HYDROGEN SAFETY

Is it safe to use hydrogen as a fuel?

It is important to remember that all fuels must be treated with respect. Hydrogen is no different. Because hydrogen is so light and buoyant, if it is released into an open space it quickly disperses, dramatically reducing the chance of uncontrolled ignition. In general, for every 96 parts of air, at least 4 parts of that air must be hydrogen before there is a threat of combustion. This is actually quite a high concentration relative to other commonly used fuels and it is easily detected by the hydrogen leak detectors that all hydrogen vehicles and fueling stations are required to have.

All fuels have safety systems built into their production, distribution, and use. Today's hydrogen vehicles are equipped with hydrogen sensors and automatic shut-off systems to protect from any leaks. Some cars even automatically open the windows and sunroof if any is detected letting the hydrogen take a rapid ‘escape route’ before any harm can be done.

Could I fill a vehicle with hydrogen or does it have to be someone specially trained?

In many ways, fueling with hydrogen is similar to filling with gasoline. There are some ways that the dispenser is specially designed to accommodate the fact that you are filling with a gas rather than a liquid but for the most part the user would not see this. The only difference really could be that the nozzle has to be sealed on to the tank opening otherwise the gas would escape during refueling.

All gas stations we use today apply important safety considerations – hydrogen stations do the same. As with gas stations, users must abide by the same precautions – do not smoke and do not use mobile phones in or near the station. In other words, as with all fueling stations, there is a need to keep any ignition source at a distance.

In today's stations, hydrogen fuel can be stored at up to 6,000 psi, and the stations of tomorrow will possibly store at pressures up to 12,000 psi. Hydrogen storage tanks are designed to very safely hold gas at these pressures and higher - in fact they are engineered to hold up to 2.75 times their normal pressure rating. This means that a tank rated for 6,000 psi would have to be filled to over 10,000 psi before there will be any damage to the tank.

Who makes sure all these things happen?

All of these considerations and many more are going into an intense global effort to develop all the appropriate codes and standards to ensure that hydrogen is always put to use safely and effectively. Hydrogenics is a regular participant in many codes and standards development initiatives.