Constortium of MefHySto
Coordinator
Michael Maiwald
Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM)
Unter den Eichen 87 12205 Berlin, Germany
michael.maiwald[at]bam.de
Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM) 
The BAM (Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing) with about 1600 employees is a senior scientific and technical federal institute with responsibility to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in Germany. The BAM is an internationally recognized centre of excellence for safety in technology and chemistry, with competence in the areas: testing, analysis, and licensing of material, transfer of know-how and technology to the industry, and as counsellor of the German Federal Government. For the field of analytical chemistry, this defines the competence and tasks with main emphasis on (1) development and provision of certified reference materials (CRM) for chemical analysis, (2) development and validation of analytical methods, (3) methods for the assessment of analytical laboratories, (3) complex analytical problem solutions, and (4) establishing and fostering national and international networks committed to the assurance of quality, reliability and comparability in analytical chemistry.
In MefHySto, BAM coordinates and manages the research project, contributes to the production of high-precision gas standards with its facilities for gravimetric preparation and instrumentation for gas analysis, and is involved in the development of methods and reference materials for hydrogen cryoadsorption storage.
Max Planck Institute (MPI)
The Max Planck Society is Germany’s most successful research organization and, in MefHySto, represented by the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart. This Institute has world-leading expertise in micro- and nano-robotic systems, haptic perception, human-robot interaction, bio-hybrid systems, and medical robotics. In the department of Modern Magnetic Systems, the Hydrogen Storage Group is specialized in characterising porous materials for over 20 years.
In MefHySto, the Hydrogen Storage Group of the MPI for Intelligent Systems is mainly involved in the development of methods and reference materials for hydrogen cryoadsorption storage.
The University of Valladolid (UVa)
The University of Valladolid, UVa, is a public university with a long tradition going back almost 800 years, making it one of the oldest universities in the world. It is located in Castilla y León, a region with a rich cultural heritage. The research group TERMOCAL at UVa has been working in the experimental determination of thermophysical properties of liquids and gases for more than 25 years. Its main research areas are the thermodynamic modelling of alternative fuels from the experimental determination of their thermophysical properties with the highest available accuracy; the research in metrology in the fields of temperature, pressure and humidity, as the main variables involved in the determination of the thermodynamic properties; and the energy and exergy analysis of systems and processes involved in the sustainable use of energy. TERMOCAL is part of the Bioeconomy Research Institute of the UVa.
In MefHySto, UVa-TERMOCAL is responsible for the work package two “Thermophysical properties”, which includes the investigation of the properties of hydrogen obtained from electrolysis, hydrogen injected in the gas grids and hydrogen under geological storage conditions.
Fundación para el Desarrollo de las Nuevas Tecnologías del
Hidrógeno en Aragón (FHA)
Promoted by the Government of Aragon, FHA was founded in 2003 with the support of the administration, industry and the main society actors form different sectors of activity. With the support of the 70 board members, the mission of the Foundation is to carry out the management and execution of a wide range of actions with the purpose of generating, storing and transporting hydrogen for its use in fuel cells, in transport applications or for the generation of distributed energy. In this way the foundation aims to foment research, technological development, cogeneration and industrial adaptation, contributing to industrial modernization and improved competitiveness.
FHA’s role within MefHySto is focused on the development and validation of the measurement of hydrogen thermodynamic parameters for its storage using intermetallic and porous materials. These parameters are crucial to forecast the gas storage capacity, therefore it is aimed to provide a validated method for measuring and calculating them as a function of different variables.
German Technical and Scientific Association for Gas and Water (DVGW)
DVGW – German Technical and Scientific Association for Gas and Water has been working for the gas and water industry as an independent and unbiased technical scientific association since 1859, the objective being to create a basis for the safe and technologically flawless supply of gas and water. It is the reference German institution for the development of technical rules, the associated pre-normative research and certification of gas and water related appliances. Regulations merely constitute the basis of the services the DVGW has to offer its members. The practical work in the gas and water sector is based on the technical rules of DVGW. The association has excellent laboratories for the testing of gas related processes, an unbiased view on renewable gases, power to gas and related technologies.
In MefHySto, DVGW will support in the work package “creating impact”. The main tasks are the communication and dissemination of project activities and results. DVGW will disseminate these activities and results also to the national and European standardisation bodies.
Czech Metrology Institute (CMI)
The Czech Metrology Institute (CMI) is a medium size national metrology institute. It develops and maintains standards realizing most of the SI base units and provides calibrations traceable to them down to the shop floor level. The department of flow, heat and wind speed measurements of CMI is involved in calibrations of flow meters for water and hydrocarbons, heat-meters and wind speed meters and in research and development of measurement standards in these fields including mathematical modeling of flow and processes in fluids using the OpenFOAM software at CMI’s computing cluster.
In the MefHySto project CMI will use a CFD simulation to model how changing parameters of the medium (density, viscosity or compressibility) during the conversion process from storage of natural gas to hydrogen affects the flow measurement and its optimal installation setup.
National Physical Laboratory (NPL)
NPL is the UK’s National Metrology Institute, developing and maintaining the national primary measurement standards. Our world-leading measurement solutions are critical to business and government, accelerating research and innovation, improving quality of life and enabling trade. We ensure our cutting-edge measurement science has a positive impact in the real world.
NPL are the Work Package 1 leader and will contribute expertise in humidity generation, gas metrology and testing of electrolysers to the delivery of various activities in the MefHySto research project.
