Politecnico Milano is positioning itself as a world leader in hydrogen propulsion for the marine industry. On 9 April, the Bovisa campus hosted the first edition of the workshop "Nautica e Idrogeno, potenzialità e sfide per il futuro delle propulsioni verdi". Organised by the Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, the event brought together experts to discuss the advances and challenges associated with hydrogen in marine applications. Camille Lopez, former winner of the Monaco Ocean Protection Challenge, presented her "HY-Plug" project, highlighting the crucial role of hydrogen for a sustainable future in pleasure boating.
"Politecnico Milano, world centre for hydrogen propulsion in the marine industry
The first edition of the workshop "Nautica e Idrogeno, potenzialità e sfide per il futuro delle propulsioni verdi" was held on Friday 9 April at the MADE Competence Centre 4.0, at the heart of the POLIMI campus in Bovisa.
The day opened with Professor Andrea Ratti of the Master in Yacht & Cruising Vessel Design and Andrea Sianesi, President of the Fondazione Politecnico, who are already involved in the Hydrogen Joint Research Platform (Hydrogen JRP) project set up by the Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, together with the Politecnico di Milano and the three founding companies Edison S.p.A., Eni S.p.A and Snam S.p.A.
The morning began with a presentation by the American organisation Parley for the Oceans, which takes direct action to protect the seas and oceans. The speaker strongly emphasised the need for the shipowners of the future to be the first to invest in technologies designed to respect the oceans. Parley also presented the "HY-Plug" project by Camille Lopez, winner as a student in 2021 of two research projects in the Principality of Monaco, "The Mark Challenge" organised by the International University of Monaco (UIM) and the "Monaco Ocean Protection Challenge" (MoPC) supported by the Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Principality's Oceanographic Museum and UIM, among others. HY-Plug is a full-service company working to match hydrogen supply and demand for yachting, ports and marinas with automotive technology, thanks to existing partnerships with SEAT and Citroën.
The microphone was then passed to Mr Pollicardo, Technical and Environmental Director of the Superyacht Builders Association (SYBAss), which represents 80% of the world's yacht fleet tonnage. Mr Pollicardo looks at the issue from two angles, the regulatory context and the market context: "All the regulations relating to GHGs (greenhouse gases) cover 85% of the impact of the pleasure boat fleet, but not pleasure boating to date. Mr Pollicardo continues: "Today, the fleet of yachts over 30 metres comprises around 6,000 units, compared with 3,000 in 2008. Given the growth in the fleet, we can't imagine staying off the IMO's radar for long. Pollicardo continues: "In 2018, the various international non-maritime bodies decreed that there is a 'Level of Ambition', (i.e. a target to be pursued) which is the reduction of CO2 emissions by 2050 by 50% and that this threshold can be tightened. "Pollicardo adds, "We will never meet the 2050 targets if we fail to improve energy efficiency. Seventy per cent of the maritime fleet is Red Ensign flagged (these are 13 offshore jurisdictions which include the UK, the Crown Dependencies: Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey, and the UK Overseas Territories: Bermuda, Gibraltar, Turks and Caicos Islands, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands. Any ship registered in these places is therefore considered a British ship and is authorised to fly the red flag. As far as passenger yacht codes are concerned, the IM/(Marple) regulations lay down clear rules: these are passenger ships even if they are registered as yachts. They have to comply with IMO regulations". To date, SYBASS is working before the IMO implements regulations adapted to yachting. Mr Pollicardo concluded his speech by stating that "regulations that ignore technology should not be a model".
The designer Lucio Micheletti of Micheletti + Partners spoke on the theme of "The role and responsibility of design", following on from the introduction of the previous speakers with the phrase "Curiosity will save the world", evoking the Canova yacht by Baltic, then Swan Yachts, and reasoning about the future of this type of boat and how generators will switch to hydrogen in the future. Mr Micheletti concluded his speech by explaining that design is becoming the key element in our lives, and that technology is losing aesthetics in favour of function.
