South Korea’s shipbuilder HD Hyundai is proposing a novel approach to handle the management and operation of ammonia-fueled ships. The shipbuilding working with ABS is advancing the use of autonomous technology and artificial intelligence (AI) as part of the approach to maintaining crew safety with ammonia operations.

Ammonia continues to make progress with the first ammonia-fueled engines being demonstrated. Yesterday, a U.S. startup called Amogy also reported it had successfully demonstrated the first onboard ammonia cracking system on a tug where the hydrogen is fed into fuel cells to power the vessel. One of the consistent challenges mentioned by all the development projects is the challenge of handling ammonia due to its toxicity.

“Our extensive experience with alternative fuel systems has enabled us to develop the Unmanned Engine Room concept for Ammonia-Fueled ships, which enhances both crew safety and convenience,” explains Jaejun Jung, Executive Vice President of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. “In collaboration with ABS, we have established an improved remote monitoring and automated system, which minimizes crew access to the engine room and is expected to facilitate safer voyages for the crew.”

The Unmanned Ammonia Engine Room technology allows for a remote propulsion control station with gas safety technology on the navigation bridge of an ammonia-fueled vessel with the capability to monitor the machinery space. The centralized control station can be periodically unattended and can take automated corrective actions in the event of a fault in the machinery.  

“This advanced concept will serve as an applicable solution for future newbuilding projects, meeting the demands of customers who seek safety-first ammonia-fueled ships,” said Hyundai. “Furthermore, we anticipate that the AI Safety Package, when combined with the Unmanned Engine Room concept, will serve to enhance the safety level for the crew.”

The AI Ammonia Safety Package applies advanced AI technologies for machinery management and interior and exterior safety management in conjunction with ammonia-fueled ship design, explains ABS. The package is integrated into HD Hyundai’s Integrated Safety Control Solution (HiCAMS, AI+Vision) and Integrated Condition Diagnosis Solution (HiCBM, AI+CBM) and features a rapid response fire-fighting station in the event of a fire in the propulsion machinery space.

ABS awarded approval in principle for the two new autonomous technologies from HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) during the Gastech 2024 conference.

The AIPs ABS said are the culmination of a joint development project, part of a comprehensive memorandum of understanding with HD Hyundai to advance the development of autonomous navigation technology into critical vessel machinery and safety systems.

https://maritime-executive.com/article/hd-hyundai-receives-abs-aip-for-autonomous-tech-for-ammonia-fueled-ships