Gaseous Fuel Transport Line Leakage - Natural Gas Compared to Hydrogen

This work investigated the gas clouds produced by leakage from a hydrogen pipeline compared to those of a natural gas pipeline. The growth of the gas clouds was predicted with a computer model (FLUENT) and verified with a full scale model leaking 1415 I/min (50 SCFM) of hydrogen or 425 I/min (15 SCFM) of methane. Those leakage flowrates correspond to equivalent energy delivery rates in the pipelines. The risks involved in leaking hydrogen compared to natural gas was assessed in terms of the likelihood of ignition (size of the combustible cloud) and severity of combustion (energy content of the combustible cloud).