A successful pressure test of a hydrogen gas tank, which may be used in vehicles such as buses or trucks in the future, was carried out at the Łukasiewicz – Institute of Aviation. The test was undertaken by the MAWO research project team, which involves six Łukasiewicz institutes.
The aim of the MAWO project is to create a high-pressure hydrogen tank (nominal working pressure 700 bar) and perform several key tests specified in Regulation No 134 of the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations (UN/ECE) — Uniform provisions concerning the approval of motor vehicles and their components with regard to the safety-related performance of hydrogen-fuelled vehicles. This document specifies, among other things, that all new compressed hydrogen storage systems manufactured for use in road vehicles must have a nominal operating pressure of 70 MPa (700 bar) or less and a service life of 15 years or less.
Successful pressure test
The tank designed by the MAWO consortium for a working pressure of 700 bar was ruptured at a pressure of 1674 bar with the expected failure mode. This result confirms the tightness of the system and the assumed strength of the braid with the required safety factor of 2.25. This is a milestone that opens the possibility of carrying out hazardous tests on the reservoir and, in the longer term, commercializing the project results.
“Our team faced many challenges, starting from the pandemic shortage of materials on the market, through ensuring a tight connection between the metal connector and the liner, ending with the proper definition of the composite braid and its manufacturing technology. We are looking forward to the results of dangerous tests that will be carried out on subsequent units of the tank,” says Małgorzata Zalewska, MAWO project manager at the Łukasiewicz – Institute of Aviation.
The project results will also include: material data, tank design methodology, manufacturing technology, results from hazardous tests, an algorithm for monitoring the condition of the structure using acoustic measurements, as well as the composition of the elastomer mixture to protect the tank.
MAWO consortium
The consortium, which is working on developing a design method and technology for producing a pressurized hydrogen tank, includes six Łukasiewicz institutes:
- Łukasiewicz – Institute of Aviation (project leader),
- Łukasiewicz – Automotive Industrial Institute,
- Łukasiewicz – Institute of Electrical Engineering,
- Łukasiewicz – Institute of Engineering of Polymer Materials and Dyes,
- Łukasiewicz – Institute of Microelectronics and Photonics,
- Łukasiewicz – Institute of Innovative Technologies EMAG.
The MAWO research project “Safe hydrogen gas tank dedicated to vehicles” is co-financed by a special grant from the Łukasiewicz Center.
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