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Another good example is cargo ships. Making those electric would be expensive and use a lot of cargo space. Hydrogen is lower density than bunker fuel but bette
by ianburrell 3y ago
Another good example is cargo ships. Making those electric would be expensive and use a lot of cargo space. Hydrogen is lower density than bunker fuel but better than batteries. It should be possible to retrofit hydrogen engines to existing ships unlike using kites.
- _aavaa_ 3y agoBunker fuel is used because companies basically have to pay to get rid of it. It’s 3.5% sufur for crying out loud. The idea that the shipping companies would pay for a premium gas like hydrogen is laughable. Even with bunker fuel, fuel costs make up a large percentage of shipping cost. There’s no way that’s happening.
- uncertainrhymes 3y agoI don't have first-hand knowledge of this, but my understanding is most cargo ships already have electric engines to drive the propellers. The fuel is only there to run the generators. Fuel aside, might be less of a retrofit than we think.
- Gwypaas 3y agoNot true. They use hyper optimized two stroke diesel engines. Cruise ships, RORO, off-shore supply ships and vessels with similarly dynamic operating profiles have started to use diesel electric. Also starting to employ batteries to handle peak loads.