Reliable automation despite continuous load
For HYTRON, the equipment previously used in the PSA process required a high level of maintenance. Conventional ball valves with welded ends couldn’t withstand the extreme load conditions. This resulted in wear, leakages, and costly downtime. Each repair involved cutting, re-welding, and this led to production stops in a process designed for continuous operation. The goal was to have a system that could withstand these stresses, would need fewer interventions, and would still meet all explosion protection standards.
To replace the existing setup, we supplied angle seat valves with an operational lifetime of up to 10 million switching cycles and flanged connections that eliminate the need for cutting or welding during maintenance.
Pneumatic actuation is provided by an Ex-certified automation system with a valve terminal CPX/MPA which integrates communication, control, and monitoring components into a compact cabinet. This design provides precise control and consistent switching performance. The process now runs smoothly and reliably, even with hundreds of thousands of switching cycles per year.
“Our hydrogen solutions, from electrolysis to ethanol reforming, demand partners with unquestionable reliability. By working with Festo, we not only ensure operational safety and excellence in pioneering projects, such as the world's first ethanol HRS, but we can also validate that this core industrial technology for the energy transition in Brazil meets a global standard."
Daniel Lopes
Director and Founder of HYTRON
Detect problems before they occur with Festo AX
To further reduce downtime, the control system was supplemented with a digital monitoring capability. PSA data is now continuously analysed using Festo AX Motion Insights Pneumatic, including valve movements and switching frequencies. The system detects behavioural deviations early and indicates when there is a need for maintenance before wear leads to failure. For Neuman & Esser, this means fewer unplanned interventions, longer uptime, and full visibility into every component’s condition. Traditional maintenance has evolved into a predictable, data-driven process that measurably increases reliability and efficiency. Read more about that in our blogpost.
“Neuman & Esser knew exactly what they needed: safety, efficiency, and reliability under tough conditions. Our role was to achieve those goals by designing a system that performs well every single day. It’s a blueprint for how digital monitoring and explosion-proof automation can work hand in hand. Seeing it work in practice is the best proof of true collaboration.”
Manuel Serrano
Automation Engineer Process Industry, Festo South America
Joint development with a look to the future
The engineering teams from Neuman & Esser and Festo worked together very closely to develop the solution. Each component of the explosion-proof design was tested, optimised, and validated for practical operation. The shortened development time and resulted in a solution that now serves as a reference for future PSA projects in hydrogen applications. Thanks to its modular architecture, the concept can easily be adapted to other systems and processes, thus providing a scalable basis for safe, digitally connected automation across the hydrogen value chain.
HYTRON is part of the NEUMAN & ESSER Group and a pioneer in the low-carbon hydrogen economy in Latin America, with a comprehensive portfolio covering both electrolysis of green hydrogen and innovative renewable fuel reformers.
In a global technological milestone, HYTRON developed the world's first Hydrogen Refueling Station (HRS) to produce H2 directly from ethanol, implemented at the University of São Paulo (USP). This Ethanol Reformer is an ingenious system that transforms liquid ethanol into pure gaseous hydrogen at the point of consumption, positioning ethanol as an efficient vector for H2 transport and storage.