East Hartford’s Sustainable Innovations Inc. (SI) and UConn’s Center for Clean Energy Engineering are developing a hydrogen fuel quality sensor to help ensure reliability of hydrogen vehicles.
The sensor they are designing would rapidly assess whether a fuel supply stream is meeting a vehicle’s operating needs. It has been shown in laboratory testing to be highly accurate in its detection of potential contaminants in a vehicle’s hydrogen supply stream, said Trent Molter, SI president and CEO.
Within seconds, the sensor sends a signal to shut off the dispenser if a damaging contaminant is detected. The sensor is also cheap and needs little maintenance, he said.
SI has received a $1 million contract award from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a commercial variation of the sensor.
