Design and Implementation of High Pressure Systems

Hydrogen is arising as a potential fuel source due to its high mass-specific energy and wide applicability. However, hydrogen must first be pressurized before being implemented, causing a loss in efficiency and larger issues in implementation. Current processes produce hydrogen at low pressure and then pressurize the gaseous hydrogen with a compressor. Thermodynamic studies have shown that producing hydrogen in pressurized chambers could reduce the energy losses due to compression, raising generation efficiency. These projected gains are purely theoretical, however, and ignore practical limitations. The goal of this thesis is to design and construct a safe high-pressure hydrogen producing system at 5000 psi and to show the steps and considerations during this process.