Open Access Publication of the Month – Toni Busch (ICE-2) et al.
20 October 2025
To encourage us all to broaden our horizons, each month the Central Library selects one open access publication from the JuSER publications portal to be featured in the newsletter of Forschungszentrum Jülich.
In the open access publication of the month for October 2025, Toni Busch, Theresa Klütz, Jochen Linßen, and additional authors from ICE-2 provide an overview of hydrogen purity across the various stages of the supply chain, which includes the production, transport, storage, purification, and utilization of hydrogen.
Hydrogen purity is a crucial factor in planning future hydrogen infrastructures. Depending on the application, different purity requirements apply. For example, the use of hydrogen in fuel cells and chemical industrial processes requires a higher degree of purity than in heating applications. The aim of this publication is to systematically present the purity requirements and changes along the entire hydrogen value chain – from production to end use – and to illustrate where impurities arise, how they affect the process, and which purification methods are available.
Water electrolysis processes deliver the purest hydrogen, at around 99.9 %, while fossil-based processes such as steam reforming or coal gasification only achieve 60–65 % and therefore require additional purification steps. When transported in gaseous form, purity is largely preserved in new pipelines and tanks. Impurities can occur in repurposed natural gas networks. Overall, the authors emphasize that application-dependent purity classes and targeted purification steps are crucial to enabling an economical and sustainable hydrogen economy.
The open access publication entitled “The hydrogen supply chain – A comprehensive literature review incorporating purity analysis” was published in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy.
JuSER publications portal – The hydrogen supply chain – A comprehensive literature review incorporating purity analysis
Forschungszentrum Jülich – Central Library (ZB) – Open Access