Underground Hydrogen Storage: Effect of Cyclic Flow and Flow rate on H2 Recovery Efficiency

Hydrogen, regarded as a clean energy carrier, holds potential for subsurface porous media storage to balance energy supply and demand. Investigating the interactions between hydrogen and porous media, especially the potential residual trapping during cyclic injection and production, becomes imperative. Experimental studies were conducted to examine the influence of flow rate and cyclic injection/production on hydrogen storage and recovery efficiency. Findings reveal generally low hydrogen saturation in brine-saturated porous media during storage process, due to notable flow instability. However, higher injection rates contribute to increased hydrogen saturation. Moreover, observations indicate that cyclic hydrogen storage and drainage may lead to hysteresis in hydrogen storage process. That is, cyclic hydrogen storage and drainage may result in undesired residual trapping of hydrogen in porous media. This study underscores the need for a comprehensive investigation to validate these observations, shedding light on the complexities of hydrogen storage dynamics in subsurface porous media.