Fuel cell installations

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name

Organi-
sation

Infrastructure short name Country
code
Short Description of Installation

CDS, SOFC, MCFC

UP FCLab IT Plants of gas distribution, facilities of data control and saving, gascromatography and systems for the measurement of concentration, impedance analyzer, gas and H2O controllers, temperature control systems, current control systems, systems of pressure measurement, desulphurization system. Single cell testing and small (1kW and 2.5kWe) fuel cell stacks.
DurSOFC Jülich DurSOFC DE Single cell testing of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells / Single cell (ASC and/or ESC).
EDIP CEA H2 & FCTF FR Fuel cell test bench and single cell test fixutes designed for the study of water management and repartition during fuel cell operation.
Electrochem Test NPL NPL-EC UK Scanning electrochemical microscope with high resolution, rotating disk electrode.
ETC JRC H2 & FCTF BE Test up to 100 kW fuel cells or other test items. The environmental conditions include the simultaneous application of multi-axial shocks & vibration at frequencies of up to 250 Hz, ambient temperatures in the range of -40°C to +60°C and 15-95% relative humidity of the ambient.
H2PF JRC H2 & FCTF BE Small scale hydrogen production unit (reformer) based on reforming of low calorific natural gas to high purity hydrogen as fuel cell feed and an online monitoring of reformer input and output fluid and energy streams to survey quality of feeds and products and to determine performance in terms of efficiency and CO2 emissions under various operation modes.
H2Purity NPL NPL-GC UK Gas chromatography.
H2QF JRC H2 & FCTF BE FC test station to simulate various test conditions.
HYKA-PZ KIT HYKA DE Hydrogen Test Chamber (8.53m x 5.5m x 3.3m), powerful venting system.
PEMFC, SOFC, MCFC ENEA CR Casaccia IT Three single cell and stack test benches for performance evaluation and degradation mechanism investigation of PEMFC, MCFC and SOFC. One laboratory is dedicated to chemical-physical characterization of cell and stack component both pre and post test.
Single PEFCTest NPL NPL-FC UK Instrumented single cell PEMFC test stations, potentiostats, hydrogen generator.
SINQ PSI NEUTRA CH NEUTRA and ICON neutron imaging beam lines / Wide range of detector options / Mobile fuel cell test bench for experiments in the beam lines / For specific projects: ECL setup for simultaneous imaging of 6 fuel cells.
SOFC KIT SOFC-Test (IWE) DE Test Benches for SOFC single cells.
STF-1 SINTEF STF-1 NO

- ProboStatTM units enabling membrane permeation measurements up to 1100 °C and 5 bar pressure.

- Various in-house designed units allow for studies of permeation up to 40 bars and 600 °C (e.g. for studies of Water Gas Shift or Methane Steam Reforming).

- 3 TG measurement units that give the possibility to investigate materials from ambient conditions to high pressure (40 bars) - high temperature (1100 °C) conditions in the presence of harsh chemicals.

STF-PEM SINTEF FCTF NO Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, mass spectroscopy, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, liquid/ Ion chromatography, scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance (liquid/solid).
X-Ray UP MCLab-FCTF IT Four x-ray sources with monochromatic beams ranging from the Cr Ka wavelength up to the W ka wavelength and continuous radiation up to 300 keV photon energy. Wide range of sample temperature from 10 K up to 1000 K.

 

Hydrogen production and storage installations

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name

Organi-
sation

Infrastructure short name Country
code
Short Description of Installation
COMEDHY CEA H2-PAC FR Enables hydrides materials to be tested in gaseous hydrogen pressures and temperatures.
ETC JRC H2 & FCTF BE Test up to 100 kW fuel cells or other test items. The environmental conditions include the simultaneous application of multi-axial shocks & vibration at frequencies of up to 250 Hz, ambient temperatures in the range of -40°C to +60°C and 15-95% relative humidity of the ambient.
GasTEF JRC H2 & FCTF BE High pressure piston compressor, hydrogen pre-cooler, system for inside tank temperature measurement, gas chromatograph for hydrogen permeation measurements, the facility is fully automated and remotely controlled.
H2PF JRC H2 & FCTF BE Small scale hydrogen production unit (reformer) based on reforming of low calorific natural gas to high purity hydrogen as fuel cell feed and an online monitoring of reformer input and output fluid and energy streams to survey quality of feeds and products and to determine performance in terms of efficiency and CO2 emissions under various operation modes.
HYKA-A8 KIT HYKA DE Turbulent hydrogen combustion in uniform and nonuniform gas mixtures at different pressures; effect of venting on flame propagation regimes; high pressure hydrogen releases, experiments on hydrogen distribution, hydrogen jet combustion, structural response of piping structures to internal pressure loads, integrity of high pressure tanks under external and internal pressure loads, to use as a safety vessel for small hydrogen inventory facilities (as explosion tubes and chambers, hydrogen fuel cells).
HYKA-HPEB KIT HYKA DE Successfully tested vessel for hydrogen explosion at 70 bar of initial pressure and temperatures up to 300 oC.
HYKA-HyJet KIT HYKA DE Different high pressure vessels with a volume from 0.2 to 12 dm3 at initial pressure up to 700 bar can be investigated with respect to high pressure hydrogen releases through different nozzles.
HYMAT Tecnalia HyMAT ES The effect of hydrogen in the mechanical properties of materials can be evaluated by some series of testing.
HYSORB NCSRD HYSORB GR

Wide range of volumetric, gravimetric, calorimetric and spectroscopic techniques.

