HiMSEN confirms 2025 pure-hydrogen engine launch plans

The announcement was during an HHI-EMD webinar on 30 October 2023. Speaking during the webinar, senior engineer Yoonyong Kim discussed the progress of HHI-EMD’s research into hydrogen-fuelled combustion, and provided an update on the progress of development of a mixed-fuel LNG/hydrogen engine, H22CDF-H.

Kim clarified that the product development schedule has seen the completion of the basic design in Q3 2023, while the detailed design will be completed by Q4 2024. Component manufacturing will occur in Q1 2025, with R&D testing scheduled to begin by Q2 2025. The highly compressed product development schedule anticipates the sales release of the pure-hydrogen engine design by December 2025. 

The Motorship has previously reported on HHI-EMD’s combustion research into the development of a pure-hydrogen engine design. We note that parent company KSOE has received an AiP for a liqufied hydrogen carrier system using a HiMSEN engine, while a subsidiary of KSOE is also among the partners in an EU-funded project to develop a 160,000cbm liquified hydrogen (LH2) containment system for ships, LH2CRAFT. 

Kim noted that research into the H22CDF-H design was continuing following the conclusion of a performance demonstration where it operated on a fuel mixture including 25% hydrogen in May 2023. The dual-fuel engine design was expected to undergo further optimisation in Q4 2023. Kim noted that the recent demonstration of the 1,500kW test engine at HD HHI’s Ulsan complex, in front of representatives from the shipping and power generation sectors, had confirmed stable LNG/hydrogen co-firing performance while satisfying IMO Tier III NOx regulations without the need for aftertreatment solutions.

The test achieved a 21% reduction of GHG emissions compared with operation on natural gas. The Korean engine builder announced that it plans to evaluate the emissions performance of the dual-fuel engine on higher concentrations of hydrogen gas of 30% and above by Q3 2024.