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Characterisation of seals in hydrogen environments

By participating with six other manufacturers in a collaborative R&D project led by Cetim, the hydrogen equipment specialist validated its knowledge and gained access to specific testing resources.

Customer requirement

  • Assess the behaviour of existing sealing solutions in a hydrogen environment.
  • Obtain experimental data representative of actual conditions of use.
  • Be able to exchange ideas with customers as part of a joint project.

The case

Hydrogen imposes specific constraints on industrial sealing solutions. “The compatibility of our valves with hydrogen is a key criterion for our customers”, says Jonathan Geleijns, Energy Transition Technologies Manager at SLB. That is why SLB, which manufactures valves for hydrogen equipment, joined the R&D project led and piloted by Cetim. Bringing together seven manufacturers, it aimed to transpose protocols and experimental methods from the oil and gas industry to H2.

“As a manufacturer, we were heavily involved in the material selection; other partners helped to define the test conditions in order to replicate real-life usage situations as closely as possible”, explains Jonathan Geleijns. The tests, conducted in pure H₂ or H₂/CH₄ mixtures, focused on several components: elastomer seals, flanged assemblies (elastomer, PTFE, graphite or metal) and industrial valves. They made it possible to analyse gas permeability, rapid gas decompression behaviour, material ageing and sealing performance, among other things, based on leak measurements before and after ageing.

  

Shared resources for concrete results

Beyond the tests themselves, the strength of the project lies in the pooling of resources within a neutral framework. Cetim contributed more than half of the total budget (€830,000), with a budget reserve allowing for additional tests to be carried out. The results, shared in a fully transparent manner, provided each manufacturer with directly actionable conclusions. “In addition to validating our knowledge, Cetim provided benchmarks that will strengthen customer confidence in our products, concludes Jonathan Geleijns. By promoting exchanges between partners, this project has led to a better understanding of our users needs”.

At a glance

Cetim’s solution

  • Set up and manage a multi-funded R&D project bringing together seven manufacturers.
  • Qualification of more than a dozen product references.
  • Adaptation of testing resources and protocols from the oil and gas industry to hydrogen.
  • Organisation of the sharing of results and transfer of knowledge gained.

Customer benefits

  • Access to rare testing resources, some of which were pioneering at the start of the project.
  • Comparative data that can be directly used on commercial references.
  • Consolidated view of the performance and limitations of hydrogen sealing solutions.
  • Sharing of the costs and risks associated with complex and uncommon tests.

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SLB

A global technology company, SLB has been working in energy innovation for 100 years. Present in more than 100 countries, it employs people from almost twice as many nationalities, who work every day to innovate in the oil and gas sector, deploy digital technology on a large scale, decarbonise industries, and develop and expand new energy systems to accelerate the energy transition.