Quality measurement requirements

This LAP is concerned with the methods, analyses and devices used for the assessment and assurance that the hydrogen, delivered at the distribution centers and at refueling stations, meets the requirements for hydrogen purity.

Glossary:

Fualy quality measurements requirements are requirements for methods and technologies for testing and analysing the quality of hydrogen as a fuel.

Pan-European Assessment:

The transposition of the Directive 2014/94/EU, has led to a regulation on H2 as an energy carrier for road transport, but the quality measurement requirements have not been fixed in this legislative act.

A legally mandated quality control procedure exists in most countries in which HRS have been installed and advanced discussions are in place in the others. Nevertheless, approaches differ considerably with respect to both the fuel quality requirements, measurement and process.
Most countries adhere (from a regulatory perspective) to the standards laid down within ISO 14687-2 and ISO 19880–1, however, from an administrative and operational perspective some countries have taken different approaches. The general message across different countries with experience in deployment of hydrogen as fuel is that the ISO norm forms the basis for the quality control, but that checking on all the possible contaminants is very difficult/expensive. In practice measurement is done on key contaminants which are checked continuously, however, due to the associated costs, not all contaminants named in the norm are checked.

select country:

Is it a barrier?

Yes

Type of Barrier

Economic barriers, Operational barriers

Assessment Severity

Assessment

The quality control of hydrogen for fuelling stations is now a general quality control for industrial hydrogen, not specific for fuel cell applications.

Since there is no uniquely defined test procedure or agreed test criteria for the quality of hydrogen in fuelling stations, it is not clear what hydrogen quality car manufacturers can expect or require. This can lead to technical problems. There is an ISO standard in place, but it is not yet translated into a practical procedure.

Questions:

Question 1 Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes: a) Which is the competent authority? b) Which entity is responsible for the hydrogen quality? c) What are the quality criteria? d) What are the frequency of the quality measurements?

Question 1 Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes: a - Which is the competent authority?

a - There is no authority involved in the quality control. A certified body issues a quality certificate for the produced hydrogen at the hydrogen supplier.

Question 1 Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes: b - Which entity is responsible for the hydrogen quality?

b - The HRS owner is in principle responsible. In case of hydrogen which is supplied by an external supplier, he makes a contractual quality agreement with the supplier (cfr question c). In case of on site produced hydrogen, he measures the quality on the site itself.

Question 1 Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes: c - What are the quality criteria?

c - The quality control of the hydrogen that is supplied by an external hydrogen supplier is done by the supplier itself. They make a certificate of analysis of the supplied hydrogen. They continuously check the hydrogen on three contaminants (H2O (5 ppm), O2 (3ppm) en N2 (100ppm); these values are below the ISO norm values. The other elements in the norm are measured once in 1 or 2 years. Additionally, there is an agreement hat the hydrogen always comes from the same source. There is no extra control at the station itself, it is assumed that the transport and dispensing does not add any contaminants to the hydrogen hydrogen. The quality control of on-site produced hydrogen from water electrolysis) is done on-site. There is a continuous measurement of a selection of contaminants (based on a risk analysis and the application of certain operational procedures that minimise the contamination risk ). The limit values used for these contaminants are those prescrbied in the norm.

Question 1 Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes: d - What are the frequency of the quality measurements? Is there a quality control for hydrogen as a fuel? If yes:

d - As was started under c: some contaminants are checked for continuously, other are yearly or bi-yearly.

Describe the comparable technology and its relevance with regard to hydrogen

gas quality measurement for natural gas vehicles

EU Legislation:

Directive 2014/94/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure (AFID)
The AFID establishes a common framework of measures for the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure in the Union in order to minimize dependence on oil and to mitigate the environmental impact of transport.

The Directive sets out minimum requirements for the building-up of alternative fuels infrastructure, including recharging points for electric vehicles and refuelling points for natural gas (LNG and CNG) and hydrogen, to be implemented by means of Member States' national policy frameworks, as well as common technical specifications for such recharging and refuelling points, and user information requirements.

Article 2 defines ‘Alternative fuels’ as fuels or power sources which serve, at least partly, as a substitute for fossil oil sources in the energy supply to transport and which have the potential to contribute to its decarbonisation and enhance the environmental performance of the transport sector. They include, inter alia: hydrogen.

It lays down, in Article 5, that Member States which decide to include hydrogen refuelling points accessible to the public in their national policy frameworks shall ensure that, by 31 December 2025, an appropriate number of such points are available, to ensure the circulation of hydrogen-powered motor vehicles, including fuel cell vehicles, within networks determined by those Member States, including, where appropriate, cross-border links.

Annex II contains technical specifications for hydrogen refuelling points for motor vehicles and additionally lays down that:
• Outdoor hydrogen refuelling points dispensing gaseous hydrogen used as fuel on board motor vehicles shall comply with the technical specifications of the ISO/TS 20100 Gaseous Hydrogen Fuelling specification.
• The hydrogen purity dispensed by hydrogen refuelling points shall comply with the technical specifications included in the ISO 14687-2 standard.
• Hydrogen refuelling points shall employ fuelling algorithms and equipment complying with the ISO/TS 20100 Gaseous Hydrogen Fuelling specification.
• Connectors for motor vehicles for the refuelling of gaseous hydrogen shall comply with the ISO 17268 gaseous hydrogen motor vehicle refuelling connection devices standard.
ISO/TS 19880–1 Gaseous hydrogen – Fuelling stations
Includes hydrogen quality control recommendations.
ISO/CD 19880–8 Gaseous hydrogen – Fuelling stations – Hydrogen quality control – Under development
Hydrogen fuel quality control.
SAE J2719_201511 Hydrogen Fuel Quality for Fuel Cell Vehicles
I ISO 14687–2:2012 Hydrogen fuel – Product specification – Part 2: Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell applications for road vehicles
EN 17124:2018 - Hydrogen fuel - Product specification and quality assurance - Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell applications for road vehicles
EN 17124 specifies the quality characteristics of hydrogen fuel and the corresponding quality assurance in order to ensure uniformity of the hydrogen product as dispensed for utilization in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell road vehicle systems.