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Hydrogen Included in DER Roadshows
by Karen Hall
Vice President, Technical Operations of the
National Hydrogen Association
I had the privilege to assist the Department of Energy with
the development and presentation of a module on Hydrogen for
the traveling DER Road Shows, facilitated by Anne-Marie Borbely-Bartis
of Battelle at U.S. DOE, Office of Distributed Energy &
Electric Reliability.
Specifically, North West Natural Gas in Portland, Oregon,
and the Eugene Water and Energy Board each hosted a one-day
workshop, in which the Department of Energy brought manufacturers
and their products directly to the interested city agencies.
The one-day workshops included presentations of distributed
generation technologies, including their installation and
operation characteristics, and the various codes and standards
that apply to them. A facilitated discussion towards the end
of the day engages local and state regulators into a dialogue
with the manufacturers, allowing everyone to discuss local
concerns, regulations, and technical concerns.
The technologies chosen by the cities of Portland and Eugene
were microturbines and fuel cells. In addition, methanol and
hydrogen were discussed as fuels, with presentations covering
basic safety considerations and a comparison to conventional
fuels. Other topics included Bonneville Power Administration’s
Energy Web, Interconnection and Net Metering discussions,
and a presentation from the Oregon Office of Energy.
The DER Road Show is a welcome program to educate state and
local agencies on emerging distributed generation technologies,
and the fuels that power them. While it is not possible to
cover thoroughly each topic in an hour or less, the overview
provides regulators with an introduction to the technologies,
code and permitting issues, and sources of additional information.
The NHA Codes and Standards Committee has identified the DER
Road Shows as an important activity, and is including continued
support on an upcoming ballot for codes and standards priorities
for 2003. The Road Shows respond to a real need to provide
evenhanded information on emerging energy technologies to
those who may be called upon to permit them. This is especially
important in hydrogen energy technologies with the adoption
of code changes in the I-Codes to include these technologies
in the 2003 edition. The hydrogen module
presented in Oregon is provided here (2150Kb PDF). Special
thanks to DOE, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and
many members of the National Hydrogen Association who contributed
slides and data for this presentation.
If you are interested in learning more about the DER Road
Shows, contact Anne-Marie Borbely-Bartis, Battelle at:
U.S. DOE, Office of Distributed Energy & Electric Reliability
1000 Independence Ave. SW, EE-16
Washington, D.C. 20585
Tel: 202-586-5196
anne-marie.borbely-bartis@ee.doe.gov
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