Accelerating the Era of Zero-Carbon Ships... Ecopro HN Succeeds in MW-Class Ammonia Exhaust Purification System

IEA: "44% of Marine Fuel Will Be Ammonia by 2050"
Securing Technological Competitiveness Amid These Projections

Ecopro HN announced on the 23rd that it has successfully developed, for the first time in Korea, an exhaust gas purification system required for the commercialization of megawatt (MW)-class ammonia (NH3) ships. Based on its catalyst development technology, which has positioned Ecopro HN as a leader in eco-friendly industries such as fine dust reduction, the company is now assessed to be expanding its business portfolio into the eco-friendly ship sector.

Ecopro HN held a technology demonstration on the 11th at the Korean Register Green Ship Equipment Testing and Certification Center for the jointly developed "Microwave Catalytic Heating Exhaust Gas Aftertreatment System" with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore and the Korean Register. From the left in the photo: HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Principal Researcher Lee Seongwon, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Executive Director Seong Youngjae, Ecopro HN Executive Director Park Sangjun, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Executive Vice President Lee Hyunho, Korean Register Vice President Kim Daehun, Korean Register Executive Director Song Kanghyun, and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Executive Director Kim Gidu. Provided by Ecopro HN.

This technology development was carried out in collaboration with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore and the Korean Register. The three organizations announced on the 23rd that they had succeeded in developing an MW-class ammonia engine aftertreatment system and held a technology demonstration.

Ecopro HN began developing the ammonia engine aftertreatment system in 2023 as part of the national R&D project "Integrated Management Technology Development for Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from Ships" promoted by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. The company took the lead in the core technologies of the aftertreatment system, including catalyst reactor design, optimization of catalyst activation temperature, and improvement of exhaust gas purification performance, and succeeded in developing a "microwave-catalyst heated exhaust gas aftertreatment system."

The key feature of this technology is its method of directly heating the catalyst using electromagnetic waves (microwaves). By precisely controlling the catalyst to stay above a certain activation temperature, greenhouse gases are decomposed and converted into harmless substances.

While conventional catalyst reaction methods use heaters or burners to raise the temperature of the entire exhaust gas stream, the microwave method directly heats the catalyst through molecular reactions by allowing it to absorb electromagnetic waves. As a result, fuel consumption can be minimized, and there is no need to install additional fossil-fuel-based equipment such as heaters or burners, providing advantages in terms of energy efficiency and system simplification.

In this project, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore, as the customer, planned the research program, while the Korean Register verified durability and performance by conducting long-duration demonstration tests through its Green Ship Equipment Testing & Certification Center (KR TCC).

Going forward, Ecopro HN plans to work with the two organizations to further advance the technology, while continuing additional verification to secure performance and reliability under real operating conditions. Through this, the company intends to expand commercialization not only to ammonia-fueled engines but also to exhaust gas aftertreatment systems for various next-generation fuel-based engines.

As the transition to next-generation eco-friendly ships accelerates, ammonia fuel is drawing attention as an alternative fuel that does not emit carbon dioxide. The International Energy Agency has projected that ammonia will account for 44% of total marine fuel consumption by 2050.

However, even ships using ammonia fuel still emit some nitrogen oxides (NOx, N2O) and unburned ammonia (ammonia slip), making the securing of aftertreatment technology a key challenge for commercialization. The industry expects that Ecopro HN's technology will play a positive role in the commercialization of ammonia-powered ships.

Park Sangjun, Executive Director at Ecopro HN, said, "We have developed various eco-friendly businesses, including fine dust reduction devices, based on our proprietary catalyst technology," adding, "With the successful development of the ammonia fuel aftertreatment system, we have secured the business and technological competitiveness needed to lead the era of zero-carbon, eco-friendly ships."