Inter-laboratory comparison of 14 gaseous components for fuel quality for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

Hydrogen fuel quality is critical to the reliable operation and durability of fuel cell electric vehicles, yet robust interlaboratory benchmarking of impurity analysis remains limited. This study presents the first interlaboratory comparison to include all gaseous contaminants specified in ISO 14687:2019 for hydrogen fuel, representing a major step forward in analytical quality assurance for the hydrogen sector. Two multicomponent hydrogen mixtures containing 14 analytes, including reactive and trace-level species, were prepared and distributed to nine European laboratories. The exercise demonstrated, for the first time, an assessment of laboratory performance across all gaseous contaminants using simulated samples with concentrations close to specification limits. The results highlight both strong capabilities for several stable compounds and challenges for reactive species such as ammonia, sulphur compounds, and formic acid. This intercomparison supports the development of reliable analytical practices to give confidence in measurements supporting the growth of the hydrogen economy.