Ingenious: this boat generates its own hydrogen

It sounds logical, and yet it is not often done. Energy Observer has a state-of-the-art boat that generates its own hydrogen.

Whatever the solution for burning fossil fuels, it is certainly not going to continue as we are doing now. So a solution has to be found. This applies to small road transport, but also to large ships.

Electric?

Electric drive helps, but generating electricity is still a question. Lithium-ion batteries? Solar energy? Wind energy? Hydrogen? It all comes up in the demand for modern vehicles that emit nothing. Energy Observer is a company that deals with this issue. They have developed a ship and on paper it all sounds like good news.

Choise

The Energy Observer boat generates electricity in three ways. The first is thanks to the wind. Simply, as we have been doing for years: in theory it is a sailboat. One that is supported by motors. For example, by adding a gigantic solar panel field on the deck. 202 square meters of solar panels! On the large open sea, where the sun always shines on the deck, you can easily generate electricity with it. The sails are also special: it would be a bit counterproductive to shade the entire deck with two sails, so some kind of clever ‘plane wings’ have been developed that let in more than enough sun.

Hydrogen

The third way for Energy Observer’s boat to generate power is perhaps the most interesting. The boat can generate its own hydrogen. It sounds so logical: generating hydrogen on a boat, but unfortunately hydrogen is not just water. To give hydrogen its power, the boat itself can ‘charge’ the water with electrolysis. It is a kind of stock build-up and the boat mainly sails on its wind and solar energy, but the hydrogen tanks of the boat are large enough to sail at full power for about six days. If hydrogen only supports, it will be much more.

The Energy Observer boat is a great way to show three different types of alternative energy. To show that it works, the boat has been on a major world trip for a number of years. You can follow where he is on the website of Energy Observer.