The application of hybrid energy system (hydrogen fuel cell, wind, and solar) in shipping

This research assessed and focused on the combination of sustainable energy resources -Green Hydrogen with wind and solar energy- at sea for bulk carriers propulsion to compare the power production and power requirement and find a feasible model. The main objective of this research was the technical assessment of how these technologies can be used on board to achieve zero emissions. The calculation of energy production and power requirements, including the definition of a proposed model, showed that ships can use these technologies - without conventional fossil fuels - for propulsion on specific routes and under specific conditions. Although the analysis showed that power generated by hydrogen fuel cells (HFCs) is the main power source, the number of vessels that can sail without conventional fossil fuels can be increased by combining this power source with other renewable energy sources such as wind and solar energy. On the studied route, bigger vessels are more capable to benefits from these technologies because of higher bunker capacity, hence HFC power production remarkably depends on hydrogen storage capacity. The final result of the calculation showed that distance, speed, and ship’s size are the most influential parameters on applicability of proposed hybrid model in this research. Based on calculation, the wind power, solar power, and hydrogen fuel cells are able to cover 8 to 30%, less than 1%, and 50 to 100% of the total required power for propulsion correspondingly depending on the mentioned influential parameters in previous sentence