CB&I, together with a consortium including Shell International Exploration and Production, Inc., GenH2, and the University of Houston, has announced the successful completion of a first-of-its-kind, affordable, large-scale liquid hydrogen storage tank concept. Developed at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, the concept aims to support international import and export applications for liquid hydrogen.
Mark Butts, president and CEO of CB&I, highlighted the significance of the project, stating, “Our collaboration with this world-class project team will help provide a path to low-cost, large-scale liquid hydrogen storage. We are proud to leverage our six decades of experience with cryogenic insulation and storage to advance innovative solutions for the energy transition market.”
The project, launched in 2021 and supported by the US Department of Energy (DOE), introduced a novel non-vacuum tank design for large-scale LH₂ storage—up to 100,000 cubic metres—offering a substantial cost advantage over traditional vacuum-insulated tanks. The concept is currently being demonstrated through the construction, start-up, and testing of a small-scale LH₂ tank at NASA MSFC.
Theo Bodewes, general manager of Hydrogen Technology at Shell, remarked, “At Shell, we believe in the power of collaboration to advance technology and scale up innovative solutions. With the invaluable support from the DOE, this project demonstrates how experts from industry, academia, and government can solve complex technology challenges.”
The demonstration tank will notably increase MSFC’s hydrogen test facility storage capacity and will serve as a platform to test material behaviour under cryogenic conditions. In addition to a six-month test programme, a Space Act Agreement among the project partners allows MSFC to utilise the tank over a five-year period, with CB&I and Shell continuing to develop and test new insulation technologies.
James Fesmire, chief architect at GenH2, noted, “We take pride in participating in this industry collaboration to advance commercial liquid hydrogen storage applications. This initiative has allowed us to develop testing capabilities for thermal insulation systems and produce essential data for unlocking the global potential of liquid hydrogen.”
Dr. Ramanan Krishnamoorti, vice president of energy and innovation at the University of Houston, added, “The ability to store liquid hydrogen at scale using a non-vacuum design is a pivotal advancement and opens the door to a more flexible, affordable global hydrogen trade infrastructure.”
Dr. Sunita Satyapal, director of the DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office, praised the collaboration, stating, “This first-of-its-kind concept is a great example of unleashing American energy innovation. This work can contribute to America’s leadership in growing global markets for hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels.”
CB&I’s long history with NASA dates back to the 1960s, when it built the first LH₂ sphere with a capacity of 170 cubic metres. Over the last sixty years, CB&I has increased that threshold to 5,000 cubic metres, with the latest tank completed in 2022 for NASA’s Artemis programme. In total, CB&I has completed over 130 LH₂ storage vessels, reinforcing its longstanding partnership with NASA and its contribution to landmark space missions, including Apollo and Gemini.
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