The Use of Hydrogen as Alternative Fuel for Ship Propulsion: A Case Study of Full and Partial Retrofitting of Roll-on/Roll-off Vessels for Short Distance Routes

Roll-on/Roll-Off (Ro-Ro) vessels, including those without and with passenger accommodation Roll-on/roll-off passenger (Ro-Pax), can be totally or partially retrofitted to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in maritime transport not only during hoteling operation at the dock but also during service. This study is based on data of the vessel routes connecting the Port of Piombino to the Elba Island in Italy. Three retrofitting scenarios have been considered: replacement of the main and auxiliary engines with fuel cells (FC) (full retrofitting), replacement of the auxiliary engines with FCs (partial retrofitting) and replacement of the auxiliary engines with FCs and hoteling only with auxiliary engines for one specific vessel. The amount of hydrogen, the filling time and the energy needed for production, compression and pre-cooling of hydrogen have been calculated for the different scenarios.