Hydro Motion Team: Hydrofoiling hydrogen boat races to greener future

The maritime industry, which still relies heavily on fossil fuels, faces increasing pressure to decarbonize. Industry stakeholders are already exploring how to make the switch to alternative fuels like ammonia, biofuels and electricity if they are to achieve their net-zero emissions target by 2050. The Hydro Motion students believe a successful transition will entail multi-fuel solutions, with particular interest in the potential of hydrogen. That’s because green hydrogen presents a near-zero carbon solution on a well-to-wake basis and, as a fuel, it’s a highly efficient and lightweight energy carrier

Hydrogen converted by fuel cells contains about 235 times more energy for the same weight than lithium-ion battery cells, making it the perfect choice for a foiling boat where weight is a critical factor,” said Yuran Van der Graaf, chief engineer of the 2024 Hydro Motion Team. 

By combining hydrogen fuel with innovative hydrofoiling technology, the Hydro Motion Team crafted a vessel capable of flying above the water at high speeds. This set up dramatically reduces fuel consumption and extends the boat’s sailing range.

“At speeds of 25 km/h or above, our hull comes out of the water and our power usage gets reduced from 46kW to 23 kW,” said Jan Gogolewski, foils and height control engineer on the Hydro Motion Team. This efficiency is what allows the team to cover large distances with minimal hydrogen consumption, proving the fuel’s viability in maritime applications.

Working with Dassault Systèmes’ portfolio of design and engineering solutions within the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, the engineering students gained the valuable opportunity to refine their skills in areas such as modeling, systems engineering and project management. Handling the entire design cycle from concept to completion within the cloud-based platform, the team learned to anticipate risks, test subsystems, and collaborate in an effective manner to create a final, fully functioning product. The experience gave the students invaluable insight into the complexities of large-scale engineering projects.

“As young engineers, [the platform] gives us the capability to run a full design cycle on a complex build and consider far more aspects than just design,”Gogolewski said. “From the beginning, we were also able to consider manufacturability, production time and cost, maintainability, accessibility, possible damage and failure points. It saves time.”

Taking advantage of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform’s collaborative, cloud-based tools, the team designed, tested, and iterated every component and integrated them all into the final assembly. From airfoil design to testing virtual models, the platform enabled the team to work collaboratively in real-time, tracking every change and refining designs with ease.

“The platform allowed us not only to design all our parts, but also run finite element method analysis on them, all in one single cloud-based platform,” Gogolewski said. “Its collaborative features mean we can trace the newest changes and easily track versions of the models, including large assemblies, ready to be virtually tested before manufacturing.”

As the 2024 TU Delft Hydro Motion Team prepared for its historical challenge across the North Sea, the students were well aware of the potential impact of their work to help prove that hydrogen can be a viable, sustainable fuel source for the maritime industry. By showcasing the efficiency and power of a hydrogen-powered foiling boat, they hope to inspire others in the industry to follow suit and explore greener alternatives.

“Our goal was to create as sustainable a vessel as possible,” Van der Graaf said. “We want to show the world the capabilities of hydrogen as a green-fuel source in seaworthy vessels. This isn’t just a boat – it’s a vision of the future.”

Hydro Motion’s journey is an inspiring example of how innovative technologies empower the next generation of engineers to tackle real-world challenges. This project is a testament to the power of collaboration, creativity and determination. With a clear mission to achieve sustainable change, Hydro Motion is setting a new standard for what’s possible in maritime design and engineering.

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