The limitations of hydrogen pipeline infrastructure especially between production plants and fueling as well as the issues of hydrogen embrittlement have stimulated interest in alternative hydrogen production pathways. A mobile autothermal methane pyrolysis unit is a promising pathway for hydrogen production that could help mitigate the challenges of hydrogen transportation and storage. The present study presents a novel methane pyrolysis integrated with chemical looping combustion for efficient hydrogen production. The process was simulated with Aspen plus and detailed techno- economic and life cycle assessment (LCA) were performed to evaluate the process economics and environmental impact. The introduction of chemical looping combustion increased the energy efficiency up to 92%. Additionally, the levelized cost of hydrogen for the proposed technology ranges between $1.3 U.S.D/KG - $1.5 U.S.D/kg. A cradle to gate LCA analysis was performed and compared with a standalone methane pyrolysis unit. LCA results shows that the process is environmentally benign compared to a stand-alone methane pyrolysis system. Additionally, a stochastic sensitivity analysis indicates that factors such as tax rate, catalyst and equipment purchase cost influenced the levelized cost of hydrogen.
