Steamology, based in New Forrest, Hampshire, have received £350,000 earlier this year as part of the government’s £3.5m ‘First of a Kind’ competition.

The firm is using the investment to develop its Water to Water (W2W) system. Which is a zero-emission compact steam generator that instead runs on oxygen and hydrogen to drive a turbine. This will also charge battery packs onboard trains.

They believe that in the future the W2W system could potentially be used as an environmentally-friendly way to power trains.

The First of a Kind competition has been set up in order to support world-leading innovation projects which can improve the railways, as well as deliver low-carbon train journeys across the UK rail network and ensure Britain is at the heart of a low-carbon economy.

Launched in 2017, the first round of the First of a Kind competition saw ten projects win a share of £3.5m to develop ideas to improve passenger experience and demonstrate tomorrow’s trains.

The second, focused on schemes aimed at cutting the carbon footprint on the UK’s railways, along with enhancing stations for passengers. These also saw another ten projects offered a share of £3.5m.

Last month, the third round, saw 24 winners win a share of £7.8m which is to be used to strengthen the resilience of railway infrastructure and operations.

The visit coincides with the Department welcoming the work of the Rail Industry Decarbonisation Taskforce, who have published their report into how the industry can decarbonise the railways by 2040.

What did the officials have to say?

Rail Minister Andrew Jones said:

“We are committed to decarbonising our rail network, ensuring our trains are cleaner and greener for passengers. As a part of this we are funding innovation grants to help cutting edge businesses develop high tech solutions.

“Steamology is a fantastic example of this, and it has been great to see how our funding has made a difference in helping them develop their ideas.

“We are ambitious for our rail network and for the role it can play in improving our environment for the country.”

Matt Candy, Steamology said:

“We are delighted to have received a share of £3.5m to support decarbonising our railway system.

“Steamology is an innovative and transformative project which uses steam from hydrogen to power our trains, making the network more efficient and cleaner.”

Simon Edmonds, Chief Business Officer at Innovate UK said:

“Under the First of a Kind competition, we have backed pioneering projects such as Steamology’s hydrogen technology which can deliver real benefits to passenger and freight operators and for the environment. The programme can also help innovative companies succeed, both at home and in export markets.

The UK’s rail network is a vital economic asset to the nation, providing an environmentally sustainable system for the movement of both passengers and freight. By supporting new projects we can do more to boost the reliability of the network and to make it even greener.”

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