The Hydrogen Recovery Node has moved.

In the refinery gas network, fuel flows, which is a mixture of natural gas from the external network (about 50%) and gases from the refining processes. The Hydrogen Recovery Node (WOW) is designed to isolate from this mixture: LPG, light and raw petrol and hydrogen. Additional hydrogen will be directed to refinery processes (which will ultimately reduce its cost of production), and LPG and petrol to the market. The resulting deficit in the energy balance of the refinery will be complemented by the purchase of additional natural gas from the external network. The increase in its share of the refinery fuel network will lead to a reduction in the emissions of the fuel consumed in the plant – both in terms of CO2 and energy pollution.

The heart of WOW operating in cryogenic technology is so-called coldbox, in which a mixture of residual gases at –180°C and 45 bar pressure is separated into liquid hydrocarbons and gaseous hydrogen. "With these conditions, we get 98.6 percent pure hydrogen," says Tomasz Bodnar, Head of the Hydrogen Production Plant and LOTOS Group Sulphur. "When this temperature drops to –187 degrees, then we will reach 99,5 percent purity of hydrogen," he adds. The main installation device is a batch compressor, which is powered by the largest engine in the refinery – with a power of over 4 MW. Compressor compressor 24.7 thousand m3 of input gas: from 4.5 to 64 atmospheres.

"The installation works with a load of 50% and is prepared to increase it so that we can carry out the test movement," says Paweł Brzozowiec, Head of the LOTOS Group Project Implementation Office. Currently, WOW produces 5 tons of LPG per hour. According to the project, it will ultimately be close to 8 tons of gas. In addition, almost 4.5 tonnes of light petrol for the isomerisation system, 5 tonnes of raw petrol for the gasoline hydrodesulphurisation system, 1 tonne of hydrogen and 5 tonnes of fuel gas.

Source: Lotos Group