【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Engineering Equipment】Successful completion of China’s first fire test on on-board liquid hydrogen tanks from 1453 to 2021

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Happy New Year 2024 **********************【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Processing Equipment】A continuously updated summary post – feel free to join the discussions: https://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-3576046-1-1.html (Source: Haichuan Chemical Engineering Forum) ***************** In June 2021, the Beijing Aerospace Test and Technology Institute successfully carried out China’s first fire test on liquid hydrogen tanks mounted in vehicles. This test tank is a liquid hydrogen storage tank for heavy-duty trucks, featuring a high-vacuum multi-layer insulation structure; it is filled with liquid hydrogen as the actual medium, and key tests such as evaporation rate, retention time, and fire resistance have been conducted on it. The fire test is an important part of the testing procedures for on-board liquid hydrogen tanks. It is used to evaluate the performance of the pressure relief mechanisms in such tanks under fire conditions, as well as the tanks’ resistance to fire. Since these tanks contain large quantities of liquid hydrogen, which is a highly hazardous substance, conducting fire tests is quite challenging. Building on the research foundation of fire testing techniques for high-pressure hydrogen cylinders, and taking into account the unique physical and chemical properties of liquid hydrogen, the Beijing Aerospace Test Technology Institute overcame numerous technical challenges. It ultimately developed key technologies such as fire testing methods for liquid hydrogen storage containers, safety protection systems, and quality assessment methods for hydrogen storage containers, thereby filling the gaps in research in this field in China. The Beijing Aerospace Test Technology Institute is the earliest established, largest in scale, most comprehensive in functions, and most technologically advanced ground-based comprehensive test and research facility for aerospace propulsion in China. It is also the only facility for the research and testing of hydrogen-oxygen engines. The institute houses China’s sole research center for aerospace liquid propellants, and it is the entity with the highest production capacity and consumption of liquid hydrogen in the country. The institute has established a comprehensive foundation for the development of liquid hydrogen and high-pressure hydrogen equipment. It boasts the most sophisticated domestic system for the production, storage, transportation, application, and safety management of liquid hydrogen. It has developed hydrogen liquefaction equipment, hydrogen station equipment, and liquid hydrogen storage and supply systems with independent intellectual property rights. Additionally, it has assembled a first-class team in China for the research and development as well as industrialization of hydrogen energy technologies. The total amount of funding allocated to research in the civilian hydrogen energy market, along with commercial contracts, has reached hundreds of millions of yuan. To date, the Beijing Aerospace Test Technology Institute has mastered a number of domestically leading testing technologies for hydrogen energy equipment, including fire testing, high-pressure hydrogen circulation testing, liquid hydrogen valve testing, and hydrogen liquefaction equipment testing. These technologies provide strong technical support for advancing the commercial application of hydrogen energy technology in China. According to Gao Gong Hydrogen Energy, with the rapid development of the hydrogen energy industry, the advantages of convenient storage and transportation of liquid hydrogen, as well as its economic viability for large-scale application, are gaining attention within the industry. There are calls for liquid hydrogen to be put into civilian use and industrial application as soon as possible, and liquid hydrogen storage is considered to be an important direction for the advancement of hydrogen storage and transportation technologies. In May 2021, the State Administration for Market Regulation (**Standardization Commission**) approved the issuance of 215 important **standards**, three of which relate to the hydrogen energy sector. These include \"Liquid Hydrogen for Hydrogen Fuel Cells in Vehicles\", \"Technical Specifications for Liquid Hydrogen Production Systems\", and \"Technical Requirements for the Storage and Transportation of Liquid Hydrogen\"; they will come into effect on November 1 this year. Recently, the test of vehicle-mounted liquid hydrogen tanks using fire exposure was successfully carried out at the Beijing Aerospace Test Technology Institute, marking a substantial advancement in liquid hydrogen storage technology as a result of the further improvement in China’s capabilities for testing hydrogen-related equipment.