Type 3 Composite Container Leakage Study after Ambient Hydraulic Cycling Test

Abstract

With environmental issues such as global warming and air pollution becoming more prevalent, recent research has focused on developing early mass production of fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) that significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which causes global warming. A high-pressure hydrogen storage system consisting of a compressed hydrogen container and valves is the most commonly used fuel storage system for FCVs. The hydrogen used in FCVs is a flammable gas with a wide flammability range and a rapid flame propagation speed. Supplying fuel to FCVs in a high-pressure container requires special safety design and inspection of the high-pressure hydrogen storage system; checking the type of leakage is crucial if leakage occurs. For this purpose, the Gas Safety Corporation built equipment capable of performing repeated hydrostatic pressure tests of 70 MPa-class high-pressure vessels as a project for the Ministry of Knowledge Economy. Using the installed 70 MPa-class hydrostatic repetition equipment, hydrostatic repetition tests were conducted on one foreign and one domestic 70 MPa vessel to determine the leakage tendency. The behavior of the vessel under pressure application to the inside of the vessel was examined through structural analysis. We summarized the behavioral characteristics of Type 3 containers, which are attracting attention because of their safety and light weight.