Analysis of data from spilling experiments performed with liquid hydrogen

Area of Science:

• Computational fluid dynamics
• Chemical engineering
• Safety engineering

Background:

• Liquid hydrogen (LH2) releases pose safety challenges, particularly in complex environments like urban settings.
• Understanding LH2 dispersion is crucial for risk assessment in hydrogen energy applications.
• Previous studies often simplify building interactions, necessitating more detailed modeling.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model and analyze the dispersion of liquid hydrogen released near ground level between buildings.
• To validate the ADREA-HF computational fluid dynamics code against experimental data from a specific LH2 release scenario.
• To investigate the influence of buildings and ground heating on LH2 cloud behavior.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the ADREA-HF 3-D finite volume code for time-dependent cloud dispersion simulations.
• Simulated experimental trial #5 from the Euro-Quebec-Hydro-Hydrogen-Pilot-Project, focusing on near-ground LH2 releases.
• Analyzed simulation results including concentration time series, scatter plots, contour plots, and wind field visualizations.

Main Results:

• Simulations revealed complex dispersion patterns, including plume backflow, dense gas behavior near the source, and buoyant behavior at greater distances.
• The model highlighted the significant impact of ground heating on LH2 dispersion dynamics.
• Observed good qualitative and quantitative agreement between simulation results and experimental data, considering uncertainties.

Conclusions:

• The ADREA-HF code effectively simulates LH2 dispersion in complex environments with buildings.
• The study confirms the critical role of dense gas and buoyant effects, alongside building interactions, in LH2 cloud behavior.
• The model provides reasonable concentration predictions, supporting its use in safety assessments for hydrogen releases.