Applications of SAFT-Type Equations of State in Hydrogen Process Development

Hydrogen is expected to play a central role in the transition toward sustainable and low-carbon energy systems. The development of hydrogen production, storage, transportation, and distribution technologies relies on accurate prediction of thermodynamic properties for both pure hydrogen and hydrogen-containing mixtures. Statistical Associating Fluid Theory (SAFT)-based equations of state (EoSs) have emerged as powerful molecular-based models capable of describing complex fluid behavior over wide ranges of pressure and temperature.

This work highlights the application of SAFT-type EoSs, including PC-SAFT and PρT-SAFT, in hydrogen process development through a comprehensive evaluation of their predictive capabilities. Their performance was assessed for pure supercritical hydrogen by predicting volumetric and caloric properties, the Joule–Thomson effect, and critical and saturation properties over pressures up to 2000 MPa and temperatures between 100 and 1000 K. In addition, the models were evaluated for hydrogen–natural gas mixtures containing hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen, and water, with density and speed of sound predicted without employing binary interaction parameters. The results demonstrate that PρT-SAFT provides the most accurate overall description of pure hydrogen thermodynamic properties, while SAFT-based models significantly outperform conventional cubic EoSs in predicting the behavior of hydrogen–natural gas mixtures without parameter fitting. These findings demonstrate the strong potential of SAFT-type EoSs as reliable predictive tools for the design, optimization, and digitalization of hydrogen production, storage, transportation, and blending processes, supporting the development of future hydrogen energy infrastructure.