New Energy Sources - Oktoberfest in Billing?
Hydrogen is among the energy sources of the future and is increasingly being adopted as a low-emission alternative. Good for people and the environment! But is it also good for our wallets? In many areas, the billing of this advanced energy variant still uses methods that are not up to date.
Recently, we have access to advanced metering technology with professional transmission methods. However, many places still use billing methods that can be considered rudimentary in unfavorable cases.
Similar to the famous German “Oktoberfest,” where an eager bartender might tap 110 liters from a 100-liter beer keg in the hustle of the world’s largest folk festival.
But what about customers buying hydrogen as an energy source today?
The conventional measurement methods using differential pressure are unreliable because they depend heavily on environmental conditions. In this method, the pressure in the hydrogen tank is measured before and after dispensing, and the delivered amount is calculated from the pressure difference.
The measurement becomes even more inaccurate when environmental conditions change. When temperatures rise, hydrogen expands, and the pressure in the tank increases. This often results in a delivery truck that starts in the cool morning and delivers in the midday heat possibly selling more than it loaded.
The reverse is also possible. If temperatures drop, it may deliver more to the customer than it bills for.
It’s a bit like the beer mugs at Oktoberfest, except that the reference is unintentionally altered by external conditions.
The Solution Already Exists
All of this can be solved much better today. There are now excellent measurement methods that can measure hydrogen very accurately, regardless of external conditions. This does not mean that the measurement is simple. The high pressures of gaseous hydrogen, up to 800 bar, and the demanding conditions exclude many measurement systems. However, there are suitable solutions on the market.
But like the bartenders at Oktoberfest, intervention by authorities is needed here, serving as a neutral body concerned with the well-being of both suppliers and customers.
The delivery of fossil fuels and the billing of solar and wind power have long been regulated. This regulation is now also pending for hydrogen delivery.
German hydrogen suppliers are pioneering this effort!
For gas suppliers, this initially posed the problem of finding a suitable solution that had to be approved for this application. Trigas DM, a specialist in flow measurements and calibration, and a well-known gas supplier from Germany developed a pioneering solution, which was approved by the PTB, the national institute in Germany, after thorough testing in October 2019.
This solution not only covered technical requirements and prescribed logging but also solved another problem causing headaches for gas suppliers. The biennial calibrations of measuring devices would have meant an immense additional effort. As the measuring units were to be installed on the trucks, it would have meant that all vehicles would have had to visit the calibration office for one to two days every two years.
With about 300 measuring systems delivered by Trigas DM so far, this would have created a massive logistical effort for gas suppliers. For hydrogen suppliers, this would have meant their trucks were out of service during this time, resulting in significant financial losses.
Find more information on the TrigasDM website.
Trigas DM’s solution makes both unnecessary. The measuring system was designed as a removable unit. When calibration is due for a truck with a Trigas measuring system, it doesn’t need to schedule a cumbersome appointment with the calibration office but simply drives to one of Trigas’ certified workshops. This usually happens as part of regular maintenance, so no additional effort is required.
In the workshop, the measuring unit is exchanged by qualified personnel for a freshly calibrated unit, previously requested from Trigas. The “old” box is sent back to Trigas.
The returned boxes are collected in the accredited flow laboratory of TrigasFI. When a certain number of units are ready for calibration, Trigas schedules the appointment with the calibration officer. When the officer visits, the measuring units are calibrated and certified under ISO 19025 supervision. The calibration officer can then certify a series of systems at once, saving time and costs, and relieving the customer of organizing the calibration.
This means hydrogen delivery to customers can now occur with reliable accuracy at any time, without gas suppliers fearing additional downtime of their trucks or immense regulatory calibration efforts. Here will find more information to our logistic concept.
The hydrogen delivery in Germany has now reached the reliably regulated energy supplies
TrigasDM GmbH®, as a manufacturer of highly accurate flow measurements, is a specialist in hydrogen measurements. The sister company TrigasFI GmbH®, as an accredited calibration laboratory for the flow of liquids and gases, handles high-quality calibrations even under challenging conditions. Do you have questions about calibratable hydrogen measurements or seek calibration options? The engineers at Trigas are happy to assist you.