Lady EMPA EMPA CH High Temperature Electrolysis by Solid Oxide Cells (SOEC), Alkaline electrolysis (laboratory scale), Electrochemical characterization.
Lasy EMPA EMPA CH Synthesis of Hydrogen storage materials via solid state preparation methods such as ball-milling, Characterisation of Hydrogen storage materials via state of the art characterization methods such as volumetry.
MH syn KIT MH (INT) DE Synthesize air sensitive compounds by chemical methods.
MH test KIT MH (INT) DE Accurate H2 storage measurements at different pressure/ temperature conditions with a unique combination of chemical, volumetric, gravimetric and calorimetric analysis techniques.
MOSE ENEA CR Casaccia IT Suitable for dynamic corrosion testing and all other durability testing of steels, sealing, welding, etc.
NANO Lab ENEA CR Casaccia IT High temperature reactive atmosphere powder X-ray diffraction, SEM, thermal analysis (TG, DTA, DSC), light scattering (1nm-6um particle diameter range), surface area analyser (BET), thermal programmed desorbtion/reaction (TPD/TPR). The following technical items can be investigted in the field of: Thermochemical Hydrogen Production, Hydrogen storage, Hydrogen purification from Steam Reforming and/or other gases (CH4, CO,….) storage and purification, PEMFC, MCFC, SOFC.
PARR-PCT ENEA CR Casaccia IT

The PARR Hydrogenation system is a gas sorption analyzer capable of measuring gas absorption/desorption capacity and cycling properties of gas-liquid interactions.

The PCT is a gas sorption analyzer capable of measuring a number of properties including gas absorption/desorption and cycling capacity of gas-solid interactions.

PCS ENEA CR Casaccia IT Testing under real operating condition of all the main plant components (parabolic solar collector, supporting structure, mirrors, tracking and driving systems, heat collecting elements, molten salt components, circulating pumps, sensors, valves, preheating systems, etc.) and setting up operating procedure of a molten salt solar field: operation and maintenance procedures, control loops, draining and filling procedures, etc.
PRETHY CEA H2-PAC FR Hydraulic testing machine associated to a pressure vessel operating at pressures up to 350 bar and temperatures up to 350°C. Internal available volume of 5.5 l in the pressure vessel. Two cells to perform disc rupture tests up to 1000 bar and, up to 100°C under pure hydrogen, helium or wet hydrogen.
PUS, ODIN, SANS IFE JEEP II NO

PUS: A high-resolution powder neutron diffractometer
ODIN : A multi-purpose neutron diffractometer for high-resolutions or in-situ studies
SAN S: Small Angle Neutron Scattering instruments for investigations of
nanometer-sized objects

SIH2 Loop ENEA CR Casaccia IT Study each unit operation (separations, reactions, etc.) individually to identify best operative conditions; study the coupling between units; improve know-how on the S-I cycle management and train personnel; identify critical process steps to focus further research efforts to improve efficiency and feasibility; develop start-up and shut-down operations; collect performance data for the design of larger-scale (pilot, full-scale) equipment.
Can be also employed to study a new sulphur recovery process, based on the “open cycle” S-I process.
SolTeF JRC H2 & FCTF BE Gravimetric and volumetric based gas sorption analyzers covering the operation ranges from LN2 – 500 degC temperature and from 0 – 200 bars pressure; TDS-MS coupled analyzers for measurements from LN2 temp. up to 500 degC and pressure up to 130 bars. Ball mill and glove-boxes for sample preparation and storage.
STF-1 SINTEF STF-1 NO ProboStatTM units enabling membrane permeation measurements up to 1100°C and 5 bar pressure. Various in-house designed units allow for studies of permeation up to 40 bars and 600°C (e.g. for studies of Water Gas Shift or Methane Steam Reforming). 3 TG measurement units that give the possibility to investigate materials from ambient conditions to high pressure (40 bars) – high temperature (1100°C) conditions in the presence of harsh chemicals.
X-Ray UP MCLab IT Four x-ray sources with monochromatic beams ranging from the Cr Ka wavelength up to the W ka wavelength and continuous radiation up to 300 keV photon energy. Wide range of sample temperature from 10 K up to 1000 K.

