May 2003 

U.S. to Lead in Development of Hydrogen Power Research 

By Juana Williams 

In January 2003 President Bush announced a FreedomCAR (Cooperative Automotive 

Research) and Fuel Initiative that will provide $1.2 billion funding over five years 

allowing the United States to lead in research and development of hydrogen-powered fuel 

cells as a source of power for vehicles, homes, and businesses. The initiative, the goal of 

which is to lessen our dependence on foreign oil and promote the development of an 

environmentally clean fuel-cell technology with zero or near-zero emissions, intends to 

create a supporting infrastructure that is safe, economic, and reliable. A cooperative 

effort from both government and industry is necessary because of the high cost and risk 

in making hydrogen and fuel-cell technology commercially viable. 

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Codes and Standards and Coordinating 

Committee (HC&SCC) requested that NIST Weights and Measures Division (WMD) 

take a leading role in developing legal metrology standards for hydrogen refueling 

stations. The HC&SCC is coordinating the development of hydrogen-related codes and 

standards by public and private organizations and plans to promote and share this 

information with other national and international agencies involved in codes and 

standards. Various standards developing organizations (SDOs) for energy and fuel 

systems, in addition to governmental and environmental agencies and the auto industry, 

are involved in a collaborative effort to harmonize codes and standards for hydrogen fuel 

cells and related technologies. The goal is to prevent duplication of effort and to ensure 

all essential elements are in place for a commercial program. 

While HC&SCC’s goal is to have hydrogen fuel-cell technology and the necessary 

supporting infrastructure commercially viable by the year 2020, many of the major auto 

manufacturers already have developed hydrogen-fueled prototype vehicles. However, 

hydrogen-powered vehicles, outside of fleets, may not be available until the year 2015. 

The infrastructure for hydrogen fuel-cell technology will cover a wide gamut of services 

such as production, delivery, storage, transportation, distribution, communications, and 

safety. However, many SDOs involved in the harmonization work believe that there are 

no overwhelming safety issues. 

WMD is investigating with HC&SCC to determine the effect of hydrogen fuel-cell 

technology on weights and measures functions and the best use of resources in the 

standards-developing process. Hydrogen (H2) can be derived from many processes, for 

example, by reforming fossil fuels, gasification of biomass, or through the electrolysis of 

water. Some processes are more plausible than others, but hydrogen remains a viable fuel 

source. When developed, hydrogen-fueling stations for fuel-cell vehicles would be 

similar to the corner service station. 
Hydrogen as a cryogenic liquid is addressed in Section 3.34. Cryogenic LiquidMeasuring Devices in NIST Handbook 44. Currently, compressed hydrogen gas is more 

feasible as a vehicle motor fuel than liquid hydrogen. WMD staff observed a limited 

number of hydrogen motor-fuel dispensers that use mass flow metering technology 

similar to that currently in use to deliver compressed natural gas (CNG) motor fuel. 

Before CNG mass flow metering technology and standards in Section 3.37 Mass Flow 

Meters of Handbook 44 are applied to H2 applications, some properties of hydrogen and 

components of the hydrogen dispenser design must be closely examined. To name a few: 

· H2 purity levels for specific fuel cell applications 

· CNG-dispenser components’ compati-bility with H2

· Indicated units (GGE or other) 

· Return of H2 to storage in 3600-psi or 5000-psi systems 

 

The weights and measures community follows a specific process to develop device 

standards and method of sale requirements. Once the need for specific weights and 

measures standards is established, standards should be developed in concert with work at 

both the HC&SCC national and international level. A joint effort will do much to avoid 

trade barriers. The process should follow current procedures to allow for due process for 

all parties affected by new or modified standards. The process also needs to be timely for 

those sectors making large capital investments in weights and measures technology.