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HD KSOE's new hydrogen tech gets nod from four authorities

Published: 14 Jan. 2025, 15:06 Updated: 14 Jan. 2025, 16:43

CHO YONG-JUN
[email protected]

A render of HD Hyundai's liquified hydrogen transport vessel [HD HYUNDAI]

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) became the first Korean company to receive approval in principle (AIP) from four major classification societies for its liquefied hydrogen tank vacuum insulation technology, the company said Tuesday, in a major step for its clean energy ecosystem.

The nod is central to parent company HD Hyundai's current focus on hydrogen, through which it is pushing its subsidiaries to take charge of producing, storing, transporting and utilizing the energy source. Vacuum insulation is crucial to the process, as hydrogen is difficult to store, and liquefied hydrogen, which is gaseous hydrogen cooled below minus 253 degrees Celsius (minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit), is even worse, requiring a tank to maintain that low temperature throughout its journey.

The shipbuilding company's system allows liquefied hydrogen tanks to sustain a vacuum state at minus 253 degrees Celsius while reducing the time it requires to create that vacuum state to “a few days” from the multiple months that were previously required.

The AIP was granted by Lloyd’s Register, the American Bureau of Shipping, Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and the Korean Register. The Norway-based DNV had approved HD KSOE's liquefied hydrogen storage tank welding procedure back in December.

“The transition to a hydrogen-based society is an inevitable trend,” the company said. “HD KSOE will continue to lead advancements in hydrogen transport and storage technology by sea, accelerating the path toward hydrogen commercialization.”

BY CHO YONG-JUN [[email protected]]