Chiyoda teams up with Axens to unlock hydrogen supply chain issue

Chiyoda Corporation (Chiyoda) is pleased to announce the signature of a Joint Commercial Cooperation Agreement (JCCA) with Axens.

The purpose of this cooperation is to facilitate hydrogen supply chain projects via methylcyclohexane (MCH) as Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) and promote a combination of Chiyoda’s SPERA HydrogenTM technology and Axens’ Toluene Hydrogenation technology.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the size of the hydrogen economy could be as large as 150 million tons annually in 2030. The hydrogen long distance transportation from favorable areas of production to main consumption countries remains a key challenge to be addressed from technical and economical point of view.

Chiyoda’s SPERA Hydrogen technology utilizes MCH as a LOHC and with Chiyoda’s proprietary dehydrogenation catalyst, it produces hydrogen and toluene from MCH with high conversion and high selectivity.

Axens’ Toluene Hydrogenation technology uses high performance homogeneous catalysis resulting in high purity MCH production from toluene and hydrogen with optimized energy efficiency. This technology is backed up by Axens’ unmatched experience in the field of hydrogenation through process optimization and extensive catalyst development.

The combination of both technologies through the JCCA will:

• bring strong synergies allowing fast track approach for project implementation; and
• provide a single point of contact to reduce the burden of customer coordination between two licensors.

This JCCA based on the usage of proven technologies using MCH as a LOHC will help the emergence of the hydrogen market while mitigating:

• issues linked to safety and difficulties of hydrogen transport and storage; and
• technology cost intensity by using existing infrastructure, regulations, and standards.

Chiyoda is currently implementing ‘Chiyoda’s Revitalization Plan – Initiatives for Revitalization and the Future’ in May 2019 and ‘Revitalization Plan Update’ in May 2021. This JCCA will be a major contribution to defining “new values” in engineering and visions highlighted in the two documents. It will also be a significant milestone towards achieving Chiyoda’s goal of contributing to a carbon neutral society by 2030 through business portfolio innovation.