Liquid Hydrogen Carrier (Image provided by Samsung Heavy Industries Co.)
SEOUL, June 14 (Korea Bizwire) – In a collaborative effort to advance the development of liquid hydrogen carriers, five leading South Korean shipbuilding and steel companies have joined forces to conduct research on cargo tank materials for these next-generation vessels.
Samsung Heavy Industries announced on June 13 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, Hanwha Ocean, POSCO, Hyundai Steel, and the Korean Register of Shipping (KR) to standardize material testing for liquid hydrogen ship cargo tanks.
Hydrogen, touted as a future clean energy source, is transported in a liquefied state after being cooled to minus 253 degrees Celsius and compressed to one-eighth of its gaseous volume.
The key challenge in designing liquid hydrogen carriers lies in maintaining the cargo tanks at ultra-low temperatures to safely store the liquefied hydrogen.
Recognizing that the impact resistance of ship materials decreases at ultra-low temperatures compared to room temperature, the five companies and KR have agreed to collaborate on researching the properties of various materials under these extreme conditions.
Through this partnership, the participants will share data and experimental results on material property changes in ultra-low-temperature environments. Additionally, they aim to contribute to the international standardization of liquid hydrogen cargo tank design.
The collective effort is expected to provide South Korea with a strong technological foundation to establish a leading position in the emerging liquid hydrogen carrier market.
“With the Korean Register of Shipping and the country’s three major shipbuilders and two steel giants collaborating on this joint research, this cooperation is poised to significantly contribute to securing market dominance for South Korean companies in the future liquid hydrogen carrier market,” said the director of one participating shipbuilder’s research institute.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
