IEEE Electrification Magazine - March 2018 - 56

example is that of the vessel fleets used in the instalof offshore wind turbine capacity.
lation, maintenance, and
decommissioning of offEstimated Greenhouse
Gas Emissions (t)
shore wind farms. an estiEstimated
mate of the greenhouse
Lifecycle Phase
Fuel Use (t)
CH4
N2O
CO2e
CO2
emissions produced from a
Construction
65.91
208.65
0.01 0.08 233.84
selection of vessels per
Operation and maintenance (20 years) 176.6
559.05
0.05 0.2
626.55
Decommissioning
49.43
156.49
0.01 0.06 175.38
each milliwatt of installed
offshore wind turbine capacity is given in table 1.
of the eV. a lack of hydrogen refueling infrastructure and
these data are based on the 400-mw rampion offshore
higher prices are contributory factors to the slow accepwind farm in the United Kingdom, which is expected to
tance of FceVs. It is estimated that only 70,000 will be
be completed in 2018. hydrogen production can close the
produced annually by 2027. an alternative method for
sustainability circle for the renewable energy industry.
generating mechanical energy from hydrogen is comProject Overview
bustion of the hydrogen gas in an internal combustion
this article presents the systems developed in the Island
engine. as with engines using hydrocarbon-based fuels,
hydrogen project, formally known as ecoIsland, in the Unitthe high-pressure gas resulting from the combustion
ed Kingdom. the project was awarded £2.3 million in fundwill drive the pistons, which will transfer mechanical
ing by Innovate UK for november 2012-april 2016. the
energy to the vehicle's drivetrain.
project consortium was composed of 12 partners from
Maritime transportation is a growing sector and a
industry and academia. the project aimed to demonstrate
large emitter of greenhouse gases because it relies heavily
the use of hydrogen technology to integrate renewable genon carbon-intensive fuels. Improvement in fuel efficiency
eration, hydrogen production, and storage, supported by
is lagging behind its surface transport counterpart due to
communication technologies, to provide a zero-carbon
the lack of strict maritime environmental regulations.
alternative to power road and maritime vehicles. During the
also, in many countries, including the United Kingdom,
project, two hydrogen refueling platforms were designed,
the maritime sector is exempt from paying fuel-excise
built, and operated. a field experiment also was conducted
duties, thus decreasing the incentive to use ultralow
that investigated the operation of the proton exchange
emission fuels. the legislation is taking the first steps to
membrane (peM) electrolyzer for extended periods of time.
reduce the emissions from the shipping sector. For
the principle behind the Island hydrogen project is
instance, starting in 2018, large ships using eU ports will
depicted in Figure 1. electrical energy from renewable
be required to report their verified annual emissions.
sources, such as wind and solar energy, was used together
In some sections of maritime transport, there are reawith water to create hydrogen gas. the hydrogen gas was
sons other than regulations that might drive the adoption
then transferred to vehicles or boats to be used as fuel
of ultralow emission fuels such as hydrogen gas. one of
either in Fcs or hydrogen internal combustion engines. the
these reasons is to increase the local air and water qualimain benefit is that there are zero greenhouse gasses emitty, e.g., in the Venice Lagoon in northern Italy. another
ted during the entire transfer of
energy from well to wheels.

Table 1. The emissions from vessels per megawatt

Electricity Hydrogen
Gas

g
is e
sin
lys
g
en
tro tora
p
c
s
e
S
Di
El
Hydrogen
Refuelling
Station

Figure 1. The Island Hydrogen concept of a zero-carbon fuel chain.

I EEE E l e c t r i f i c a t i on M a gaz ine / March 2018

Field Trial: M1 Refueling
Station
Site
the trial site for the vehicle hydrogen refill station was located in
sheffield, United Kingdom. Figure 2
shows the main components of
the trial. a high-pressure peM
electrolyzer, manufactured by ItM
power, with a capacity of 80 kg
h2/d, was installed. the electrolyzer used electricity generated by a
225-kw wind turbine. the station
had the capacity to store 220 kg of

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Electrification Magazine - March 2018