A numerical investigation of hydrogen desorption phenomena in ZrCo based hydrogen storage beds

In this paper, a three-dimensional (3D) hydrogen desorption model is applied to the thin double layered annulus ZrCo based hydrogen storage bed to precisely study the hydrogen desorption reaction and resultant heat and mass transport phenomena inside the bed. The 3D hydrogen desorption simulations are carried out and calculated results are compared with the experimental data measured by Kang et al. [1]. The present model reasonably captures the bed temperature evolution behavior and the hydrogen discharging time for 90% desorption. In addition, the thin double layered annulus metal hydride bed (MHB) design is numerically evaluated by comparing with a simple cylindrical MHB. More uniform distributions in the bed temperature and H/M atomic ratio and resultant superior hydrogen desorption performance are achieved with the thin double layered annulus bed owing to its high external surface to volume ratio and thus more efficient heating. This numerical study indicates that efficient design of the metal hydride bed is key to achieve rapid hydrogen discharging performance and the present 3D hydrogen desorption model is a useful tool for the optimization of bed design and operating conditions.

► A three-dimensional hydrogen desorption model is developed. ► Desorption model is validated against the temperature evolution measured data. ► The hydrogen discharging time for 90% desorption is captured by the model. ► The designed bed is numerically evaluated by comparing with simple cylindrical bed. ► This study provides fundamental understanding of heat and mass transfer phenomenon.