Korean Register (KR) announced on September 12 that it will jointly develop the core technology of megawatt (MW)-class hydrogen engines for marine applications with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries.
This project is called “Development and Performance Evaluation of Core Materials and Components for Hydrogen Injection and Supply Systems for Megawatt Internal Combustion Engines”. It is funded by Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea (MOTIE) and organized by the Korea Institute of Technology and Assessment for Industry (KITAE) which is part of South Korea’s “Materials and Components Technology Development Project 2024 – Heterogeneous Integration” project. The joint program will receive about 13.9 billion won (about $10.46 million) in government-supported R&D funding through 2027.
Megawatt marine hydrogen engines are one of the core equipment for the next generation of ships to address greenhouse gas regulations such as those of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Hydrogen engines, which use hydrogen as fuel and do not emit greenhouse gases, have the advantage of being more efficient in terms of cost, lifetime, safety and size compared with hydrogen fuel cells.
In particular, the energy conversion efficiency of the large marine engine is close to 50%, which is competitive enough in terms of performance to be an environmentally friendly power source that can be applied to large and medium-sized ships and hydrogen carriers.
The core technology of this joint development project, a high-capacity direct injection system for hydrogen, is a key device for marine internal combustion engines. Although not commercialized to date, HD KSOE and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries previously developed the first successful 1.5 MW LNG-Hydrogen hybrid engine in Korea, which is expected to create synergies together.
In collaboration with 16 partners including HD KSOE and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, KR will participate in joint research ranging from the development of hydrogen injection and hydrogen supply equipment for megawatt hydrogen internal combustion engines to integrated onshore demonstrations related to HiMSEN engines.
