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As the hydrogen economy continues to grow, the need for compact, safe, and efficient storage solutions is becoming more critical—especially for industrial sectors looking to decarbonize their processes. Metal hydride storage systems offer a promising alternative to traditional high-pressure or cryogenic storage methods, leveraging reversible hydrogen absorption in solid-state materials to store hydrogen safely at lower pressures and moderate temperatures.
A recent milestone was achieved with the successful design, construction, and operation of a fully functional metal hydride test stand for testing of metal hydride tanks with hydrogen storage up to 2.5 kg, with the modular design allowing for adaptation for even higher storage capacities. This test stand enables the controlled charging and discharging of hydrogen in various metal hydride alloys under realistic industrial operating conditions. Key performance metrics—including hydrogen absorption/desorption kinetics, thermal behavior, storage capacity, and cycle stability—have been systematically validated.

Key Achievements

• Reliable operation under industrial hydrogen supply conditions
• Validated hydrogen absorption/desorption cycles over multiple iterations
• Demonstrated thermal management capabilities
• Pressure, mass flow and heating/cooling temperature control and data acquisition implemented
• Scalable system design adaptable to industrial needs

The next phase will focus on material optimization, thermal integration, and modular scale-up, aiming to
bring this technology closer to market readiness and wider industrial adoption.

Impact and effects

The operation of the metal hydride test stand has provided concrete data on hydrogen absorption and desorption performance under industrial conditions, enabling precise evaluation of storage capacity, cycle stability, and thermal management. These results directly support the optimization of storage system design, reduce engineering uncertainties, and facilitate integration into real-world applications such as buffering systems for hydrogen-powered machinery or process gas supply. The test stand also serves as a key platform for further material development and scale-up, accelerating the path toward practical, solid-state hydrogen storage solutions for industry.

Project partners

• Austrian Institute of Technology, AUT
• Graz University of Technology – Institute of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology, AUT
• Hydrogen Research Institute (IRH) of Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, CAN
• MIBA Sinter Austria GmbH, AUT
• OMV Downstream GmbH, AUT

This success story was provided by the centre management and by the mentioned project partners for the purpose of being published on the FFG website. HyCentA COMET Center is a COMET Centre within the COMET – Competence Centers for Excellent Technologies Programme and funded by BMIMI, BMWET, provinces of Styria, Upper Austria, Tyrol, and Vienna and the SFG. The COMET Programme is managed by FFG. Further information on COMET: www.ffg.at/comet