The Ionic Compressor, a compression system that has been used extensively in Europe for cars and buses, is now being introduced for use with forklift trucks in North America. Unlike conventional mechanical systems, the system uses an ionic liquid in direct contact with hydrogen instead of a piston in the pressurizing process.

‘The Ionic Compressor is a step change in the area of hydrogen fueling,’ says Michael McGowan, head of Hydrogen Solutions at Linde North America, and also chairman of the National Hydrogen Association. ‘It is a high-efficiency, high-throughput, low-maintenance and low-noise compression technology.’

Coupled with Linde’s proprietary fueling protocol and station design, the Ionic Compressor is part of a complete and compact compression, storage and indoor dispensing system for the hydrogen fuel cell forklift truck market.

Linde says that is also introducing another hydrogen fueler into the North American marketplace. First developed and commercialized in Europe, the transportable HF-KTA hydrogen fueling station is easy to deploy, and can efficiently supply hydrogen to vehicles that use 350 bar (5000 psi) and 700 bar (10 000 psi) technologies.

Linde has equipped more than 70 hydrogen fueling stations in 15 countries, supplying hydrogen for large and small projects. These range from a few hundred cubic feet of compressed hydrogen in cylinders, to thousands of tonnes of liquid and gaseous hydrogen delivered by pipeline or by road in a tanker.