H2HohlZug: Standardization of hollow specimen-pull testing technology for the cost-effective determination of material properties under high-pressure hydrogen

Project description

In the future hydrogen economy, several million tons of hydrogen will have to be imported into Germany or produced locally each year. To transport, store, and use this energy carrier on such a scale, existing natural-gas pipelines need upgrading or conversion, and entirely new infrastructures—pipelines, high-pressure containers, and distribution stations—have to be built. Metallic materials are at the focus, as they are particularly suited to withstand the high pressures of hydrogen storage and transport. Before deployment, their suitability for safe use in a hydrogen economy have to be verified.

Until now, test methods to assess material suitability under pressurized hydrogen were complex, expensive, and available only in a few laboratories worldwide. To address this, Fraunhofer IWM adopted hollow-specimen technology and further developed it for material qualification under high-pressure hydrogen. In hollow tensile testing, a metal sample was exposed simultaneously to hydrogen and mechanical stress. Compared to previous methods, it required far smaller hydrogen volumes and significantly reduced effort.

This process was accepted for ISO standardization in August 2021. Under the TransHyDE Norm project, H2HohlZug further advanced this technology toward ISO standardization and broad adoption by testing laboratories.