Hydrogen powered ships: Risk analysis by using Intuitionistic Fuzzy Fault Tree Analysis

The decarbonization of maritime transportation is a pressing objective, and hydrogen has emerged as a promising alternative fuel due to its zero-emission potential and high energy density. However, limited operational experience and safety concerns hinder its large-scale adoption on ships. To address these challenges, this study presents a structured risk assessment of hydrogen-powered ship systems using Intuitionistic Fuzzy Fault Tree Analysis (IFFTA). A fault tree was developed based on expert input from ten maritime professionals, encompassing technical, operational, and human-related failure scenarios. The failure probabilities of 49 basic events were evaluated using linguistic assessments, converted into intuitionistic fuzzy numbers, and defuzzified to derive crisp failure probabilities. The resulting top event probability for hydrogen system failure was calculated as 0.14268, with human-related causes contributing to approximately 47 % of the total risk. The findings underscore the importance of enhanced training, procedural safeguards, and advanced detection technologies to support the safe adoption of hydrogen in maritime applications.