The future hydrogen economy requires gas barrier solutions for new challenges, such as the prevention of permeation losses from polymer tank and pipework materials, or the protection of sensitive components against hydrogen corrosion. Gas loss is particularly critical, as hydrogen is an extremely valuable commodity on the one hand but can also act as an indirect greenhouse gas on the other. In addition, the handling of hydrogen raises safety-related issues. The realisation of a hydrogen economy therefore requires highly efficient hydrogen barriers with complex requirement profiles. This applies to the entire value chain, from production to storage, transport and distribution of the gas.
The aspect of permeation losses was investigated by the IOM's ‘Barrier and Precision Coatings’ department and the results have now been published. For this purpose, ceramic SiOx barrier films were first applied to polymer films using UV photoconversion and also laminates of SiOx films were produced. Hydrogen permeation measurements were then carried out on the samples, taking into account both the unstrained and the uniaxially strained state. The results of the tests show that a high hydrogen barrier effect can be achieved with the investigated films and laminates. In addition, the laminated barrier films exhibit greater mechanical stability against uniaxial stress compared to the individual barrier films.
The open access article has been published in the ‘International Journal of Hydrogen Energy’:
P.C. With, T. Pröhl, J.W. Gerlach, A. Prager, A. Konrad, F. Arena, U. Helmstedt
Hydrogen permeation through uniaxially strained SiOx barrier thin films photochemically prepared on PET foil substrates
Int. J. Hydrogen Energy 81 (2024) 405-410
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2024.07.249