Fukuoka Hydrogen Station

World’s first hydrogen station for vehicle to utilize the wastewater treated in the Fukuoka

Chubu Sewage Treatment Center. The process has been developed as a result of the

verification testing of technology for hydrogen creation sourced from wastewater biogas.

The hydrogen supply to vehicle

In March 2015, Fukuoka City and Kyushu University installed a station where the hydrogen

is derived from renewable energy, which produces hydrogen from biogas generated from the

fermentation of sewage sludge. This facility forces the biogas through a separation membrane

to separate it into methane and CO2, and produces hydrogen via steam reforming in which

this methane is made to react with steam.

Fukuoka Chubu Sewage Treatment Center

It was adopted as a Breakthrough by Dynamic Approach in Sewage High Technology (B-DASH)

Project in FY2014 as part of the Hydrogen Leader City Project, which is being subsidized by the

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It will produce 3,300m³ of hydrogen from

the 2,400m³ of biogas generated per day from sewage treatment. Since there are sewage

treatment plants located all over Japan, this could be tied in with the local production of energy for

local consumption. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, it is

estimated that 130 million m³ of hydrogen could be produced each year by making use of the

2,100-some such plants found throughout Japan. (October 2015).

Wastewater supply

Swage treatment plant

Sludge treatment

Location of Fukuoka-city