How can India fix Gaps for Green Hydrogen Safety Standards?

REPORT

Accelerating the Implementation of India's National Green Hydrogen Mission

Assessment of Standards to Enable the Ecosystem

04 August, 2023 | Industrial Sustainability

Pratheek Sripathy, Deepak Yadav, Aditi Bahuguna, and Hemant Mallya

Suggested Citation: Sripathy, Pratheek, Deepak Yadav, Aditi Bahuguna, and Hemant Mallya. 2023. Accelerating the Implementation of India's National Green Hydrogen Mission: Assessment of Standards to Enable the Ecosystem. New Delhi: Council on Energy, Environment and Water

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Overview

This study provides a comprehensive overview of the existing standards relating to green hydrogen in India. It compares the Indian standards with those in countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United States (US), and the United Kingdom (UK) across components of the green hydrogen value chain. The comparison identifies the gaps in existing standards in India across the hydrogen value chain and recommends alternatives for adoption.

India has set a target of producing 5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of green hydrogen by 2030 through the recently launched National Green Hydrogen Mission. In order to support the growth of a hydrogen economy, governments, research institutions, and international bodies are working in conjunction to harmonise codes, standards, and procedures related to the hydrogen value chain.

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Pratheek Sripathy

Research Analyst

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"Standards for operations and safety are prerequisites for an ecosystem to develop. Rapidly developing or adapting international standards will be the key to the success of green hydrogen in India."

Executive summary

Green hydrogen is in the early stages of deployment worldwide. As of August 2022, 38 countries, including the European Union (EU), were developing or had ratified policies on green hydrogen. The trading of green hydrogen, its derivative fuels, and related technologies are expected to significantly increase, given the mounting pressure to meet climate goals and the lack of access to renewable energy in many countries. The lack of codes and standards has been consistently recognised as a major hindrance to the large-scale deployment of any horizon technology. In order to support the growth of a hydrogen economy, governments, research institutions, and international bodies are working in conjunction to harmonise codes, standards, and procedures related to the hydrogen value chain.

India has set a target of producing 5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of green hydrogen by 2030 through the recently launched National Green Hydrogen Mission. Rapid scaling up of green hydrogen projects in India would require the development of a favourable ecosystem, and a single window clearance for green hydrogen projects would be a key component. In this regard, the development and harmonisation of hydrogen standards would play a critical role in making it for businesses to enter the green hydrogen market. In addition, since India aims to be a global hub for green hydrogen in the coming decades, the synchronisation of standards across the value chain with global export markets is of the utmost importance.

A. Gap assessment of hydrogen standards in India

Our report provides a comprehensive overview of the existing standards relating to green hydrogen in India. Further, the report also compares the Indian standards with those in countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United States (US), and the United Kingdom (UK) across components of the green hydrogen value chain. The comparison identifies the gaps in existing standards in India across the hydrogen value chain and recommends alternatives for adoption. The comparison enables the identification of standards that are popular worldwide, so that they may be adopted in India after due diligence.

B. Key recommendations

The missing links in standards related to the hydrogen value chain and the alternatives for adoption are summarised schematically in ES Figure 1. The gaps in standards are categorised according to the various stages of the value chain – namely, production, storage, transportation, applications, and dispensation. The key recommendations are given in what follows.

Hydrogen production

The IS 16509:2020 standard for electrolytic hydrogen production does not cover solid oxide electrolysers (SOECs), which are expected play a significant role in the coming decades. This should be updated to include the requirements defined in the outline for the UL LLC 2264A standard.
The IS 16512 (Part 1):2016 standard for hydrogen production through hydrocarbon reforming does not include production through alternative means such as natural gas or biomass pyrolysis. India should proactively develop standards for these technologies as they could be the bridge between the transition from grey to green hydrogen.

Hydrogen storage

The IS 7285:Part 1:2018 standard for gaseous hydrogen storage defines standards for cylinder sizes only up to 400 litres. India can consider expanding the standard to include larger cylinder sizes, as the demand for hydrogen is expected to increase in the near future.
India currently does not have standards defined exclusively for bulk storage of liquid hydrogen. India should develop and adopt standards such as CGA P-12, NFPA 55 and EIGA Doc 06/19.

