New Energy Source for the Carbon Neutral Era: Commercialization of Liquefied Hydrogen Maritime Transport Nears
Development of Eco-friendly Electric Propulsion Ship Using CB&I Cargo Containment System from the US
Hanwha Ocean is accelerating the development of new ship types to achieve zero carbon emissions.
Through these efforts, the company has taken a significant step toward the commercialization of liquefied hydrogen carriers that emit no carbon gases at all.
At Gastech 2024 held in Houston, Son Youngchang, Vice President and Head of Product Strategy Technology at Hanwha Ocean (4th from the left), Martin Sondre Cartwright, Global Sales Director for Gas Vessels at DNV (5th), and Mark Burts, CEO of CB&I (6th), along with representatives from the three companies, participated in the basic certification ceremony for the liquefied hydrogen carrier.
At 'GASTECH 2024' held in Houston, Hanwha Ocean received Approval In Principle (AIP) from the Norwegian classification society DNV for an 80,000㎥ class electric-propulsion liquefied hydrogen carrier.
Liquefied hydrogen has a volume reduced to 1/800 compared to its gaseous state and offers more than ten times greater transport efficiency, making it advantageous for storage and transportation. It is considered essential for realizing the future hydrogen economy.
Accordingly, countries around the world are actively developing technologies for liquefied hydrogen storage and transport, and maritime transport of liquefied hydrogen is expected to increase in the future. This has led to a growing need for large-scale liquefied hydrogen carriers.
The liquefied hydrogen carrier that received certification this time generates electricity using boil-off gas (BOG) ? naturally vaporized hydrogen gas from the cargo hold ? as a zero-carbon power source. As a result, the vessel emits no carbon dioxide during its operation.
To achieve this, Hanwha Ocean signed a memorandum of understanding with CB&I of the United States in 2022. Last year, DNV also joined, and the three parties entered into a tripartite agreement to conduct extensive research on basic performance and structural safety of liquefied hydrogen carriers, cargo handling systems (CHS), and the verification of concept designs for eco-friendly electric propulsion systems using hydrogen fuel cells.
CB&I is a company with more than 60 years of experience and expertise in the construction of storage facilities, including the fabrication and supply of the world's largest liquefied hydrogen storage tank at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in the United States.
Regarding the certified liquefied hydrogen carrier, Mark Butts, CEO of CB&I, said, "Hanwha Ocean's expertise in gas carriers and CB&I's proficiency in large-scale liquid hydrogen storage and handling systems have worked together perfectly. Through the development of the safest and most efficient liquefied hydrogen carrier with a daily boil-off rate (BOR) of 0.05%, we have made a significant contribution to the future expansion of the liquefied hydrogen supply chain."
A Hanwha Ocean representative stated, "Based on this certification, we plan to focus on the development of large liquefied hydrogen carriers of 160,000㎥ class or more, as well as vessels equipped with various zero-carbon propulsion systems, to secure overwhelming technological leadership."
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