ISO 14687-2 Update (WG12)
Karen Hall, National Hydrogen Association

ISO 14687-2 Hydrogen fuel - Product Specification - Part 2: Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell applications for road vehicles is nearly ready for distribution to the ISO TC 197 Technical Committee.

Members of WG12 have been working to remove references to PEM fuel cells for road applications in ISO 14687 - Hydrogen Fuel - Product Specification, and to create a Technical Specification (TS) for a grade of hydrogen fuel for use in road vehicles using PEM fuel cells. The grades of hydrogen currently described in the standard have been deemed unsuitable for PEM fuel cells for road vehicle applications, as they allow for much higher levels of impurities than recent data has shown can be tolerated by the fuel cells.

The Working Group has prepared a draft Technical Corrigendum to exclude hydrogen for PEM fuel cells for road vehicles from the existing standard. The Corrigendum will be circulated to all TC 197 country members at the same time as the draft TS.

WG 12 endorses a long-term R&D effort to develop consensus test protocols and procedures, testing, and data among the EU, Japan, the U.S., and other interested parties. These data are required to develop an international standard for hydrogen fuel quality. The WG12 Secretary invites all WG12 members to help supply data and contribute to the long-term plan. The TS will provide a mechanism to collect data from member countries that wish to contribute, with a goal of having sufficient confidence in developing the TS into an International Standard in about six years.

It is envisaged that a future need for other fuel cell applications (PEM for stationary, SOFC, Alkaline, etc.) may provide opportunities to expand the scope of the TS or create a new TS, however the current focus of the effort is on PEM fuel cells for road vehicles, consistent with the scope of the New Work Item Proposal which created this Working Group.

The draft is currently being prepared for a final WG12 review, following resolution of technical editing. Final revisions are being prepared for the Introduction. Industry is particularly interested in ensuring that the TS will not be used as a standard, and that future work reflects technological advancements by incorporating the lessons learned from ongoing research, development, and demonstration activities. Any application of this Technical Specification should take technological progress into account.
WG12 expects the Draft International Specification to go to TC 197 for comment this month, and the Technical Specification to be published in October 2006.