Carbon dioxide is one of the main contributors to global warming and climate change.
The year 2021 has seen government and industry leaders around the world continue their efforts to help the planet by introducing alternatives to major pollutants.
This has also become the gas industry’s mission, and Cavagna Group is the standard-bearer with its new, hydrogen-compatible regulators.
Why hydrogen?
Hydrogen is about to play a key role in the sustainability and operational success of the future decarbonized energy systems. Along with other solutions, hydrogen has the potential to contribute to the introduction of zero-emission mobility. It can lead to cleaner and more sustainable industrial processes, and to the reduction of emissions generated by domestic heating.
The Cavagna Group’s effort
The Cavagna Group is a key player in the push for more sustainable energy. One of its contributions is to carry out application studies to test the compatibility of its equipment with renewable gases, blends, and other types of gas — including hydrogen. These studies have led to Mesura producing one of the market’s first regulators certified for use with 100% hydrogen.
Mesura produces Hydrogen regulators
Mesura is indeed one of the first companies that have for the UK market a regulator (models R1 and R2) that is 100% compatible with hydrogen. What’s more, Cavagna Group is one of the very first companies in the world to have obtained this type of certification.
The Uk government’s goal is to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. At the moment, 80% of UK homes use natural gas (such as methane). The program’s next steps involve putting what it has learned into practice by building hydrogen systems and ramping up deployment of hydrogen vehicles and fuel cells. Once the program has reached these goals, it will be ready for the third phase. It will be the ‘widespread rollout’, in which hydrogen will become the main energy source for buildings, transport and industries. The plan is to switch a whole community over to using hydrogen one day.
Other Hydrogen based projects that Cavagna Group is carrying on
The group is also working on other hydrogen-specific projects. In fact, France is in the process of introducing hydrogen as an energy carrier for its own energy needs. The aim is reducing the use of methane to zero by 2050 and replacing it with biomethane and hydrogen. Just like many other utilities in the EU, GRDF is researching and developing the injection of H2 into its grid. However, the approach in France is different from that in the UK.
Indeed, the idea is to inject H2 into the existing natural gas network in a blend, such as 20% hydrogen and 80% methane. GRDF has thus provided its suppliers support with the development of compatible equipment. As a matter of fact, Mesura is in the process of obtaining certification for their S3 series regulator by Kiwa. It will be suitable for the NF Specification related markets.
The regulators described above are just two of the Cavagna Group’s products compatible with hydrogen. Another example is the Group’s HS1 valves for fuel cell vehicles. These types of valves require some specific characteristics, especially regarding the material used and the pressure applied. In fact, the challenge with hydrogen relates to its extremely small molecules, which tend to pass through coating materials.
Hydrogen compatibility tests and innovative products. That’s how Cavagna Group is helping achieve the goal of introducing hydrogen as an environmentally sustainable energy carrier.
