Taiyo Nippon Sanso developed a low-cost H2 station of package type “Hydro City” and started to get orders from March. The station is a stationary unit developed from the main mobile-type H2 station “Hydro Shuttle.” Its H2 supply capacity is 300Nm3/h for filling H2 into six FCVs per hour.

TNSC has so far been deploying mainly mobile H2 stations.
In comparison with the general stationary stations which cost 400 to 500 million yen for construction, the mobile stations cost so low as only half that they have been adopted increasingly and 11 units have already been delivered actually as commercial H2 stations.

The company which is also dealing with the engineering business of H2 stations has constructed a stationary station at five locations including delivery facilities. With the own development of stationary filling package, the company can be more competitive pricewise, and aims to get orders expansively also for stationary stations.

Hydro City is equipped with a package in an integrated unit which consists of compressor, accumulator, dispenser, etc. The approximate area of installation is 9000 x 2700 (mm). The mobile Hydro Shuttle using an air-driven booster made by Haskel (US) is capable to boost H2 up to 90MPa by the two-stage compression system. Despite the compression capacity of 150N m3/h a booster is additionally installed so that the capacity has been brought up to 300N m3/h.

There is nothing different in the composition of equipment from the mobile station, but it employs a home-made dispenser loaded with a pre-cooler of shell & tube type as well as the accumulator of typeⅢ.

M. Kataoka, H2 Station Project Manager of TNSC’s Development & Engineering Div. said, “The price is similar to that of the mobile station. We are aiming at half of the price of the existing stationary station. We also put our target at the introduction of the station for testing facilities not to mention the commercial stations.” In 2017, the company is proceeding with sales activities with a practical target to get orders for five stationary and five mobile stations.


Other than the station to fill FCVs, TNSC also developed and delivered H2 stations for FC forklifts, which was followed by the commencement of general commercial sales from March.　

TNSC’s station for FC forklifts is characteristic with its packaged system putting the compressor，accumulator and dispenser into one unit.

The approximate area of installation is 5700 x 2000 (mm) and the H2 supply capacity is 40N m3/h. In case of using the fuel tank (capacity: 52ℓ) made by Toyota Industries Corporation launched into the market last autumn, a continuous filling of two FC forklifts is possible. The compressor employs an air-driven booster made by Haskel, and the accumulator uses Type Ⅲ having a capacity of 40MPa.

At present one to two FC forklifts are used per one location, but in anticipation of increased introduction of FC forklifts in the future the station has been designed so as to catch up with a larger scale increasing boosters and accumulators.

Manager Kataoka is so ambitious to say, “We have increasing enquiries for the facilities to fill FC forklifts and now aim to get orders for five units in FY2017.”

*Photo: H2 station for FC forklifts