Petrochem/Utilities Industry Trends

U.S. Fuel Cell Council Urges Acceleration of Codes and Standards

Issue Table of Contents

Fuel Cell Technology: Opportunities and Challenges U.S. Fuel Cell Council Urges Acceleration of Codes and Standards Powering the Future IEEE Begins Standard on Fuel Cells and Other Distributed Resources Linked to Power Systems

To avoid becoming a barrier to commercialization, the U.S. Fuel Cell Council (USFCC) has urged public and private code and Standard Developing Organizations (SDOs) to accelerate their review of Fuel Cell technology. The U.S. Fuel Cell Council is one of the strongest forces in the acceleration of Fuel Cell deployment and is dedicated to fostering the commercialization of Fuel Cells in the United States. Their membership includes the world's leading Fuel Cell developers, manufacturers, suppliers and customers.

The USFCC prepared a paper for the Topical Conference on "Fuel Cell Technology: Opportunities and Challenges," which was held at the Spring 2002 National Meeting of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).

In their paper, the USFCC noted:

• "Fuel Cells are already commercial in some applications and are being developed for virtually every power need.
• "There are encouraging signs that cost barriers are continuing to yield to new materials, methods and ideas.
• "Governments around the world are investing in demonstrations and have recognized the need to stimulate early markets.
• "Regulatory bodies have developed a list of Fuel Cell "things to do," and work has begun to accomplish these tasks."

"Given these factors, and several billion dollars in private investment, Fuel Cells seem a certain success in some markets," the paper stated. "Harmonization of standards — at the national level as well as the international level would help open systems to competition and bring the benefits of Fuel Cell Technology to the citizens who need them."

The USFCC is focused in the following areas:

Education and Outreach

Conference sponsorship and participation
Education programs and public awareness activities
Media and educational resource materials

Power Generation

Research the market for Fuel Cells in distributed power applications
(i.e. residential and commercial systems)
Evaluate Fuel Cell industry business projections

Portable Power

Identify key markets and commercialization steps
Comparisons of potential fuel sources
Fuel distribution and transportation issues

Transportation

Participate in SAE, ISO and IEC Fuel Cell Standards development
Highlight the benefits of Fuel Cell technology
Stimulate the acceptance of Fuel Cell vehicles and associated infrastructure
Encourage the removal of barriers to commercialization

Materials and Components

Component Performance Evaluation Task Force
Task Force on Material Qualification and Specification Issues
Component Property Measurement Task Force

Codes and Standards

Participate in existing standards-setting activities
Stimulate discussions on interface standards
Develop materials for state and local officials

In an effort to harmonize standardization activities, the USFCC Codes & Standards Working Group is currently reviewing the following:

• NFPA 853, Installation of Stationary Fuel Cell Power Plants
• ANSI Z21.83, Fuel Cell Power Plants
• ASME PTC 50, Fuel Cell Power Systems Performance
• IEEE SCC 21, IEEE Standard Coordinating Committee on Fuel Cells, Photovoltaics, Dispersed Generation, Energy Storage
• IEEE P1547, Interconnecting Distributed Resources with Electric Power System
• IEEE SCC 36, IEEE Standards Coordinating Committee for Support and Enhancement of Communications Standards relating to the International Utility Industry
• NEC/NFPA 70 Article 691 (692), National Electrical Code
• New York Interconnection Standards
• Texas Interconnection Standards
• California Interconnection Standards
• SAE Fuel Cell Vehicle Standards including: Terminology, Interface, Emissions, Performance, Safety and recycling
• ISO TC22 SC21 and its two Working Groups: Safety and Terminology
• EIHP-2 Interim Report
• WP-29, GRPE activities
• IATA Fuel Transportation Regulations
• UL Standards Development
• UL 1741, Static Inverters and Change Controllers for use in Photovoltaic Power Systems
• IEC TC 105 Fuel Cell Technical Advisory Group
• Unified Interconnection Standards
• California Alliance for Distributed Energy Resources (CADER)

"The major task still undone is revision of the long list of private and governmental product standards, safety codes, best practices recommendations governing the design, installation and use of Fuel Cells," continued the USFCC paper. "This work is well under way, but is laborious and new code activities seem to spring up to take the place of those that are completed. This work must be done on an accelerated timetable or codes and standards will become a barrier to the commercial success of Fuel Cells." 1