Pusan National University to Open Korea's First and Largest Eco-Friendly Hydrogen Fuel Ship R&D Platform on the 20th

Busan National University Hydrogen Ship Technology Center to Oversee Project; Busan City, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Others Invest Total of 40.5 Billion KRW

50 Advanced Research Facilities for Core Hydrogen Ship Equipment Development, Global Competitiveness Expected

The nation's first and largest specialized research institute for eco-friendly hydrogen ship research and development will be established at the Marine Industry Cluster in Uam Pier, Busan Port.

Busan National University (President Choi Jaewon) announced on the 19th that it has established the "Eco-friendly Hydrogen Fuel Ship R&D Platform," equipped with 50 types of advanced research facilities for the development of core components for hydrogen ships, at the Marine Industry Cluster in Uamdong, Nam-gu, Busan. After performance verification, the opening ceremony will be held at 1:30 PM on the 20th.

Busan National University Hydrogen Ship Technology Center 'Eco-friendly Hydrogen Fuel Ship R&D Platform'.

This platform, overseen by the Busan National University Hydrogen Ship Technology Center (Director Lee Jaemyung, Professor of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering), was constructed with a total investment of 40.5 billion KRW (8.8 billion KRW from Busan City, 26 billion KRW from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, 2.1 billion KRW from private investment, and 3.6 billion KRW for land lease from Busan Port Authority). Construction began in January 2022 and was completed in December last year. Built on a 4,902.7㎡ site with four above-ground floors, it introduces the nation's first and largest hydrogen ship core equipment performance evaluation facility.

The Eco-friendly Hydrogen Fuel Ship R&D Platform is divided into three sections: ▲ Performance evaluation facility for hydrogen fuel storage and supply systems ▲ MW (Mega-Watt) class hydrogen fuel cell-ESS (Energy Storage System) performance evaluation facility ▲ MW-class electric propulsion system performance evaluation facility.

The platform is equipped with dedicated test and evaluation facilities to support technology development in these three functional areas, and spatially, it has achieved single-space integration assuming direct and parallel module connections within ships. In particular, regarding hydrogen fuel storage and supply systems, it has established performance evaluation facilities targeting liquefied hydrogen storage (at -253°C), which is the most technically challenging, thereby securing global competitiveness.

The facility evaluates the strength and durability of materials and components for liquefied hydrogen storage containers in an ultra-low temperature environment of -253°C, equivalent to the temperature of liquid hydrogen. It is the only research facility in the country that includes equipment for real-time measurement of the natural boil-off rate of liquid hydrogen and for evaluating the efficiency of storage containers.

Additionally, the core facilities for reviewing the applicability of hydrogen fuel cells to ships are designed to evaluate the performance and power quality of fuel cells (stacks) under environmental test conditions simulating actual marine environments (ship motion and saline conditions).

The performance of MBOP (Mechanical Balance of Plant), a core component of hydrogen fuel cells, can also be evaluated according to fuel cell operating conditions (hydrogen and air flow characteristics, humidification, heating, etc.), and the EBOP (Electrical Balance of Plant) evaluation facility enables performance evaluation of power conversion and control systems in marine environments, attracting significant attention from the industry.

The electric propulsion system performance evaluation facility is equipped with a MW-class load test facility. Through this facility, large-scale load performance evaluations can be conducted by supplying power from hydrogen fuel cells and energy storage devices to ship propulsion systems. An integrated simulation facility based on HILS (Hardware-in-the-Loop Simulation) has also been established, simultaneously building a virtual reality platform for hydrogen fuel cell electric propulsion systems through simulation.

Lee Jaemyung, Director of the Busan National University Hydrogen Ship Technology Center, stated, "The Eco-friendly Hydrogen Fuel Ship R&D Platform, befitting the nation's first specialized research institute for hydrogen ship research and development, has secured global competitiveness in the field of hydrogen fuel systems for ships, from storage and supply of hydrogen fuel to fuel cell powertrain management and electric propulsion efficiency." He added, "Through advanced technology development closely linked to the industry, we will contribute to the economic development of not only the southeastern region but also the entire nation."

The opening ceremony for the platform, to be held on the 20th, is expected to be attended by the president of Busan National University, the mayor of Busan, the chairman of the Busan Metropolitan Council, the president of Busan Port Authority, representatives from major domestic shipbuilding companies, member companies of the Busan Hydrogen Alliance, and other key figures from industry, academia, and research.