A hydrogen-powered ship is a boat that uses hydrogen as fuel, stored as gas or liquid. These ships move and power their systems using fuel cells or engines that burn hydrogen. The shipping industry is trying to reduce pollution, so hydrogen is being tested as a cleaner option compared to fuels like diesel or heavy fuel oil. Ships powered by hydrogen release little or no harmful gases, with fuel cells producing only water vapor as waste. Although this technology is not widely used yet, some test projects, ferries, and small ships already operate on hydrogen. Scientists are working to develop this technology for larger ships that travel across the ocean.
History
In 2000, the 22-person Hydra ship was shown, and in 2003 the Duffy-Herreshoff watertaxi began service. In 2003, Yacht No. 1 and Hydroxy3000 were introduced. In 2004, the AUV DeepC and Yacht XV 1 were displayed. In 2005, the first Type 212 submarine, powered by fuel cells underwater, started service with the German navy. In 2006, the 12-person Xperiance and Zebotec were launched. In 2007, the 8-person Tuckerboot and Canal boat Ross Barlow were introduced. In 2008, the 100-passenger Zemships project Alsterwasser began service in Hamburg. Also in 2009, the Nemo H2 and the Frauscher 600 Riviera HP started service. In 2013, the Hydrogenesis Passenger Ferry project began operation.
In February 2020, it was announced that Bill Gates, a software company leader, had ordered the world’s first hydrogen-powered superyacht, spending £500 million to show his support for clean technology to reduce carbon emissions. Later, the yacht company denied this news, saying they had no connection with Gates.
The custom-built yacht was based on plans for a 112-meter design called "Aqua," shared in 2019 at the Monaco Yacht Show by Dutch marine architects Sinot.
In 2023, the Norwegian shipping company Norled launched the 82.4-meter MF Hydra, the first ferry powered by liquid hydrogen. The 80-car ferry MF Hydra runs in Norway, using 4 tonnes of liquid hydrogen, two 200 kW fuel cells, a 1.36–1.5 MWh battery, and two 440 kW diesel generators. The hydrogen tanks and fuel cell are placed on top of the ferry. Hydrogen is transported from Leipzig, Germany. The ferry operated as a diesel-hybrid from 2022 and as a hydrogen-hybrid from early 2023.
In 2022, a wind turbine service vessel used hydrogen fuel in the Netherlands.
In November 2022, Approval in Principle (AiP) was given by Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) for a dual fuel generator engine using hydrogen gas, developed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries. This engine will be used on a 160,000 m³ liquefied hydrogen carrier being built by Kawasaki. Tests of this engine are planned after it is installed on a large-scale liquefied hydrogen carrier, expected to be used commercially in the mid-2020s.
In 2023, a 500 kW hydrogen-powered ship began sailing in China. This 49.9-meter vessel uses a 500 kW fuel cell and has a range of 200 km. It includes an 1800 MWh lithium battery. The ship is called Three Gorges Hydrogen Boat No. 1.
Environmental effects
In 2010, Hjalti Pall Ingolfsson from Icelandic New Energy said that ships are becoming the main cause of air pollution in the European Union. He predicted that by 2020, the amount of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides released by ships would be higher than those from land-based sources in Europe. Hydrogen gas is already used in many industrial processes, and the need for it has grown a lot over the past fifty years. Almost all hydrogen is made using fossil fuels. Six percent of the world's natural gas and two percent of coal are currently used to produce hydrogen. Hydrogen could power ships without producing emissions from the ships themselves. However, making hydrogen using fossil fuels is not a low-carbon process.
Infrastructure
A major challenge is storing hydrogen on ships, especially if they cannot refill while at sea. However, wind power and solar panels can generate electricity from the ocean while far from land, which can then be used to produce hydrogen either on the ship or at floating stations.
The need for hydrogen storage methods varies depending on the vessel. For example, Yacht No. 1 uses a mobile hydrogen station for fuel, while the prototype Haveblue Yacht XV 1 is designed to generate hydrogen onboard. The Xperiance and Tuckerboot have replaceable high-pressure hydrogen tanks that can be refilled at local stations. The canal boat Ross Barlow uses fixed low-pressure storage tanks on board that rely on metal hydride technology and require refilling at a waterside station. The Zemships Alsterwasser refuels from a fixed waterside storage tank holding 17,000 liters of hydrogen, which is delivered by a compressed hydrogen tube trailer. In 2022, offshore charging and hydrogen production projects were being built.
Codes and standards
Hydrogen codes and standards are often seen as a major challenge to using hydrogen technology and building a hydrogen economy. To help make hydrogen products available for sale, new building codes, equipment rules, and technical standards are created and approved by federal, state, and local governments. The Germanischer Lloyd guidelines for fuel cells on ships and boats are applied to the Hydra, Tuckerboot, Yacht No. 1, Zebotec, and Zemships.
Research
The NEW H SHIP project began in February 2004 and lasted for 15 months. FC-SHIP was supported by the European Commission through the FP5 – GROWTH program from 2002 to 2004. The Viking Fellowship is a project involving Nordic countries. The SMART H2 project started in 2007 by installing a fuel cell on the whale-watching ship Elding. Other studies have looked into ways to use fuel cells along with air conditioning systems when ships are in harbors. In 2016, the Norwegian government planned to fund a hydrogen-powered car ferry that would start operating in 2021. New rules are seen as more difficult to follow than creating the technology itself. In early 2020, the e5 Project started working on designing a tugboat powered by hydrogen cells and batteries.