2021

Fani Hatziioannidu (fhatziioannidou@gmail.com), University of the Aegean
Amalia Polydoropoulou, University of the Aegean

The islands of the Aegean Archipelago are connected by a complex network that has grown empirically over the years. This network serves the needs of tourism, the transport of goods and services, as well as the islanders travel to and from the mainland.  However, this system has shortcomings as interconnections for many islands are only possible via the mainland ports of the Attica region and Northern Greece. Interconnectivity of the islands is important for the economic, social and territorial cohesion of the Archipelago and for tourism. In this study we look into passengers’ acceptance of two alternative minor island connection ports that would increase remote island connectivity. A stated-preferences survey was developed to assess the acceptance of the minor island hubs versus the existing major mainland maritime hubs. Discrete choice models were estimated, in which attributes of the alternatives include travel times, waiting times at the interchange hubs, ticket costs and selected socioeconomic parameters of the respondents. The results of the models demonstrate a good acceptance of the proposed system with the minor hubs. Discussion regarding the innovative methodology developed involves its applicability for policy testing and transferability potential to similar archipelagic regions.

John Kopasz, Argonne National Laboratory
Rajesh Ahluwalia, Argonne National Laboratory
Dionissios Papadias, Argonne National Laboratory
Xiaohua Wang, Argonne National Laboratory
Theodore Krause, Argonne National Laboratory

Hydrogen and fuel cells are being investigated as a potential option to reduce emissions from maritime applications.  However, to gain acceptance and have an impact, hydrogen and fuel cells must compete economically with the incumbent technology, diesel engines fueled with low sulfur marine gas oil (LSMGO). We have calculated the total cost of ownership (TCO) for diesel and fuel cell ships and compare these for several potential maritime applications, a ferry, a harbor tug, and river towboat.  The applications were selected since they have operational duty that should emphasize the efficiency advantages of fuel cells and provide good opportunities for fuel cells to compete on an economic basis.  Our results indicate that harbor tugs offer the best case for fuel cells, with a TCO slightly higher than that for the diesel-LSMGO tug at a hydrogen cost of $4/kg. Small open-ended ferries present another case where fuel cells can be competitive. The TCO is higher for the FC ship than the diesel ship, however the small price difference per passenger may be acceptable. For pushboats with longer trip distances, fuel costs are the dominant factor in the TCO. For fuel cells to become more competitive for these applications, hydrogen costs must decrease below the DOE target of $4/kg, or alternatively, LSMGO costs need to increase.

Trine Heinemann, Municipality of Aeroe
Annie Kortsari, Hellenic Institute of Transport
Lambros Mitropoulos, Centre for Research and Technology (CERTH) - Hellenic Institute of Transport (HIT)
Georgia Ayfantopoulou, Hellenic Institute of Transport
Henrik Mikkelsen, Marstal navigationsskole

Waterborne transportation poses a significant impact on environment due to its sheer volume and reliance on non-renewable energy sources. Maritime transportation carbon dioxide emissions contribute to the global warming, whereas air pollutants affect coastal areas and harbors. Europe is an extremely ferry intensive area, with more than one third of the world fleet for both passenger and vehicle ferries operating there. In the European inland waterways sector, which is an alternative mode to road and rail transportation, the majority of the fleet relays on diesel-based technology. To alleviate ferry negative impacts, different, more advanced, ferry technologies are developed and tested, including hybrid, electric and liquefied natural gas propulsion. This paper aims to present the E-ferry, the first pure electric ferry for medium range routes and likely the largest battery pack ever installed in a vessel at global level; and to assess its economic performance compared to two diesel-based engine vessels. In addition to the E-ferry prototype, a third built E-ferry is considered in the assessment, thus assuming an increased production level. The assessment focuses on the construction and operation costs of the vessels by utilizing real-world data that were collected during the evaluation period of the E-ferry, and complemented with data provided by the ferry operator. The results show that the E-ferry contributes significantly to energy demand reduction and achieves cost parity with diesel engine vessels between 5.2 and 4.3 years, making electric propulsion a competitive technology for promoting sustainable ferry operations.