1.Summary

“Suiso Frontier,” was developed as the world’s first liquefied hydrogen (LH₂) carrier. The ship makes a large-scale hydrogen supply chain possible which contributes to realize a decarbonized society and secure energy security in our country.

Hydrogen is available from various countries and resources. It is assumed to one of the model cases that LH₂ is supplied from Australia to Japan via marine transportation. The hydrogen is produced from brown coal, which is abundant in Australia. This model realizes the economical CO₂ free power generation in industry.

2.Background

In the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change COP21 (Paris Agreement) in 2015, the shift from low to zero carbon was made to be a goal. Carbon neutral in 2050 was set as a goal in Japan. The hydrogen, which contributes to carbon neutral, can be produced by such as fossil fuel, reforming of biomass, by-products from industrial processes, and water electrolysis with renewable energy.

LH₂ can be transported and stored 800 times more efficiently per volume than gaseous state at atmospheric pressure. However, special cryogenic equipment and countermeasures are required for storage and handling with LH₂ of minus 253℃.

The pilot demonstration ship was developed based on our design and manufacturing technology of LNG carriers, LH₂ storage tank for land, element tests, and specification examinations. The demonstration of LH₂ transportation and handling based on the model was completed in 2022.

3,Technical Content

(1) Hull

The ship was designed to potentially mount two 1250m³ cylindrical tanks based on the LNG domestic carriers and she mounts one tank in front(Fig.1). Her length is 116m, which enables the navigation in open ocean.

(2) Cargo tank

The thermal performance, which enables pressure accumulation during the voyage, was achieved by vacuum jacketed tank. The support structure with GFRP pillars was also developed to ensure the strength and high thermal insulation performance (Fig. 2).

(3) Safety Initiatives

The risk assessment such as HAZID, HAZOP, FMEA and Bow-tie analysis for each equipment and operation was carried out under the guidance of the Japan Marine Technology Safety Research Institute with the cooperation of shipyards, shipowners, classification societies and manufacturers.

Prior to the transportation between Japan and Australia, the International Maritime Organization issued “Interim recommendation on the marine transportation of liquefied hydrogen” by the efforts of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Guidelines on LH₂ carriers were issued by the ClassNK.

(4) Construction

In December 2019, the naming and launching ceremony was held at KHI Kobe works with about 4,000 visitors. After installation of the tank, the outfitting was completed in 2020.

The gas tests were carried out for 4 months at the terminal Hy touch Kobe in Kobe Airport Island. The full loaded voyage was demonstrated in the nearshore sea.

(5) Transport Demonstration

The ship left Kobe in December 2021 and returned to Kobe with LH₂ loaded in Australia in February 2022.

5.For commercialization

The realization of this ship is expected to be a driving force for future development of large ships, cargo handling terminals and hydrogen distribution infrastructure. It will contribute to the industrial promotion in the maritime cluster in the construction of the demand and supply system of the next generation energy.

This project has been carried out as a part of the National Institute of New Energy and Industrial Technology Development (NEDO) Grant Project “Construction Demonstration Project of Large-scale Marine Transport Supply Chain of Hydrogen Derived from Unutilized Brown Coal.”

Figure 1  Suiso Frontier

Figure 2  Cargo tank