Storing and moving hydrogen will require lots of various components. And with hydrogen’s effects on traditional materials under scrutiny, it will take special components and systems to bring the hydrogen economy to fruition. These are the products that German firm Poppe + Potthoff is making today.

“Our H2 products are primarily used for fluid management within various applications,” says Markus Kerkhoff, the CEO of the Poppe + Potthoff Group. “These components include on-tank valves, pipework, parallel charging units, high-pressure regulation units and thermal pressure relief devices.”

The company’s TOPAQ range of hydrogen supply systems draws on Poppe + Potthoff’s traditional strengths in diesel injection systems, precision components and industrial couplings. But the company also offers hydrogen products built from a proprietary material called PPH2.

“Normally, such components are made from austenitic stainless steel, which has several disadvantages,” says Kerkhoff. “Stainless steel has a relatively low strength, which means that these components have to be designed with greater wall thicknesses for higher pressure resistance.

“This increases their weight, and the higher material usage leads to higher CO2 emissions. PPH2 is an alloyed, tempered carbon steel with high mechanical properties that are further improved by our innovative annealing treatment.”

These properties enable the production of thinner-walled components and thus a reduction in weight and CO2 emissions, Kerkhoff says.

The company carries out its own design and manufacturing, and “to generate greater added value, we also offer our customers solutions at system level,” Kerkhoff says.

“We develop and supply modular hydrogen supply systems within which all components are precisely harmonized and tailored to application-specific requirements. These TOPAQ systems enable the safe, reliable and efficient routing of hydrogen from tank to fuel cell or hydrogen combustion engine.”

Poppe + Potthoff says TOPAQ’s modular design results in application-optimized system architectures for the mobility and industrial sectors, serving fuel cell and combustion engine applications.

This is important, says Kerkhoff, because different applications pose different challenges for materials and components. “We are convinced that our system approach offers our customers optimum solutions for their challenges,” he says.

“Our solutions enable individual advantages that go beyond the pure product level,” he adds. “We can customize our modular TOPAQ hydrogen supply system to meet the requirements of our customers. TOPAQ enables hydrogen to be channelled efficiently and safely within the application.”

TOPAQ systems can also be digitised through the integration of sensors with system components. “We are able to create an intelligent hydrogen supply system,” says Kerkhoff.

“This helps us to improve system outlines while increasing the safety of hydrogen applications, reliably detecting leaks or rising gas temperatures. In addition, the evaluation of data enables various digital business models. We aim to create a TOPAQ ecosystem that we will develop and grow.”

As well as components, Poppe + Potthoff develops test stands for various applications. These test rigs can be used in research and development to check production processes and H2 component quality.

“We use these test stands ourselves in the development of our hydrogen components and systems,” Kerkhoff says. “The evaluation of the data obtained during the product tests enables us to continuously optimise our solutions and shorten development cycles.”

Poppe + Potthoff was originally founded as a tube mill in Germany in 1928 and has since developed into a family-owned international group with more than 1,600 employees.

“We started with the production of precision steel tubes and have steadily developed our expertise in fluid management over the decades,” says Kerkhoff. “Using our employee’s expertise in a wide range of metalworking areas, we provide innovative solutions to diverse customers in over 50 countries.”

A flair for innovation saw the company being honoured with a Top100 Award in 2023 as one of the most innovative medium-sized companies in Germany. Kerkhoff says the company is making targeted investments in startups to create an industry ecosystem.

“It is our aim to become the leading innovative development partner for sustainable technologies,” Kerkhoff says. “We will achieve this through our internal and external customer centricity, precision, agile organisation and a data-driven decision culture.

“At the same time, we will industrialise our current TOPAQ ecosystem for global applications. We are convinced that the creation of and participation within these ecosystems is essential for the growth of the entire hydrogen market.”