LEC HyMethShip - Large Engines Competence Center LEC

HYMETHSHIP SYSTEM

HyMethShip system innovatively combines a membrane reactor, a CO₂ capture system, a storage system for CO₂ and methanol as well as a hydrogen-fueled combustion engine into one system. The proposed solution reforms methanol to hydrogen, which is then burned in a conventional reciprocating engine that has been upgraded to operate with multiple fuel types and specially optimized for hydrogen use. The drastic CO₂ reduction is the result of using renewable methanol as the energy carrier and implementing pre-combustion CO₂ capture and storage on the ship. The renewable methanol fuel bunkered on the ship is ideally produced on-shore from the captured CO₂, thus closing the CO₂ loop of the ship propulsion system.

The HyMethShip project will undertake risk and safety assessments to ensure that the system fulfills safety requirements for on-board use and that its safety is at least equivalent to that of conventional ship fuel and propulsion systems. It will also take into account the rules and regulations under development for low flashpoint fuels and is expected to contribute to regulatory development in this area.

The cost effectiveness of the system for different ship types, applications and use cases will also be assessed. For medium and long-distance waterborne transportation, the HyMethShip concept is considered to be the best approach available that achieves this level of CO₂ reduction and is economically feasible. Developing this solution can help the European shipping industry maintain its global advantage as a producer of technically advanced ships and equipment.

CONSORTIUM

The powerful consortium consists of 13 top-class partners from 6 EU member states. It includes 2 universities, a large engines research center, component and plant manufacturers, a shipyard, a shipping company, a classification society and renowned scientific partners. The high share of industry partners represent the complete system and guarantee that the innovations to be developed in the project will be introduced to the market and become established there.

The consortium partners at a glance

Chalmers University of Technology
Colibri
Exmar Marine
Fraunhofer IKTS
INNIO Jenbacher
Graz University of Technology
HOERBIGER Wien
LEC (Project Coordinator)
Lloyd’s Register
MEYER Werft
MUW Screentec
SE.S
SSPA Sweden

The innovation potential and the extent to which the project surpasses the current state of technology is excellent. HyMethShip optimizes and implements technologies that have never been used in shipping to date and have the potential to eliminate sulfur and CO2 emissions.

ANDREAS WIMMER

LARGE ENGINES COMPETENCE CENTER

Through this multi-million euros project, Graz and Graz University of Technology are once again in the limelight as the international center of modern large engine research. At the interface between fundamental and applied research, the LEC and its top-class partners from science and business are taking a quantum leap to the next generation of large engines. This will bring the industry a lot closer to implementing environmentally friendly engine technology.

HARALD KAINZ

GRAZ UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

The proposed concept is a potential way to store large amounts of renewable energy over a long period of time and to have de facto emission-free ship propulsion. In theory and on a laboratory scale, the concept works. In the next step, a demonstrator will be built to optimize the system and the technological building blocks. The challenge lies in the scaling and interaction of the individual technological components.

STEPHAN LAIMINGER

INNIO JENBACHER

On the one hand, all currently imaginable solutions require a completely new system, from the production of the energy carrier, to its distribution, to the fueling process and on-board storage, and finally to energy use. On the other hand, challenging safety issues must be resolved and certified in elaborate approval procedures. A complex ecosystem of partners must recognize sufficient advantages and join forces in a partner network. The HyMethShip consortium shows that this is possible.

PETER STEINRUECK

HOERBIGER WIEN GmbH