Non-Intrusive, On-Line, Simultaneous Multi-Species Impurity Monitor for Hydrogen Gas

In testing hydrogen-fueled engines, the purity of the hydrogen fuel is important. Hydrogen may become contaminated with nitrogen (N2), argon (Ar), or oxygen (O2), thereby making the hydrogen unusable for engine testing at Stennis Space Center (SSC). Therefore, for rocket engine testing, the quality of hydrogen from the fuel tank or feed line is tested before use. If there are contaminants found within the hydrogen, it is mandatory for the tank to be emptied; this results in testing delay. Therefore, NASA has specific interest in measuring concentrations of N2, Ar, and O2 in hydrogen gas. The approach currently used for testing the purity of hydrogen is conducted by collecting a gas sample from the hydrogen supply line or storage tank and then sending it to an analytical laboratory for evaluation. This procedure is time consuming and can, if the sampling is not carefully conducted, inadvertently introduce contamination, which would provide a misguided reading for the entire tank. Therefore, establishing a non-intrusive, on-line, near-real-time monitor that has a simultaneous multi-species impurity detection capability for hydrogen would eliminate these issues.