Air Liquide, Industry 4.0 in the low-carbon era

Air Liquide Spatial Guyane has been supporting the space industry in French Guiana since 1970, in particular with a specific hydrogen-production unit at Europe’s spaceport. Since 2012, ALSG has been implementing "Launch", a programme for investment and modernisation of operations.

To reduce the cost of fluids for the Ariane 6 launch vehicle, Air Liquide has automated its units and controls them remotely using connected tools. Today, part of ALSG’s facilities can be controlled from a control room in Saint-Priest, near Lyon.

With the arrival of Ariane 6, Air Liquide Spatial Guyane needed new facilities, which now consume less energy than some of the older equipment.

- A brand-new hydrogen-production unit uses less methanol and less energy. Hydrogen production is ALSG’s main source of greenhouse gas emissions, due to imports of methanol from Trinidad and Tobago and the manufacture of hydrogen gas by cracking. Moreover, liquefaction requires a significant amount of energy to bring the temperature of the hydrogen down to -250°C.

- To reduce the amount of hydrogen vapour lost during production, a more flexible liquefier will adjust the power consumption of the compressors to the flow rate. This equipment will enable ALSG to adjust its operational schedule. The liquid hydrogen-production unit will run idle even while recovering volatile losses, thereby generating savings.

ALSG, in partnership with ESA and CNES, is studying the construction of an industrial demonstrator at Europe’s spaceport for the production of hydrogen by the solar-powered electrolysis of water. The project, called Hyguane (HYdrogène GUyanais A Neutralité Environnementale—Environmentally Neutral Hydrogen in French Guiana), will reduce the carbon footprint of the launchers and supply energy to some of French Guiana’s transportation solutions: buses, postal vehicles and heavy goods vehicles, in particular.

The project involves a consortium between SARA (Société anonyme de la raffinerie des Antilles) and the University of French Guiana, with the aim of setting up a complete chain, from staff training through to production and use.