Of particular note was engineer D'Onofrio's presentation on the ZERO13 study into the development of hulls better suited to multi-purpose vessels using hydrogen technologies. Mr D'Onofrio began his presentation by talking about innovative hull materials combined with Voith Linear Jet propulsion systems (this consists of a propeller that rotates inside a shaped tube, like a water jet placed under the hull), which, combined with semi-displacement hulls and foils, can make the performance of these new ship designs really interesting and for which there is already a project. D'Onofrio shared with participants: "We have greater efficiency, which translates into reduced drag and therefore fuel consumption thanks to the use of foils that reduce displacement from 20 knots.
Arianna Bionda, professor and researcher at the Master in Yacht Design, who is also coordinator of the E-SHyIPS - FCH JU project for the design of hydrogen-powered ships, introduced the need to those present by explaining: "The E-SHyIPS project deals with the coordination of technical research, technologies in research and the application of the use of hydrogen for maritime transport, with the aim of limiting CO2 emissions by 50% by 2050. The European Green Deal is asking us to find sustainable solutions for future maritime transport that are not feasible with today's technology. The e-SHyIPS project aims precisely to define new guidelines for the effective introduction of hydrogen in the maritime passenger transport sector and to promote its adoption as part of the global and European strategy for a clean and sustainable environment, with a view to achieving a zero-emission maritime transport scenario. An eco-systemic approach will be adopted, involving all the key players from the maritime and hydrogen sectors, research and industry. The e-SHyIPS project will complement theoretical research activities on pre-standardization with simulations and laboratory experiments to provide the knowledge needed to design an appropriate certification process and identify future standardization activities to improve the EU regulatory and standards landscape.
The morning panel included Paolo Oliveri from H2Boat, an expert in the field of hydrogen propulsion, who presented the projects they have been working on at the last 2021 boat shows and also illustrated to the audience their latest solution: a 52-metre yacht equipped with hydrogen systems for hospitality and naval parts for the Baglietto shipyard, scheduled for launch in 2024.
The second part of the workshop included the presence of some of the shipyards directly involved in technological research and market demands. Barbara Amerio of Amer Yachts, already known for her determined action to involve the supply chain of her boats in the production of ever greater respect for the environment, communicated her willingness to experiment with new biodiesel fuels as well as the company's vocation to continue researching elements of projects and ideas aimed at respecting ecology in pleasure boating.
Federico Rossi, COO Rossinavi (as well as ambassador for Parley for the Oceans) shared with those present his customers' demand for ship designs with high environmental impact reduction profiles and illustrated their performance: "We built a platform for a low-speed catamaran and there was the problem of consumption for the hotel, air conditioning and pool heating. Electric navigation shifted our attention, we analysed the operational indices: the boats are immobile, the miles covered are always the same". Rossi continues: "We also checked the Atlantic crossing, which typically requires 50/60,000 litres of diesel, which is why we think we need to start from Columbus's energy cost: 80% electric 20% diesel and now we can make this crossing with 15,000 litres of diesel". Mr Rossi also said that Rossinavi was looking forward to the next generation of batteries, which will be recyclable, with a second life project like the one Mercedes is developing in Berlin with a battery recycling station. Mr Rossi concluded his speech by saying: "Those who build boats are too often far removed from those who use them. Artificial intelligence is definitely something we need to look at.
The last speaker on the agenda was Jacopo Maggi, representing Persico Marine, Luna Rossa's shipyard, who drew attention to the rules for the next America's Cup, which stipulate that chase boats (50-knot dinghies), of which he showed the first images of Team New Zealand's prototype, will henceforth be powered by hydrogen. In the audience, the journalist Antonio Vettese, former press officer for the Prada Cup, took the floor and raised the question of the real utility of chase boats, whose design does not seem to correspond to their function: transporting sails, spare parts and anything else that can help the teams during the regattas. Jacopo Maggi concluded his speech by pointing out the distance that separates the research for the development of this type of boat from the final design, taking as an example the optimisations needed to reach the 50 knots required with this new type of boat."
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