Ammonia - the obvious choice as a fuel for ships?
Taking all of this into consideration, an overview over the challenges associated with use of alternatives fuels, focussing on ammonia, from production to the use onboard will be presented in this webinar. The focus will be put on available technologies and near-term solutions for deep-sea shipping with a short deep dive on the implications for internal combustion engine operation.
Main content
Peter Edgar Koch, Associate proffesor at HVL, will talk about ammonia - the obvious choice as a fuel for ships?
Abstract
There is a wide variety of research activities related to alternative fuels and means of propulsion at the Department Mechanical and Marine Engineering (IMM) at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL). We have been testing and evaluating fuels such as ethanol, hydrogen, biogas, propane or 2nd generation biodiesel both in our lab (small gas, diesel and petrol engines) and in the field (e.g. hybrid natural gas fuelled buses or diesel-water emulsion for use in short sea shipping). In addition, calculation and simulation tools for the optimization of waste heat recovery, vessel operating patterns, fluid mixing or combustion are integrated in the research activities. More information and contact data can be found on the homepage of the research group energy and environmental technologies.
2015 saw important steps taken towards combating climate change with both the Paris Agreement on Climate change being signed and the UN’s sustainability development goals being adopted by all United Nations Member States. Shipping, like aviation, is not directly included in the Paris Agreement, however, the IMO’s (UN’s specialized agency for shipping) GHG strategy adopted in 2018 does reference the Paris agreement and an alignment of the CO2 emission reduction targets.
Reducing the carbon footprint of the maritime industry is not an easy feat due to the multitude of stakeholders and interests involved combined with the expected increase in global trade and seaborne traffic. With the average age of ships in the merchant fleet being at around 20 years, targets set for 2030 can only be achieved with optimization of today’s vessels and looking forwards to 2050, the technology must be ready to be widely deployed in 2030. Taking all of this into consideration, an overview over the challenges associated with use of alternatives fuels, focussing on ammonia, from production to the use onboard will be presented in this webinar. The focus will be put on available technologies and near-term solutions for deep-sea shipping with a short deep dive on the implications for internal combustion engine operation.
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