Citation

Mukai S, Suzuki J, Mitsuishi H, Oyakawa K, Watanabe S. Proc. Int. Tech. Conf. Enhanced Safety Vehicles 2005; 2005: 9p.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, In public domain, Publisher National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are expected to come into widespread use in the near future. It is therefore important to predict whether risks from hydrogen leakage caused by an accident in a semi-enclosed area can be avoided. In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was carried out for hydrogen leakage in typical tunnels, underground parking lots, and multistory parking garages. Simulation scenarios were as follows. The hydrogen leakage rate was chosen to be the equivalent energy of allowable gasoline fuel leakage in a vehicle collision test, as prescribed in FMVSS 301. The ventilation rate was zero for the case of tunnels, and air exchange rate was zero or ten times per hour for underground parking lots. The analytical periods were thirty minutes for all cases. It can be said that the area of flammable mixture was limited that close to the hydrogen leaking vehicle even when there was no ventilation and became smaller when the ventilation existed. The results would therefore indicate that safety was maintained in cases of hydrogen leakage in the semi-enclosed areas even with existing equipment.