A facility for characterization and testing of hydrogen sensors

Reliable and effective sensors for the accurate detection of hydrogen in air are essential for the safe operation of fuel cells, hydrogen fuelled systems and production, distribution and storage facilities. The paper presents a semi-automated facility designed and built for testing and validating the performance of such sensors under a range of conditions, representative of those to be encountered in service. Examples of characterization of some common sensor types are described as an example of the facility's functioning and of test methodologies.