UK Hydrogen Fuel Cell Installation Guideline Update
Karen Hall, National Hydrogen Association

Britain's Health and Safety Commission (HSC) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are responsible for the regulation of almost all the risks to health and safety arising from work activity in Britain. Their mission is to protect people's health and safety by ensuring risks in the changing workplace are properly controlled. The HSE has taken a lead to bring UK industry stakeholders together to draft a Guideline for stationary appliances. Specifically, AN INSTALLATION GUIDE FOR HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.

The joint UK government/industry group that is preparing a UK installation guideline for hydrogen fuel cells met on April 26 to continue their work.

The scope covers all stationary fuel cell devices/installations fuelled by hydrogen and ventilated to the outdoors. It does not apply where the hydrogen fuel is made by internal/adjacent reforming of other fuels. It also does not apply to portable or transport applications.

Recent progress with the draft is as follows: The HSE has agreed to assist with writing a paragraph at the beginning of the document describing hazards. There are a number of activities to validate separation distances. To facilitate broader review and input on the draft, the group agreed to remove the numbers on the separation distance tables until numbers could be validated.

The HSE Guideline Group will contact the new Chair of the United Kingdom Hydrogen Association to offer the document and ask for it to be posted on their website at www.ukha.org in advance of the next meeting, which is scheduled for September 12 in Buxton, UK.