The codes and standards that regulate gasoline in passenger vehicles were created after vehicles were already on the road and stations already in operation. With hydrogen and fuel cell vehicles, the codes and standards are being developed concurrently with the technology. The California Fuel Cell Partnership takes an active role in supporting several standards development organizations by providing practical, real-world experience to ensure the standards and codes are realistic and relevant.
CaFCPCalifornia Fuel Cell Partnership safety officer, Jennifer Hamilton, works closely with the US Department of Energy on hydrogen safety, education, and codes and standards. One example is her involvement with the US DOE’s National Renewable Energy Lab and the workshops they hold for permitting officials, which will help speed the planning and permitting processes of hydrogen fueling stations.
Project engineer, Jackie Button, is the chair of the ASTMAmerican Society for Testing and Materials hydrogen sub-committee that is developing standards for sampling and analyzing hydrogen quality. The committee will be publishing its first standard by the end of the year and expects several more to follow. These standards will allow regulatory organizations to ensure that stations deliver hydrogen fuel at a quality acceptable to vehicles’ fuel cell stack and components.
Jackie and CaFCP technology analyst, Nico Bouwkamp, also participate in SAESociety of Automotive Engineers International, the organization that sets standards or best practices for everything related to vehicles and fuel. Nico and Jackie are active on the J2601 committee, which establishes the limits of protocols for gaseous hydrogen refueling. Currently, stations use different protocols for delivering the fuel into the vehicle. Once standardized, it will be easier for dispenser manufacturers, automakers, bus and other heavy-duty vehicle builders to design systems that give every vehicle a safe, consistent and full fill.
In addition to all of the work being done with the ASTM and SAE, the CaFCP Technical Team works closely with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, Division of Measurement Standards to develop test methods for evaluating metering equipment and dispensers so that hydrogen can be sold as a vehicle fuel in California.
The goal of the standards development organizations is to create universally accepted rules that do not unfairly disadvantage one industry or company over another, allow room for innovation and provide a choice of suppliers. With all the variables in an emerging technology, codes and standards can take years—sometimes decades—to develop. For hydrogen, many of the codes and standards are just around the corner, thanks to the work of CaFCP members and staff, and all the other people who volunteer their time to SDOs.
