A mathematical framework for modelling and evaluating natural gas pipeline networks under hydrogen injection

This article presents the framework of a mathematical formulation for modelling and evaluating natural gas pipeline networks under hydrogen injection. The model development is based on gas transport through pipelines and compressors which compensate for the pressure drops by implying mainly the mass and energy balances on the basic elements of the network. The model was initially implemented for natural gas transport and the principle of extension for hydrogen–natural gas mixtures is presented. The objective is the treatment of the classical fuel minimizing problem in compressor stations. The optimization procedure has been formulated by means of a nonlinear technique within the General Algebraic Modelling System (GAMS) environment. This work deals with the adaptation of the current transmission networks of natural gas to the transport of hydrogen–natural gas mixtures. More precisely, the quantitative amount of hydrogen that can be added to natural gas can be determined. The studied pipeline network, initially proposed in [1] is revisited here for the case of hydrogen–natural gas mixtures. Typical quantitative results are presented, showing that the addition of hydrogen to natural gas decreases significantly the transmitted power: the maximum fraction of hydrogen that can be added to natural gas is around 6 mass% for this example.