AMON Consortium organised a workshop on “Ammoia FC System for Maritime application” during the Sustainable Shipping Days 2024 which took place on July 2 in Lucerne, hosted by EFCF.
The workshop had a dual purpose: on one side, it aimed at presenting the system, the challenges of engineering and integration as well as the maritime safety aspects of the technology. On the other side, the Consortium wished to raise the curiosity of SSD2024 participants and foster the discussion on the future of ammonia-based power generation, and the scalability of such innovative ammonia fuel cell systems.
The 2-hour event consisted first in presentations and then in a panel discussion with external stakeholders.
AMON Coordinator Matteo Testi opened the workshop with an introduction on hydrogen carriers and the potential of ammonia for power production. Then, Testi focused on AMON Project, the Consortium and its main objective, i.e. the development of a next generation ammonia FC system, presented the Consortium. AMON Coordinator also chaired the panel and stimulated the discussion among panelists and workshop participants.
Matteo Testi is Head of Unit at HyRES (Hydrogen Technologies and Resilient Energy System), Center for Sustainable Energy.
Álvaro Fernandes is a certification assessor at Kiwa Nederland B.V., partner of AMON Project and presented the safety aspects on ammonia power systems: the properties and hazards of ammonia, the preocedures for certification of power system installation and the standards.
Álvaro Fernandes has a PhD in sustainable fuels and fuel cells for aviation, and more than 20 years of work experience in the energy sector. Currently he supports both fuel cell and electrolyser systems’ manufacturers to achieve the essential safety requirements and obtain CE approval for the EU market. He also supports technical committees in the revision of standards related to the afore-mentioned technologies.
Debasish Chakraborty presented the engineering and integration aspects of the ammonia SOFC system, underlining the potential in the field of marine fuels.
Debasish Chakraborty is Principal Scientist at Alfa Laval, partner of AMON Project. He has a Ph.D. from the Technical University of Denmark on electrochemistry and fuel cells. He is a-founder of RenCat where the ammonia cracking technology was developed. After Rencat was acquired by Alfal Laval Technologies AB in 2022, where he has been continuing the development of the ammonia cracker technology.
Elli Varkaraki has 25+ years of experience in developing and integrating hydrogen technologies, particularly water electrolysers, with renewable energies. She joined Yara two years ago, to contribute to the decarbonization efforts of the company’s operations.
During the panel discussion, Elli Varkaraki focused on the fundamental role of governments to stimulate investments in renewable ammonia production. The expert underlined the importance of defining clear rules and standards as well as of projects that demonstrate safety, quality, and sustainability aspects.
The importance of engaging harbours in projects and discussions due to the crucial role of ports as hubs and gates to maritime transports was underlined by Víctor Collazos Rodríguez in the panel discussion.
Víctor Collazos Rodríguez is a Naval Architect and Marine Engineer with 15+ years experience. Working since 2022 in Fundacion Valenciaport mainly in projects related to fleet decarbonization and use of new fuels. Fundación Valenciaport provides services to the port and logistics cluster. It has executed more than 350 projects, collaborating with over 500 partners. Fundación Valenciaport is actively exploring the potential of ammonia as a sustainable energy source for maritime transport.
The panelist Marco Matrascia touched different topics: developments in infrastructure required to support the adoption of green ammonia as a fuel source, challenges of ammonia storage and transportation, and how to improve public perception of ammonia as a fuel source.
Marco Matrascia holds a Master of Science in Energy Engineering where he focused on production of synthetic natural gas for Power to Gas applications. Recently, after experience as project engineer for hydrogen production, storage and transport plants, Marco has joined SOL as project manager engineer in the HSR unit, developing projects dealing with hydrogen on site projects & research projects.
Download here the presentations given by the panelists:
- Matteo Testi (FBK) – Introduction to the Workshop, at this link
- Alvaro Fernandes (KIWA Netherlands) – Safety aspects on ammonia power systems, at this link.
- Debasish Chakraborty (Alfa Laval Technologies) – Ammonia SOFC System: Engineering and Integration, at this link.
- Elli Varkaraki (Yara) – Yara presentation, at this link.
Have a look at the Workshop agenda, at this link.