The company is divided into two specialized sections: Ocean Power—subsea Li-Ion batteries and power equipment—and Ocean Monitoring—vessel underway equipment and ocean climate change analysis.
OCEAN MONITORING
The Ocean Monitoring business unit, which equates to 10% of the company’s operations, supplies mainly to scientific institutes, research vessel-based scientists, as well as ocean race sailors. The monitoring equipment covers surface and underwater greenhouse gas monitoring and micro-plastic samplers. The Autonomous Underway Measurement System (AUMS) is designed for pCO2 monitoring on ships (‘FerryBox’) and can be further upgraded via various available sensors: e.g. Meteo Top-Box for meteorological and sea-air exchange flux measurements and any 3rd party instrument.
The latest Microplastic Sampler, for example, enables monitoring on any type of sea vessel and can detect even the smallest presence of microplastics in the water, down to particles single parts per m³, without the need of large nets or complex filter systems. The next-level robust and waterproof design provides accurate sampling even on high-speed boats travelling at more than 30 kn or underwater up to 3000 m water depth.
OCEAN POWER
SubCtech’s Ocean Power portfolio, the company’s mainstay, services customers within the offshore energy and subsea intervention sector, as well as autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) and remotely operated vehicle (ROV) manufacturers. The Li-ion battery systems range from standard common off the shelf (COTS) subsea to customized vehicle batteries with and without battery-management systems (BMS) and chargers. The advanced-precision titanium housing is fully custom and can be designed for full ocean depth.
Subsea batteries for gas (LNG) production, for example, allow high-performance for a design life of 25 years with the electronics and Li-ion cells meeting specific and meticulous safety standards. In these cases, the rechargeable Li-ion batteries provide robust subsea uninterruptible power supplies (UPS). They are perfect for marine and offshore technology applications, offering next-level safety, reliability and availability.
The PowerPacks™ automatically protect themselves via built in safety features against low voltage whilst discharging as well as the capability to disconnect in the event of overcurrent or external short circuiting thus preventing any resulting damages and giving the operators the assurance of the best possible safety at all times. Some of the advantages of Li-ion batteries are the high current and standby operationality features, the ability to function at low to high temperatures and to cope with high currents/peaks. Furthermore, the corrosion-free titanium housings reduce OPEX costs close to zero and offer designs capable of operations in more than 6000 m depth. The batteries comply with ISO 13628-6
AP117F for industrial applications and are EMC tested according to: API17F, MIL-STD, DIN-EN / IEC, and DNV. Of course, SubCtech is capable of meeting the UN T38.3 test requirements for air cargo.
SubCtech is able to offer solutions that fit our customers’ specific requirements, and our ability to provide offshore operators with truly fit-for-purpose packages has proven key to our growth. Beyond the successful application of advanced subsea technology, trust is key to developing long-term, collaborative relationships in this industry.
SAFETY ABOVE ALL ELSE
Battery cells with SubCtech’s Li-ion technology offer enormous advantages in terms of energy and power density in combination with highest safety, but all at moderate costs. However, all Li-ion or Li-pol cells are sensitive to overcharging, deep discharge and can also be damaged by excessively high currents or temperatures. For safe operations and a long service life they need appropriate protection.
Their special industrial cells already have several built-in internal safety features: an overpressure valve, a short-circuit protection, a steel housing and, in the case of the high-energy cells, a special temperature protection jacket around the electrodes. Even if some of these properties can also be found in “no-name cells,” only high-quality industrial cells offer the required failure rates of typically 1 in 10 million during their entire lifetime, i.e. the risk of failure according to FMEAs is extremely low.
SubCtech’s many years of experience add further levels of safety. The battery is primarily divided into safe battery modules. These can be scaled up and are monitored and controlled by a high-level controller (BMS).
RECORD-BREAKING ESS
Many years ago, SubCtech recognized the growing demand for increasing subsea power and capacity to support offshore energy expansion. Our latest response is a new series of Li-ion batteries engineered specifically for large subsea energy storage facilities, vehicle propulsion, and, last but not least, for the electrification of energy production locations—playing a crucial role within the transition from electrohydraulic to “All-Electric” systems.
The ultimate goal is to make global energy supply more reliable whilst minimizing the down time of production at the same time by providing sufficient UPSs and, therefore, enabling the use of all-electric systems for blue and brown fields. This helps facilitate very deep and remote production facilities, making long-distance tiebacks redundant. In short, it’s a safe way to cut cost for sustainable industries.
The resulting system is already making waves across the industry: the Subsea 2 MWh Energy Storage System (ESS), which is fully qualified according to API17F already reaching TRL 6. It has been a labor of love over the past two years and is now being deployed underwater for operational use! The ESS is the first of its kind anywhere in the world and we are delighted by its design functionality and high manufacturing standards.
This is an exciting milestone for the entire SubCtech team. The fully qualified 2 MWh Subsea Li-Ion Energy Storage System (ESS) serves as testament to our company’s unwavering commitment to bringing true innovation to the global offshore sector. Interested parties should check out our construction log on SubCtech’s website, chronicling key milestones from concept through to final testing and deployment.
This story was originally featured in ON&T’s May issue. Click here to read more.
