The HSP is not familiar with this particular fitting or its potential application in H2 service but can offer engineering judgment. Many similar compression-type swaged fittings are used in H2 service. These fittings must be used within the manufacturer recommendations for pressure, temperature, and fluid service. Deformation is also introduced into stainless steel tubing in other ways, such…

The Panel considers two approaches to be acceptable. 

1. Stainless steel (corrosion resistant) lines embedded in concrete. This keeps the piping out of direct contact with the earth and provides a degree of physical protection from activities such as digging.
2. Lines enclosed within a PVC sleeve. The PVC sleeve would usually be directly buried but could also be embedded in…

These distances are based primarily on hydrogen piping releases and resultant vapor clouds and jet flames based on pipe diameter and pressure. It’s important to note that many facilities have issues such as confinement and congestion, so it may be applicable to apply contemporary engineering models to assess risk.

There is technically no upper limit for GH2 storage listed within the separation distance tables within Chapter 7 of NFPA 2. For LH2, there is a 75000-gallon upper limit for the LH2 storage separation distance tables within Chapter 8 for LH2. 
It’s important to note that many facilities have site specific issues such as large quantities, confinement, and congestion, so it may be…

The Global Asset Protection Services (GAPS) standard was written 20 years ago for property loss prevention at crowded chemical plants and is intended for existing and new oil and chemical facilities to limit explosion over-pressure and fire exposure damage; thus, the purpose is different than NFPA 2. NFPA distances were based on studies from the 1960s as well as qualitative factors that were…

Previous versions of NFPA 55 listed overhead power lines within the separation distance tables with no voltage distinction. The separation distances were 15 ft for GH2 and 25 ft for LH2 for all overhead electrical lines. The current edition of NFPA 2 includes these in overhead utilities; the distance for GH2 and LH2 will vary with pressure and diameter of the hydrogen piping. In practice, high…

Example safety guidelines are listed below but may not be all-inclusive (e.g., they do not cover general practices such as lockout/tagout, management of change, job safety analysis), and most are the same as for gaseous hydrogen. Also reference NFPA 2 and CGA documents such as H-3, H-5, and H-7. Additional safety training material can also be found on the following link to courses and…

Double pipes can be used in certain circumstances to reduce the likelihood of external leaks and increase
the likelihood of detection by monitoring the space between the two pipes. Vacuum jacketed piping is
double walled and is used in liquid hydrogen service to provide insulation. While not equipped with gas
detection in the annular space, loss of vacuum is used to indicate an…

Each system should be evaluated for exposure of equipment to jet fires. The design team should develop
a plan to mitigate exposure as part of the hazard analysis. Fire barriers, walls, enclosures, and insulation
systems are frequently installed to meet code requirements where separation distances are not
sufficient or where the probability of exposure to a jet fire is high. Barriers…

Codes and standards to address issues like this one are under development, along with applied research and field trials. As with any new application, appropriate codes and standards must be developed to meet public risk targets.