(Invited) Detection, Location and Quantification of H2 Gas Leaks Based on Data Collected with Electrochemical Sensors in a Specifically Designed Test Chamber
Authors: Russ Tamara , Stetter Joseph R. , Luong Eric , Patel Avadhkumar Jitubhai , Du Winncy 
Published: August 2024

Hydrogen is one of the most important energy gases as it is carbon free and therefore can result in the emission reduction of the greenhouse gas CO2. However, hydrogen itself is a secondary greenhouse gas. As a secondary greenhouse gas, hydrogen does not directly add to global warming by entrapping heat. Instead, it reacts with molecules in the atmosphere that are needed to remove the greenhouse gas CH4. CH4 is comparably short-lived in the atmosphere with approximately 10 years compared to CO2 which can last in the atmosphere for centuries. However, CH4 traps at least 100 times as much heat as CO2. Considering the difference in heat capacities of CH4 and CO2, combined with the difference in lifetime, if the same amount of CH4 and CO2 were to be released into the atmosphere at the same time, the global warming effect of CH4 would be approximately 28 times higher than the warming effect of CO2. This means, by releasing hydrogen in the atmosphere, the global warming effect is indirectly enhanced by increasing the lifetime of CH4. Therefore, it is essential to be able to detect, locate and quantify hydrogen leaks right away.

Due to the ever-growing hydrogen infrastructure including production facilities, transportation systems like pipelines, as well as storage facilities and user end stations, it is essential to create low-cost, low-power sensors that can be deployed in high numbers. Electrochemical sensors have the potential to fulfill all the needed criteria and are already used for the detection of hydrogen. However, in order to use these sensors to not only detect the leak, but also to locate and quantify the amount of hydrogen that leaked into the atmosphere, additional models and algorithms are needed. To our knowledge, no system currently exists on the market that can be used to fulfill all three tasks.

We built a test chamber that enabled us to evaluate H2 leaks and to collect data with electrochemical sensors in a controlled room and environment. The chamber has the size of 800 x 400 x 450 mm3 with a total volume of 144 L. We placed seven of our commercial electrochemical sensors that can detect 0 – 250 ppm hydrogen at different positions inside the box. The box was equipped with one gas inlet and one gas outlet to ensure pressure stability inside the box during our leak test. The inlet was connected to a gas tube which was connected to two mass flow controllers as well as to an outlet tube via a three-way valve. This way, it could be ensured that the gas stream had a stable volume and a constant speed. We released controlled amounts of hydrogen into the box and collected the data with our seven sensors. We were able to see a location-dependent sensor response over time for a 1 second leak of H2 which indicates the capability of such a sensor system to be used for the location of a leak.

Quantifying hydrogen is a very complex issue. It requires extremely accurate readings and an intelligent algorithm that is capable to use the reading from multiple sensors and turn that into a mass of hydrogen leaked or leaking. The extremely accurate reading is difficult because the zero and span readouts from the electrochemical sensor is dependent on temperature as well as humidity. This means that the readout zero and span will have to be compensated for both temperature and humidity. While we currently use algorithms to compensate for temperature, we found that these algorithms are not good enough when the sensors are used to measure concentrations in the low-ppm or ppb range. We are researching AI and other computational means to include both temperature and humidity in the compensation algorithms and how including both variables in the compensation process can improve the sensors performance at low concentrations. Both the H2 sensor and its deployment capabilities are technologically and economically significant to the rapidly expanding H2 market for protecting human health, the environment, stemming expensive product losses and promoting efficient use.