A research project at the University of Aberdeen is investigating new materials and methods for hydrogen transportation and storage, repurposing the economic future of the North Sea. It will support and improve green energy supply across the UK. Draeger Safety UK is involved in the project, and also provides further detail here about the aims of the initiative.
The MHYSTIC (New Materials and Methods for Hydrogen Transportation and Storage: Repurposing the Economic Future of the North Sea) project is being led by experts at the University of Aberdeen, and draws upon chemical, mechanical and materials engineering, as well as expertise in financial assessment in geological settings. It is is one of 10 selected by the UK-HyRES Flexible Fund which aims to progress technology for hydrogen and alternative liquid fuels.
Dräger, which has an office in Aberdeen, has worked with the School of Engineering at the University of Aberdeen for the past four years. The ensuing partnership has resulted in the group supporting the University’s research into hydrogen and renewable energy and providing safety knowledge and advice to students, as well as advising on safety technology, such as gas detection and monitoring devices for new hydrogen research facilities.
Nearly £3 million has been awarded for the work, enabling “pioneering studies across multiple institutions and disciplines”, says the university. One important thread of hydrogen research is in respect of safety.
“The safety industry has a fundamental role to play in the development of renewable and green energy and it is therefore vital that industry and academia works together to address challenges”, said Megan Hine, Energy Transition Safety Lead, Draeger Safety UK.
“Not only is the role of safety crucial to ensure public and industry confidence and trust, but there are some elements where the safety risks are not fully known, and as a result we are working very closely with the University of Aberdeen, and our clients, many of whom are at the forefront of the energy transition, to understand and manage these risks and to promote the safe use of green technologies.”
For example, the research undertaken as part of the MHYSTIC project will be vital to test the structural integrity of steel when in contact with hydrogen and to suggest new barrier materials to reduce hydrogen embrittlement and structural failure in pipelines and vessels. It will also evaluate the use of current offshore infrastructure for hydrogen applications. Dräger’s role in the project will be to provide gas detection equipment to take leakage measurements which will support additional, dynamic experiments in small pipeline sections and vessels. This will help to determine pressure losses and compare current measurements which will ultimately predict optimal material comparisons to minimise hydrogen leakages and embrittlement.
Dr Alfonso Martinez-Felipe, University of Aberdeen and Project Lead commented: “This project will combine experimental and computational techniques to come up with new models that explain and prevent hydrogen leakage through steels and polymers. Our ambition is to repurpose existing pipelines and instruments in the North Sea for their use in transport of hydrogen and its blends, contributing to circularity and reactivating the renewable energy sector in the region. We are delighted to have Drager as one of our industry partners, who will help us transfer our research findings into innovations and regulations that will establish a safe hydrogen economy in Scotland and the UK”.
Megan Hine added: “Dräger is pleased to be partnering with the University of Aberdeen on this project and to be at the centre of this important research to play a role in defining the safety parameters for the future transportation and storage of hydrogen.
“It is essential that we get safety right in the renewables and green energy sector. We’re firmly of the view that safety does not need to hinder the process, nor the deployment, of the energy transition. Instead, getting the safety elements right from the start, will speed things up, both now and in the long term.”
