Publications

Type IV pressure vessels are commonly used for hydrogen on-board stationary or bulk storages. When pressurised hydrogen permeates through the materials and solves into them. Emptying then leads to a difference of pressure at the interface between composite and liner possibly leading to a permanent deformation of the plastic liner called “collapse” or “buckling”. This phenomenon has been studied through French funded project Colline allowing to better understand its initiation and long-term effects. This paper presents the methodology followed using permeation tests hydrogen decompression tests on samples and gas diffusion calculation in order to determine safe operating conditions such as maximum flow rate or residual pressure level.

Scotland’s Achievements and Ambitions for Clean Hydrogen - a joint webinar between the Scottish Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association and the Pipeline Industries Guild (Scottish branch).

 

Nigel Holmes. CEO Scottish Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Association provides an update on Scotland’s ambitions backed up by progress in key areas. This will show the potential for hydrogen at scale to support the delivery of policy targets highlighting areas of key strengths for Scotland.



You will also hear about the need to build up scale for hydrogen production and supply in tandem with hydrogen pipeline and distribution networks in order to meet demand for low carbon energy and achieve key milestones on the pathway to Net Zero by 2045.

With the application of new energy technology hybrid agricultural machinery has been developed. This article designs a hybrid tractor energy management method to solve the problem of high energy consumption caused by significant load fluctuation of the tractor in field operation. This article first analyzes the characteristics of the hydrogen fuel cell power battery and ultracapacitor and designs a hybrid energy system for the tractor. Second the energy management strategy (EMS) of multi-layer decoupling control based on the Haar wavelet and logic rule is designed to realize the multi-layer decoupling of high-frequency low-frequency and steady-state signals of load demand power. Then the EMS redistributes the decoupled power signals to each energy source. Finally a hardware-in-loop simulation experiment was carried out through the model. The results show that compared with single-layer control strategies such as fuzzy control and power-following control the multi-layer control strategy can allocate the demand power more reasonably and the efficiency of the hydrogen fuel cell is the highest. The average efficiency of the hydrogen fuel cell was increased by 2.87% and 1.2% respectively. Furthermore the equivalent hydrogen consumption of the tractor was reduced by 17.06% and 5.41% respectively within the experimental cycle. It is shown that the multi-layer control strategy considering power fluctuation can improve the vehicle economy based on meeting the power demanded by the whole vehicle load.

In many areas European research has been largely fragmented. To support the required integration and to focus and coordinate related research efforts the European Commission created a new instrument the Networks of Excellences (NoEs). The goal of the NoE HySafe has been to provide the basis to facilitate the safe introduction of hydrogen as an energy carrier by removing the safety related obstacles. The prioritisation of the HySafe internal project activities was based on a phenomena identification and ranking exercise (PIRT) and expert interviews. The identified research headlines were “Releases in (partially) confined areas” “Mitigation” and “Quantitative Risk Assessment”. Along these headlines existing or planned research work was re-orientated and slightly modified to build up three large internal research projects “InsHyde” “HyTunnel” and “HyQRA”. In InsHyde realistic indoor hydrogen leaks and associated hazards have been investigated to provide recommendations for the safe use of indoor hydrogen systems including mitigation and detection means. The appropriateness of available regulations codes and standards (RCS) has been assessed. Experimental and numerical work was conducted to benchmark simulation tools and to evaluate the related recommendations. HyTunnel contributed to the understanding of the nature of the hazards posed by hydrogen vehicles inside tunnels and its relative severity compared to other fuels. In HyQRA quantitative risk assessment strategies were applied to relevant scenarios in a hydrogen refuelling station and the performance was compared to derive also recommendations. The integration provided by the network is manifested by a series of workshops and benchmarks related to experimental and numerical work. Besides the network generated the following products: the International Conference on Hydrogen Safety the first academic education related to hydrogen safety and the Safety Handbook. Finally the network initiated the founding of the International Association for Hydrogen Safety which will open up the future networking to all interested parties on an international level. The indicated results of this five years integration activity will be described in short.

Existing regulations and standards for the approval of composite cylinders in hydrogen service are currently based on deterministic criteria (ISO 11119-3 UN GTR No. 13). This paper provides a systematic analysis of the load cycle properties resulting from these regulations and standards. Their characteristics are compared with the probabilistic approach of the BAM. Based on Monte-Carlo simulations the available design range of all concepts is compared. In addition the probability of acceptance for potentially unsafe design types is determined.

Hydrogen sensors are recognized as an important technology for facilitating the safe implementation of hydrogen as an alternative fuel and there are numerous reports of a sensor alarm successfully preventing a potentially serious event. However gaps in sensor metrological specifications as well as in their performance for some applications exist. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Fuel Cell Technologies Office published a short list of critical gaps in the 2007 and 2012 Multiyear Project Plans; more detailed gap analyses were independently performed by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). There have been however some significant advances in sensor technologies since these assessments including the commercial availability of hydrogen sensors with fast response times (t90 < 1 s which had been an elusive DOE target since 2007) improved robustness to chemical poisons improved selectivity and improved lifetime and stability. These improvements however have not been universal and typically pertain to select platforms or models. Moreover as hydrogen markets grow and new applications are being explored more demands will be imposed on sensor performance. The hydrogen sensor laboratories at NREL and the JRC are currently updating the hydrogen safety sensor gap analysis through direct interaction with international stakeholders in the hydrogen community especially end users. NREL and the JRC are currently organizing a series of workshops (in Europe and the United States) with sensor developers end-users and other stakeholders in 2017 to identify technology gaps and to develop a path forward to address them. One workshop was held on May 10 in Brussels Belgium at the Headquarters of the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking. A second workshop is planned at NREL in Golden CO USA. This paper reviews improvements in sensor technologies in the past 5 to 10 years identifies gaps in sensor performance and use requirements and identifies potential research strategies to address the gaps. The outcomes of the Hydrogen Sensors Workshops are also summarized.

Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) water electrolysis is an efficient and environmental friendly method that can be used for the production of molecular hydrogen of electrolytic grade using zero-carbon power sources such as renewable and nuclear. However market applications are asking for cost reduction and performances improvement. This can be achieved by increasing operating current density and lifetime of operation. Concerning performance safety reliability and durability issues the membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) is the weakest cell component. Most performance losses and most accidents occurring during PEM water electrolysis are usually due to the MEA. The purpose of this communication is to report on some specific degradation mechanisms that have been identified as a potential source of performance loss and membrane failure. An accelerated degradation test has been performed on a MEA by applying galvanostatic pulses. Platinum has been used as electrocatalyst at both anode and cathode in order to accelerate degradation rate by maintaining higher cell voltage and higher anodic potential that otherwise would have occurred if conventional Ir/IrOx catalysts had been used. Experimental evidence of degradation mechanisms have been obtained by post-mortem analysis of the MEA using microscopy and chemical analysis. Details of these degradation processes are presented and discussed.

NaBH4-based hydrogen generator for fuel cell Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAVs) with movable fuel cartridge was developed in the present study. The main fuel of hydrogen generator is Sodium borohydride (NaBH4) that is a kind of chemical hydride and has a high hydrogen storage density. In the previous studies hydrogen generators were developed in which hydrogen was directly generated from solid state NaBH4. However it was a prototype so inconvenient to replace the fuel after used up and lacked user convenience. Therefore the performance evaluation and the development procedure of NaBH4-based hydrogen generator that was designed taking user convenience in consideration for commercialization were described in this paper.

A hydrogen leak from a facility which uses highly compressed hydrogen gas (714 bar 800 K) during operation was studied. The investigated scenario involves supersonic hydrogen release from a 10 cm2 leak of the pressurized reservoir turbulent hydrogen dispersion in the facility room followed by an accidental ignition and burn-out of the resulting H2-air cloud. The objective is to investigate the maximum possible flame velocity and overpressure in the facility room in case of a worst-case ignition. The pressure loads are needed for the structural analysis of the building wall response. The first two phases namely unsteady supersonic release and subsequent turbulent hydrogen dispersion are simulated with GASFLOW-MPI. This is a well validated parallel all-speed CFD code which solves the compressible Navier-Stokes equations and can model a broad range of flow Mach numbers. Details of the shock structures are resolved for the under-expanded supersonic jet and the sonic-subsonic transition in the release. The turbulent dispersion phase is simulated by LES. The evolution of the highly transient burnable H2-air mixture in the room in terms of burnable mass volume and average H2-concentration is evaluated with special sub-routines. For five different points in time the maximum turbulent flame speed and resulting overpressures are computed using four published turbulent burning velocity correlations. The largest turbulent flame speed and overpressure is predicted for an early ignition event resulting in 35–71 m/s and 0.13–0.27 bar respectively.

For more than a century our nation’s brightest minds have been working on the technology to turn the invisible promise of hydrogen into tangible solutions. Canadian ingenuity and innovation has once again brought us to a pivotal moment. As we rebuild our economy from the impacts of COVID-19 and fight the existential threat of climate change the development of low-carbon hydrogen is a strategic priority for Canada. The time to act is now.<br/>The Hydrogen Strategy for Canada lays out an ambitious framework for actions that will cement hydrogen as a tool to achieve our goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 and position Canada as a global industrial leader of clean renewable fuels. This strategy shows us that by 2050 clean hydrogen can help us achieve our net-zero goal—all while creating jobs growing our economy and protecting our environment. This will involve switching from conventional gasoline diesel and natural gas to zero-emissions fuel sources taking advantage of new regulatory environments and embracing new technologies to give Canadians more choice of zero emission alternatives.<br/>As one of the top 10 hydrogen producers in the world today we are rich in the feedstocks that produce hydrogen. We are blessed with a strong energy sector and the geographic assets that will propel Canada to be a major exporter of hydrogen and hydrogen technologies. Hydrogen might be nature’s smallest molecule but its potential is enormous. It provides new markets for our conventional energy resources and holds the potential to decarbonize many sectors of our economy including resource extraction freight transportation power generation manufacturing and the production of steel and cement. This Strategy is a call to action. It will spur investments and strategic partnerships across the country and beyond our borders. It will position Canada to seize economic and environmental opportunities that exist coast to coast. Expanding our exports. Creating as many as 350000 good green jobs over the next three decades. All while dramatically reducing our greenhouse gas emissions. And putting a net-zero future within our reach.<br/>The importance of Canada’s resource industries and our clean technology sectors has been magnified during the pandemic. We must harness our combined will expertise and financial resources to fully seize the opportunities that hydrogen presents. This strategy is the product of three years of study and analysis including extensive engagement sessions where we heard from more than 1500 of our country’s leading experts and stakeholders. But its release is not the end of a process. This is only the beginning. Together we will use this Strategy to guide our actions and investments. By working with provinces and territories Indigenous partners and the private-sector and by leveraging our many advantages we will create the prosperity we all want protect the planet we all cherish and we will ensure we leave no one behind.