Hydrogen transport

Currently, India does not have standards for dedicated hydrogen pipelines. It should consider adopting standards such as the ASME B31.12-2019 or CGA G-5.6 to allow the safe transport of hydrogen in bulk. The adopted standard should include steel pipes for hydrogen transport and other alternatives such as modified natural gas infrastructure repurposed for hydrogen transport.
India also does not have standards for metal hydride storage and the transport of hydrogen. It can adopt the prescribed ISO 16111:2018 standard after due diligence.
India currently does not have standards for maritime transport of hydrogen. India can adopt the IGC code/MSC.420 after due diligence.

Hydrogen applications

India must adopt standards such as the ISO 19882:2018 or develop its own standard for thermally activated pressure relief valves, which form an integral part of hydrogen-propelled vehicles.
India lacks standards for fuel-cell modules (IEC 62282-3-100:2019 – stationary fuel cells; IEC 62282-5-100:2018 – portable fuel cells; and IEC 62282-6-100:2010 – micro fuel cells), fuel-cell-based aircraft (SAE AIR 6464), and fuel-cell-based railway locomotives (IEC 63341 (Parts 1-3)). Since fuel cells are one of the primary routes for energy conversion using hydrogen, it is imperative that such standards are adopted or developed soon.
Currently, there are no standards governing hydrogen-fuelled internal combustion engines (ICEs). India should take the lead in developing the same.
There are no standards defining the operational parameters or design specifications of equipment for the safe use of hydrogen for process heat applications. India should proactively develop them in order to accelerate the use of hydrogen as a green fuel in industries.

Hydrogen dispensation

India currently does not have any standards for hydrogen refuelling stations. The ISO 19880-1:2020 or CSA/ANSI HGV 4.9:20 standards for gaseous hydrogen dispensation and the ISO 13984-1999 standard for liquid hydrogen dispensation can be adopted. The standards related to hydrogen dispensation for end users need to match domestic requirements and climatic conditions.

ES Table 1 details the hydrogen safety standards in India, covering various components of the value chain, and suggests alternatives to existing standards; it also recommends standards in cases where there are none. In addition, the detailed commentary compares the status of the standards in countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and the US.

Figure ES1 Missing links in the hydrogen value chain in India

Source: Authors' compilation

Note: The colour of the text represents whether Indian safety standards are present. Blue indicates that indigenous standards have been developed, whereas orange denotes that indigenous standards are not available and indicates possible alternatives for India to adopt.

Table ES1 Summary of gap assessment of hydrogen standards in India

Source: Authors' compilation

FAQs

What is green hydrogen?

Green hydrogen is the hydrogen produced through the use of renewable energy for the electrolysis of water. The ability to produce green hydrogen in a de-centralised manner makes this fuel of the future particularly useful.
What is India’s National Green Hydrogen Mission?

The National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) aims to make India a global hub for the production of green hydrogen while also creating demand for its usage and export of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives. This will contribute to India’s climate ambitions and help the country become Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant) for its energy needs. The Mission will lead to significant decarbonisation of the economy and reduced dependence on fossil fuel imports.
Does India have standards for the production, storage and transport of hydrogen?

India already has standards for hydrogen production using proton exchange membranes (PEM), alkaline electrolysers, and anion electrolyte membrane electrolysers (AEM) but does not for solid oxide electrolyser cells (SOECs). India also has standards for hydrogen production through hydrocarbon reforming. However, India does not have standards for production through alternative means such as natural gas or biomass pyrolysis. India also has standards for the gaseous storage of hydrogen but needs to develop standards for bulk storage of liquid hydrogen. India also has standards for onboard hydrogen storage for fuel-cell electric vehicles. While India has standards for the storage and transport of gaseous and liquid hydrogen, it lacks standards for transportation through pipelines.