HydroWing, which owns Dutch tidal turbine outfit Tocardo, has developed a concept of a floating platform for producing green hydrogen at sea.
The THyPSO – Tidal Hydrogen production, Storage and Offtake – concept comprises up to six bi-directional tidal turbines that generate clean electricity, which is directed through an integrated hydrogen production unit that converts surrounding seawater into the gas.
The concept will be demonstrated in the THyPSO project with the aim of “upscaling and rolling out” larger projects across Europe and globally in the coming years, said HydroWing.
THyPSO has capacity to hold up to two weeks’ worth of the gas in pressurised storage tanks.
Offtake is scheduled autonomously by remote communications and discharge occurs within a single slack tide.
HydroWing said THyPSO combines the advantages of tidal and hydrogen technologies, “mutually overcoming” technical and financial barriers faced by each technology alone.
HydroWing managing director Richard Parkinson said: “This project has shifted our focus to a broader and exciting market where we can make use of our tides to provide a more versatile energy mix into the local communities and beyond. I sincerely hope that we can inspire greater use of green hydrogen in the marine sector as a result of this project.”
Tocardo chief executive Andries van Unen added: “This project provides a new perspective and a versatile use for tidal turbines.
“THyPSO is well suited to the range of Tocardo turbines allowing us to effectively scale up as demand for green hydrogen increases into the future.”