In recent years, there have been several attempts at building a hydrogen boat. But UK startup Drift is navigating new territory with a vessel that isn’t hydrogen-powered, but hydrogen-producing.
Drift is developing an autonomous yacht capable of making green hydrogen at sea. It could offer a quicker, more efficient way to produce and transport the fuel, especially in remote regions.
“One of our main advantages is that we can service the hard-to-reach places,” Drift’s founder and CEO, Ben Medland, told TNW. “This is a huge benefit when compared to having a fixed installation.”
Wind pushes the sailboat, spinning a turbine under the hull which directs electricity to an onboard electrolyser. This machine uses an electrical current to break down seawater into hydrogen and oxygen.
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The vessels can carry 2-4 tonnes of hydrogen gas per trip. However, the company is exploring ways to store the hydrogen as liquid, which is much denser.
After filling their hydrogen tanks, the boats return to port for unloading and then head back out to sea. They will act like mobile green hydrogen factories.
The energy-producing yachts could be used to refuel future hydrogen-powered container ships out at sea, or to deliver hydrogen to offshore tankers or to ports.
An algorithm built by AI firm Faculty determines the best routes for the yachts to traverse to maximise green hydrogen production.
By combining production and distribution into one vehicle — and negating the need for a grid connection — the yachts could cut costs, too.
However, Medland, who has a background in systems engineering, stresses that the boats are intended to complement rather than replace larger, centralised plants. He used the analogy of healthcare to explain.
“If large hydrogen plants are the hospitals, the Drift boats are the ambulances,” he said.
Last week, Drift announced it has secured £4.6mn (€5.5mn) in a seed funding round led by Octopus Ventures. The startup has also recently bagged a grant from Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency.
Drift has already successfully trialled a scale-down version of its technology. The startup’s plan is to build 58-metre giants capable of producing up to 150,000 kg of hydrogen per year.
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