VIII.10  Hydrogen Safety Panel

The Hydrogen Safety Panel was tasked with conducting work under the project “Hydrogen Safety Panel Review of Department of Energy’s Fuel Cell Projects,” through memorandum purchase order DCO-0-40618-01 with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory using American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding.  Panel members reviewed project safety plans, conducted safety review site visits for selected projects, and prepared safety evaluation reports for the sites visited that included safety recommendations for the project teams.

Sodium chloride and four or five other particulate materials have been used successfully as fire suppression agents for specific combustible metal fires. The certification testing and National Fire Protection Association recommendations for using these suppression agents are summarized here. The sodium chloride based agent and ordinary sand have also been used in some sodium hydride fires, and in a sodium hydride fire test series.

This document and its companion document, Safety Standard for Oxygen and Oxygen Systems (NSS1740.151996),are identified as Tier 2 Standards and Technical Requirements in the NASA Safety and Documentation Tree (NHB 1700.1 1993). The information presented is intended as a reference to hydrogen design and practice and not as an authorizing document. The words "shall" and "must" are used in this document to indicate a mandatory requirement, and the authority for the requirement is given.