this year. Uline plans to construct three more buildings over the next several years as part of the strategic campus build-out.
The collaboration between Plug and Uline began in 2015 at Uline’s distribution center near its 200-acre corporate campus in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. Over the past 8 years, Uline has used Plug’s fuel cell solutions in its operations, operating 270 fuel cell forklifts between their six facilities. With this expanded partnership, Uline will operate a total of 520 fuel cells and 34 dispensers across ten facilities, making them one of the largest Plug customers.
Myself and SJC were having an interesting - to me at least! ;-) - discussion trying to figure out what storage Plug Power were installing on the site in a previous article here on GCC.
I came across this this today:
https://fuelcellsworks.com/news/forvia-starts-deliveries-of-hydrogen-tanks-from-first-mass-production-plant-in-france-2/
So just one supplier, Forvia, is putting production capacity in place for 100,000 Type IV hydrogen storage tanks per year/
So I asked intelligently: 'Type IV - who he?'
And found this run down of types of hydrogen storage tanks:
https://hyfindr.com/hydrogen-tank/
So that is carbon fibre with a plastic lining, usually at 700 bar, and is the normal type in cars.
For bulk storage where weight is not critical metal Type 1 or 2 tanks are often used as they are cheaper.
If you want to store h2 as a liquid then the very low temperatures make it a whole different ball game.
I enjoy my nerd attacks!
Posted by: Davemart | 24 February 2024 at 02:25 AM
On related news:
The business and economic main-line news accumulators are starting, en masse, to divulge that many large and larger land developers, fossil-fuel extractors/drillers, energy companies, etc., are buying up and developing at and testing within huge swathes of land in the US investigating geologic hydrogen.
Interesting comments within same that Hydrogen is more of a storage system than a direct energy source in such quantities - interesting to say the least...
https://www.ft.com/content/81819f64-1025-489b-959a-c3d9b14cc77a?accessToken=zwAGEgNpSDpYkdOBgZ9kECVIm9OVmsPZsUzHeg.MEUCIFNFS4-LiFSWA4ImEnRWKlQKEXOG9gkhuBqu4bQLGUO_AiEA03ZFw6EDCd9rSAuo58v_YQxKQmfpc7MtvllP_aRfSDE&sharetype=gift&token=3b92f0fa-9a29-4d85-bb33-8fb9c81c423d
Posted by: Jer | 24 February 2024 at 09:51 AM
There are at least two possible revolutions in hydrogen supply possible.
One is geologic aka natural hydrogen, which is in the lap of the Gods, ie we do not yet understand exactly what are the processes causing it, what the accumulated amounts are, whether they are in sufficient quantity for commercial exploitation on a considerable scale, or whether and over what timeframes they renew, so that is just a wait and see game, although clearly potentially transformative.
The other is what is called turquoise hydrogen, which is extraction of hydrogen from natural gas using pyrolysis with the carbon ending up as a solid, in potentially perhaps useful forms:
https://fuelcellsworks.com/news/investment-update-clean-hydrogen-technologies-now-moved-from-proof-of-concept-to-production/
That is clearly a very different ball game to sequestration of carbon dioxide as a gas, aside from the potential for usage of the carbon, as whatever the defect may, or in my view are unlikey to be, in gaseous sequestration of CO2 once it is solid carbon it ain't going anywhere.
So fossil fuels, but not as we know them?
Posted by: Davemart | 24 February 2024 at 12:19 PM
My memory is absolutely rubbish now.
We did of course have an extensive discussion of methane pyrolysis right here on this forum recently:
https://www.greencarcongress.com/2024/01/20240119-hycamite.html
Posted by: Davemart | 24 February 2024 at 02:06 PM