Reganosa
Reganosa develops, operates and maintains infrastructures that are key to structuring the energy systems of the future and decarbonizing the economy. As TSO, Reganosa manages Natural Gas (NG) high pressure pipes key within the NG Energy system in Europe. It also provides international operation and maintenance (O&M) services, network simulation, technical advice, consulting and training for gas infrastructures. It is present throughout the whole life cycle of assets. Reganosa has a test laboratory accredited by ENAC (No. 1179/LE2273) according to the standard UNE-EN ISO/IEC 17025: 2017.
Deutsches Brennstoffinstitut (DBI)
DBI is a medium-sized company active in the field of gas storage, gas transport and gas distribution. This applies to research on the one hand, but also to the implementation of services for the gas industry. DBI deals with gases such as natural gas, biogases and increasingly hydrogen and mixtures thereof. Part of the tasks is the control of the gas quality and the measurement of trace components even under high pressure.
DBI brings this experience into the MefHySto project. The focus is on gas quality measurements in combination with underground storage of hydrogen.
Universidade da Coruña (UDC)
UDC is a public Spanish University with research expertise on air quality, water quality, marine environment and food safety. The Institute of Environmental Science (IUMA) at UDC is ISO 17025-accredited for the determination of the PM10 mass concentration of suspended particulate matter in ambient air; it has extensive experience on implementing validated analytical methodologies for a wide range of chemicals, volatile compounds, persistent and emerging pollutants, trace metals and organometallic species in environmental and industrial samples.
In MefHySto, UDC contributes to metrology for Hydrogen quality through analytical characterisation of key-halogenated compounds and impurities from hydrogen production devices and ground storage systems.
Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB)
The Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) is the national institute for science and technology and the highest technical authority of the Federal Republic of Germany for the field of metrology and certain sectors of safety engineering. The PTB comes under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. It is a fundamental task of the PTB to realize and maintain the legal units in compliance with the International System of Units (SI) and to disseminate them, above all within the framework of legal and industrial metrology.
PTB is one of the leading institutes in Europe in laser based infrared spectroscopy. With its working group of Spectrometric Gas Analysis, PTB has experience in the development and usage of laser spectrometers for different applications including natural gas and biomethane monitoring. In the MefHySto project, PTB will use a laser-spectroscopic gas analyser to develop a metrologically compatible method for fast measurements of H2O impurities in H2 gas. Recommendation on H2O detection in H2, based on the developed measurement method will be shared and seek to find its way into standardisation like ISO 14687-2/3.
European Research Institute for Gas and Energy Innovation (ERIG)
ERIG is a European research and development network that will guide gas in the transition process towards a future renewable based energy system. It is a non-profit network for European cooperation in research and innovation in the field of sustainable and innovative gas technologies and the use of natural gas with renewable energies. ERIG members represent national technical and scientific gas organizations and associations that represent in particular the new requirements of energy and gas in Northern/Western Europe. The research portfolio of ERIG members covers all aspects from the production of gas through to gas utilization in different markets.
In MefHySto, ERIG is responsible for the work package “creating impact”, which includes communication and dissemination of project activities and results as well as network activities to transfer gained knowledge.
Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (cea)
The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas: defence and security, low carbon energies (nuclear and renewable energies), technological research for industry, fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences. Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.
CEA will be involved in the Mefhysto project through its Liten institute, which is devoted to the development of innovative technologies for the energy transition. CEA-Liten has a staff of 975 people, an annual budget of 138 million euros, and has more than 200 industrial partners from a wide range of market segments: energy, transport, aerospace, construction, civil engineering, environmental, and IT industries, amongst others. Intellectual property forms a major part of CEA-Liten activities, with a portfolio of 1,600 international patents.
In Mefhysto, CEA will use the H2PAC platform, which is a large research infrastructure (LRI) located in Grenoble, France. This platform is devoted to hydrogen technologies, specifically low-temperature Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) Fuel Cell (FC) and Water Electrolyzer (WE) technologies. R&D at the platform covers materials, membrane-electrode assemblies, cells, stacks and systems, and integration into mobile or stationary applications. Performances, durability and safety of electrolyzers and fuel cells are assessed through a wide portfolio of characterization and test methods. The platform has also a broad range of tools, both for PEM technologies (e.g., machines for manufacturing electrodes, membrane-electrode assemblies, bipolar plates, stacks).
CEA contributions in Mefhysto are mainly focused on the testing of PEMWE and PEMFC at single cell, short-stack and system levels coupled with the analysis of possible contaminants and their impacts on performance and durability. This work shall contribute to give recommendations for both existing standards and for the methodology related to PEMFC and PEMWE testing protocols dealing with H2 and Air contaminants analysis.
Mahytec
MAHYTEC is a French company founded in 2008 specialized in hydrogen storage. With its team of 25 people, MAHYTEC is specialised in the design and manufacturing of hydrogen storage systems for mobile, stationary and nomadic applications. MAHYTEC is the only European company developing high pressure storage as well as solid storage through metal hydrides. MAHYTEC offers certified products based on both technologies for stationnary use and transport of hydrogen. MAHYTEC also supplies full integrated system to strore renewable energy based on hybrid storage ( Batteries/hydrogen).
In MefHySto, MAHYTEC is responsible for the work package “ Metrology for Reversible Hydrogen Storage Technologies”.
