Emerson and Toyota Australia have collaborated to transform part of Toyota Australia’s operations into a commercial-grade H₂ production, storage and refueling plant. The project, supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, adopts Emerson’s automation expertise to provide the control system that helps Toyota Australia demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of manufacturing H₂ fuels, including the use of renewable solar energy.

As low and zero-emissions vehicles capture an ever-greater share of the market, countries around the globe need to expand access to renewable fuels like H₂. Sustainable H₂ projects are challenging because they need to integrate many data sources into one balance-of-plant system, a process that’s critical for a facility’s success. For the Toyota Australia Hydrogen Center, Emerson’s advanced DeltaV distributed control system gathers data from the plant’s complex equipment, making it easier to monitor production and storage of H₂ gas and document and validate the sustainability of operations.

“By incorporating a digital automation foundation to eliminate data silos, Toyota Australia can not only significantly reduce costs, but also gain greater visibility into system performance, making it easier to maintain and report sustainability performance and increase productivity,” said Mark Bulanda, executive president of Emerson’s automation solutions business. “The data foundation Toyota has built will make it faster and easier for like-minded companies to replicate success as hydrogen refueling networks continue to expand across the continent and the globe.”

Emerson’s DeltaV systems control operations for optimal production efficiencies and help ensure safe operations. Edge control technology from Emerson’s PACSystems will further reduce cost and complexity of integrating third-party systems. Rosemount flame detectors will help keep personnel and operations safe. The Toyota Australia team took advantage of pre-existing configuration libraries to reduce setup time. In addition, Emerson’s technologies create a platform to add future remote operations and data analytics more easily and cost effectively.