[Report] "Alleviating Concerns Over Hydrogen Cars and Charging Stations"... A Visit to the Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center

Lee Dong-hoon, Deputy Director of the Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center in Yeongwol, Gangwon Province, is explaining the protective equipment testing and certification facility.

"Starting the high-pressure hydrogen discharge test." Following the guide's instructions, hydrogen gas was released at one corner of an outdoor test site about one-third the size of a soccer field. Hydrogen gas, charged in a container at 839 atmospheres, was discharged through a 7mm nozzle along with flames.

On the 8th, a hydrogen jet flame discharge test was conducted at the outdoor test site of the Korea Gas Safety Corporation Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center (ESDRC) in Yeongwol, Gangwon Province. Although earplugs for soundproofing were worn, the roaring noise from the hydrogen flame was clearly audible even from a distance. Since hydrogen gas is colorless and odorless, it was difficult to visually identify the flame. The actual observation of the flame was done using a thermal imaging camera.

A high-pressure hydrogen jet flame test is being conducted at the Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center. Hydrogen flames are colorless and difficult to observe with the naked eye, so a thermal imaging camera is used.

This experiment is conducted to develop an accident risk assessment program for hydrogen charging stations and to strengthen safety management. At the ESDRC, demonstration tests of high-pressure hydrogen discharge fires for hydrogen vehicle nozzles and safety valves are also being carried out in collaboration with domestic companies. Jang Seong-su, director of the ESDRC, explained, "Through the tests, we plan to secure various test data in the event of hydrogen vehicle fires and utilize them in fire response manuals."

The ESDRC was established in 2016 following the compressed natural gas (CNG) city bus explosion accident in Haengdang-dong, Seoul, in 2010. At that time, there was no institution in Korea capable of properly analyzing the cause of such accidents.

The ESDRC is equipped with one research building and nine test buildings on a 130,000㎡ site. It simultaneously conducts research and development, testing, and certification for gas containers and components. Globally, similar demonstration institutions include Powertech in Canada, the Japan Automobile Research Institute (JARI) and the Hydrogen Energy Test Research Center (Hy-TReC) in Japan, the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) in Germany, and the Swiss Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Protection Certification Institute (SPIEZ) ? five institutions in total. The ESDRC is the only single institution that conducts ultra-high-pressure tests, fire and explosion tests, and protection tests all under one roof.

The center is equipped with 147 pieces of equipment across 123 types, including ultra-high-pressure container and component test facilities, and conducts accredited testing of containers and components for hydrogen charging stations. It also supports domestic development through various performance tests. For hydrogen vehicles, certification of six components ? containers, pressure regulators, valves, charging ports and connectors, sensors, filters, and check valves ? is conducted here. Certification of one type of container and three types of valves for hydrogen charging station components is also performed.

Exterior of the Combustion Testing Laboratory at the Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center

In 2019, the ESDRC was recognized as the world's first accredited testing institution for hydrogen charging station valves. The center established a 24-hour accredited valve testing system, reducing the valve certification period from six months to two to three months. Valves for hydrogen charging stations undergo repeated pressurization up to 950 atmospheres of hydrogen a total of 12,000 times.

This year, the 'Hydrogen Bus and Charging Station Component Test and Evaluation Center' was completed in Eumseong, enabling tests on components and containers for large commercial vehicles such as hydrogen buses, which had been difficult to verify domestically until now.

The combustion test building at the ESDRC has walls 120 cm thick, designed to withstand explosions equivalent to 15 kg of TNT. Lee Dong-hoon, deputy director of the center, explained, "It has the space and heat capacity to burn a whole vehicle," adding, "This is the largest scale in the world." Here, gas fire and explosion reproduction experiments and flame exposure tests on ultra-high-pressure and ultra-low-temperature components such as hydrogen containers are conducted. Energy Storage System (ESS) fire tests are also carried out here.

An energy storage system (ESS) explosion test is being conducted at the Combustion Test Building of the Energy Safety Demonstration Research Center.

Following the Yeonpyeong Island shelling incident by North Korea, the need to strengthen protective products for key national facilities was raised, and the ESDRC also performs certification work for protective facilities. It verifies the structural integrity and performance of seven major protective products installed in protective facilities, including explosion-proof doors. Explosion-proof doors must show no performance degradation when a 125 kg TNT bomb detonates at a distance of 6 meters. Explosion pressure resistance tests for gas container storage room doors are also conducted here. Recently, semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have requested verification of protective facilities.

Director Jang Seong-su stated, "According to government policy, about 1,200 hydrogen charging stations are expected to be deployed by 2040," adding, "To promote the distribution of hydrogen charging stations in urban areas, we will accumulate demonstration tests, research on damage mitigation facilities such as protective walls, and protection technologies to alleviate vague public concerns about hydrogen charging stations and increase public acceptance."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.