Abstract

The growing demand for hydrogen as a low-carbon energy carrier has renewed interest in coal, an abundant and globally available resource, making it crucial to assess its suitability for efficient hydrogen production via in situ pyrolysis. The main objective of this study is to propose a new and robust hesitant fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) framework to the literature to determine the coal alternative that will provide the most efficient hydrogen production. For this purpose, five different coals with the largest reserves in the United States (Wyoming, Illinois, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania) were examined under eight criteria. To manage uncertainties in determining the weights of the criteria, the hesitant fuzzy set-based step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (SWARA) method was used. The coal alternatives were ranked using the Alternative Ranking Technique based on Adaptive Standardized Intervals (ARTASI). The proposed framework uses expert evaluations and performance criteria as input parameters to determine criterion weights and rank the alternatives. The output consists of the calculated criterion weights, utility values, and the final ranking of the liquid hydrogen rocket oxidizer systems. The robustness of the obtained results is further verified through parametric analyses of the w and Ψ parameters and comparative other MCDM methods validation. The findings consistently demonstrate that Wyoming coal is the most suitable alternative for hydrogen production via in situ pyrolysis. This study provides a systematic decision support framework for evaluating coal resources and offers valuable guidance for future hydrogen production strategies based on in situ coal pyrolysis.

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