 

Safety issues installations

Short
name
Organi-
sation
Infrastructure short name Country
code
Short Description of Installation
BlaTun HSE HSL UK The blast tunnel is a 70 m long tunnel made of steel with a diameter of 3.7 m. It is is designed to withstand a blast equivalent to 15 kg of TNT. A standard gauge railway track runs through the tunnel from a siding, such that test items can be easily prepared and shunted into the tunnel for testing.
ExCell HSE HSL UK The vented enclosure consists of a number of modules, each of which has a 2.5 m x 2.5 m cross section and is 2.5 m long. These modules can be bolted together to give a vessel with a total length of 30 m. The modules are made of steel and ventilation can be provided by a centrifugal fan.
FLOREAL CEA FLOREAL FR Floreal consits of three main infrastructures : GARAGE (a more than 30 sq.m garage room, with a 3D helium concentration sensors mesh), GAMELAN and grand GAMELAN with helium concentration sensors located on 3 vertical lines of 5 sensors.
HiPress HSE HSL UK The facility consists of a manifold system for hydrogen and purge gas cylinder packs. It can be configured in a number of ways, including transfers between vessels where one vessel represents a filling station dispenser and the second vessel a vehicle tank receiving fuel.
HYKA-A1 KIT HYKA DE The safety vessel A1 has main dimensions of 3.5 m id and 12 m length with a volume of 100 m3. The vessel may be used as a safety vessel or filled itself with a hydrogen-air mixture at ambient conditions.
HYKA-A2 KIT HYKA DE The largest safety vessel A2 with main dimensions of 6 m id and 9 m height provides an empty test volume of about 220 m3. Depending on the purpose, large samples can be tested inside them, or the whole vessel can be used as a test volume.
HYKA-A3 KIT HYKA DE The safety vessel A3 has main dimensions of 2.5 m id and 8 m height with a volume of 33 m3. It was certified at maximum static pressure of 60 bar. The vessel may be evacuated or filled with a hydrogen-air mixture at different pressures from sub-atmospheric to several bar of initial pressure.
HYKA-A6 KIT HYKA DE The safety vessel A6 has main dimensions of 3.3 m id and 3.1 m height with a volume of 21.5 m3. It was certified at maximum static pressure of 40 bar. The vessel may be used as a safety vessel for high pressure installations and explosion experiments. It has two doors of 800 mm id.
HYKA (General information) KIT HYKA DE At the hydrogen test centre HYKA of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) there are several safety vessels and test tubes for hydrogen combustion experiments in various scales and a large test chamber for hydrogen distribution and in particular combustion experiments. In particular: Hydrogen Test Chamber (PZ); Safety-Vessels A1, A2, A3, A8; Explosion tubes.
HYKA-PET KIT HYKA DE The partially vented explosion tube has an internal diameter of 100 mm and a length of 7 m. The tube offers the possibility to investigate the effects of variable transverse openings on the combustion process in order to reproduce flame propagation in a multi-room geometry in presence of openings (like windows and doors in reality).
HYKA-ST KIT HYKA DE The 12 m detonation tube can be equipped with ring shaped obstacles of different blockage ratios. The measuring system consists of thermocouples array, piezoelectric and piezoresistive gauges, gas analyzer and mass flow rate controller, photodiodes and strain gauges.
PROFLAM I&II KIT PROFLAM DE The basic combustion properties of hybrid hydrogen/dust systems may be assessed in the PROFLAM facility. The facility is instrumented with fast pressure measurements, thermocouples and photodiodes used as flame-front-arrival gauges, a mass-spectrometer with up to 15 sampling ports, and appropriate data acquisition.
Sens BAM BAM Tests DE Testing, calibration and validation of gas and humidity sensors.
SenTeF JRC H2 & FCTF BE SentTeF's sensor performance can be assessed under a wide range of environmental conditions. Temperature can be controlled between -40 °C and +130 °C. The pressure range of the facility is about 100 Pa up to 250 kPa. Relative humidities of 10% at -10 °C and 100% at 60 °C are possible.
Trib BAM BAM Tests DE Laboratory equipped for tests about friction, wear, and lubrication also under cryogenic conditions, including in liquid hydrogen as well as helium or nitrogen. The cryostats can as well be used for other experiments with cryogenic hydrogen as well as they fit in.
TTS BAM BAM Tests DE The test site serves for tests concerning dangerous goods, explosives, and similar things. The explosion test ground with a diameter of 400 m enables tests of up to 150 kg of TNT equivalent to be performed. Thermal energy is provided by burning a liquid propane gas mixture.

 

 

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Phone +49 721 6082 5274
Fax +49 721 6082 4777

 

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Phone +49 721 6082 6105
Fax +49 721 6082 4777

 

 

 

 

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