European policies aim for a greenhouse gas reduction of 55% by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050. This means a move away from natural gas and replacement by hydrogen and biomethane where technically appropriate and politically supported.

To ensure the further safe, reliable, and carbon neutral operation of industrial facilities, the replacement of natural gas by hydrogen in industrial gas applications and in the gas supplying infrastructure needs thorough preparation by all parties and appropriate standards. The quality of the hydrogen here will be the key!

The European hydrogen quality will be defined in CEN-CENELEC standards. As a basis for these, CEN-CENELEC standards need the input of industrial users on hydrogen quality necessities and the abilities of industrial applications using natural gas/hydrogen as feedstock and/or combustion.

Therefore, CEN-CENELEC kindly invites industrial users to support their work, in the interest of the industrial consumers of natural gas and hydrogen, by filling-in a questionnaire. The contributions to this questionnaire will determine the future quality specifications for hydrogen and the actual suitability for the processes and equipment for industrial applications.

 The survey especially asks for information on:

•       the impacts of trace components/impurities and other quality parameters on the industrial processes and equipment where hydrogen is used
•       information on technical mitigation measures at the industrial sites in order to enable the use of the hydrogen from repurposed natural gas grids

Contributions will remain anonymous unless voluntarily shared in Section 5 of the questionnaire. The survey results will only be published as anonymous and aggregated data in an informal CEN-CENELEC report to be used in standardisation.

The stakeholders in the initiative span many of the European and Standardisation organisations, together with a number of companies and national organisations including IFRF members of Engie, GRTgaz and Total Energies. Known as the CEN-CENELEC Sector for a Joint Task Force ‘Hydrogen quality needs for industrial uses’ (CEN-CLC SF JTF H2qInd), it is a joint initiative of the Sector for Energy Management WG H2, Gas Infrastructure and Gas Utilisation.