A new paper by the MSE Lab and the Chair of Gas and Heat Technology at TU Bergakademie Freiberg has been accepted for publication in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy:
The work was carried out within the framework of the Ultra-Gas project, which was funded by SAB and co-financed by EU (grant: 100711214).
The study presents an ultrasonic time-of-flight measurement system capable of determining hydrogen concentrations between 0 and 40% in natural gas. The system was verified with laboratory gas mixtures and validated in a technical-scale setup using a real burner (< 60 kW). Even without detailed knowledge of the specific natural gas composition, the approach achieves standard uncertainties below 4%.
Hydrogen blending in natural gas offers great potential for reducing CO₂ emissions in industrial thermal processes such as steel and cement production. However, hydrogen's distinct combustion properties require reliable monitoring of the fuel mixture. The presented ultrasonic system provides an important contribution to safe and efficient hydrogen integration in existing gas infrastructures.
This work underlines the importance of advanced measurement technologies for the energy transition and supports the decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries. Building on these promising results, we are now intensifying collaboration with industry partners, and there is already considerable interest in further developing the technology towards practical applications.
