Deep Purple - CO2-fri hydrogenbasert offshore energiproduksjon til installasjoner og maritim sektor

Deep Purple is an innovative concept for CO2-free offshore energy production based on hydrogen technologies and offshore wind. The solution enables independent supply of power to offshore installations based on renewable energy sources and for supply of hydrogen to maritime sector and other land-based consumers. Power is produced from offshore wind and in periods of surplus power available, hydrogen is produced by water electrolysis and the hydrogen is stored on the seabed. In periods without wind, the stored hydrogen is used to produce power using fuel cells. Alternatively, hydrogen is produced by water electrolysis, compressed and exported to consumers via a pipeline to shore. The offshore hydrogen system will be unmanned, modular and scalable for different energy needs. The Deep Purple concept has the potential to partially or completely replace gas turbines on both existing oil and gas installations and be the main power technology for new installations. With about 160 gas turbines in operation on the Norwegian continental shelf, these contribute to 27% of Norway's total CO2 emissions. The concept is an alternative to power cable from shore and will be most competitive with cable for long distances to shore. It does not impact the power grid onshore since all energy is produced offshore. The concept is also developed for offshore production, storage and distribution of hydrogen as a fuel for the maritime sector and land-based consumers. Offshore hydrogen production and storage and export to shore is an alternative to hydrogen production on land with power from offshore wind. A pipeline has several times the energy capacity of a power cable. Offshore hydrogen production may prove to be a competitive alternative with the opportunity to harvest the best wind resources far out at sea, which is demanding with current cable technology, as well as provide less area conflicts than a similar energy system onshore. Offshore hydrogen production can also enable filling stations for the maritime industry at sea, which are being converted to fuel cell operations. The goal of the Deep Purple project was to continue the development of the solution from the feasibility stage to a validated concept at TRL5 (EU scale) as well as to develop various applications and flexible tools for the development of technical solutions. The research challenges relevant for this phase of the development were related to system optimization, process control, safety for offshore systems based on hydrogen, and maintenance philosophy. The project had three main activities: developing conceptual solutions, technology qualification and development of tools. Two main concepts, Energy to oil and gas installations and Offshore hydrogen production, have been developed. As part of this, design basis, system requirements, dimensioning, safety and maintenance philosophies have been prepared for topside processing plant and subsea infrastructure for hydrogen. Extensive techno-economic modelling of the entire solution have been carried out. A new cost-effective and installation-friendly solution for large-scale subsea hydrogen storage has been established. The solution is modular and scalable and a connection solution for hydrogen has been identified. Qualification program for subsea hydrogen storage tanks has been established and testing of connection solution has been completed. A new independent floater concept including electrolysers, compressors, fuel cells, water treatment and power system has been developed. This is made possible through contact with a number of suppliers of the technologies that are included. Philosophy for power control has been established and transient modeling of power variations has been performed. A tailor-made methodology for technology qualification of the Deep Purple system has been established based on DNV-GL's RP A203. Technology qualification of the elements is underway and the conclusion of the project is that the technologies included in the solution are at TRL5 or higher, except for the subsea tank and flexible riser. It is concluded that these elements are on TRL4, and work has been initiated outside this project to accelerate further development of these. New market opportunities based on different variants of the Deep Purple concept have been identified and have provided the basis for several new projects and external collaborations. The project forms the basis for further development of Deep Purple, which will be carried out in two parallel projects: Deep Purple Subsea Infrastructure (co-financed by the Research Council of Norway) and Deep Purple Pilot (co-financed by Innovation Norway).

Deep Purple prosjektet har etablert nye systemløsninger for framtidas offshore energisystemer og bidratt til å vise nye muligheter for å redusere CO2-utslipp i flere segmenter. Når prosjektet lykkes i storskala fra 2025 betyr det CO2-reduksjon per anlegg på flere hundre tusen tonn pr år. Prosjektet har fått stor oppmerksomhet og tiltrukket seg nye samarbeidspartnere. Prosjektet ansees i dag som en spydspiss innen TechnipFMCs strategiske omstilling. Videre innovasjon i den norske virksomheten på vegne av konsernet, er muliggjort av det sterke teknologimiljøet i Norge og tilgang på offentlig finansiering. Det ble i 2020 etablert en egen forretningsenhet for Deep Purple med 11 ansatte. Prosjektets resultater har dannet grunnlag for Deep Purple Pilotprosjekt, hvor hele systemet skal testes i 100 kW skala og avanserte kontroll og rådgivningssystemer skal utvikles. Prosjektet har en rekke partnere, har fått finansiering av Innovasjon Norge og skal gjennomføres på Kongsberg.

Deep Purple er et innovativt konsept for CO2-fri offshore energiproduksjon basert på hydrogenteknologi. Teknologien muliggjør selvstendig leveranse av kraft til offshore installsjoner basert på fornybar energikilde og for leveranse av hydrogen til maritim sektor og andre landbaserte forbrukere. Deep Purple prosjektets mål er å videreføre konseptet fra mulighetsstadiet til et valdiert konsept gjennom testing og andre forskningsaktiviteter relatert til hovedutfordringene. Testingen vil fokusere på miljøpåvirkning og marinisering av eksisterende landbasert teknologi samt testing av offshoreteknologi for hydrogenbruk. Forskningsutfordringene relevant for denne fasen i utviklingen er knyttet til komponentoptimalisering, prosesskontroll, sikkerhet for offshoresystemer basert på hydrogen, samt vedlikeholdsfilosofi. Resultatene fra prosjektet vil danne grunnlag for å gjøre testing i større skala under nær virkelige betingelser samt detaljert design av systemet og videre kvalifisering av teknologielementer.