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MARCH 2021

Vol. 102 Issue 1190

VLSFO feature:

Blending strategies

MAN ES interview: Wayne Jones interview

MAN ME-GA demo: First orders

ABB Turbo interview: Oliver Riemenschneider

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: First CCS PEM FC trial | Turbocharger feature | First 20V175D orders | CHEK research project

Technical competence Service with passion (IÀ FLHQF\ DQG DYDLODELOLW\ ² WKH\·UH NH\ WR \RXU VXFFHVV +RZ WR JHW WKHUH" :LWK FXVWRP VHUYLFH VROXWLRQV IURP RXU JOREDO WHDP RI ORFDO H[SHUWV www.man-es.com

Decarbonising shipping by Wind-assisted Propulsion

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-MKL 5VSǰ PI 8IGLRMGEP 5ERIP The panel will be headed up by Lars Robert Pedersen – Deputy Secretary General of BIMCO, which represents 60% of the world’s tonnage. This second session of PFF live comes with the full support of the International Windship Association. Gavin Allwright, the Secretary General will be giving the welcome introduction, FIJSVI E LMKL TVSǰ PI TERIP SJ XIGLRMGEP I\TIVXW WTERRMRK EGVSWW STIVEXSVW REZEP EVGLMXIGXW QERYJEGXYVIVW ERH GPEWWMǰ GEXMSR WSGMIXMIW [MPP FI HMWGYWWMRK XLIMV current wind projects and the technical requirements of integrating these systems aboard vessels

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MOTORSHIP INSIGHT FOR MARINE TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS

CONTENTS

MARCH 2021

8 NEWS 24 Stena Elektra project

Stena Bulk’s InfinityMAX concept design features detachable modules that the company says represents a paradigm shift in bulk cargo transportation.

26 Ammonia containment AiP

GTT’s Mark III membrane tank technology obtained the first AiP for an ammonia membrane containment system in February.

10 REGULARS 8 Leader Briefing

Oliver Riemenschneider, CEO of ABB Turbocharging, oﬀers his perspective on the wider energy transition, and calls for greater regulatory certainty to support the industry.

10 Shipyard Report

A new era in global shipbuilding is unfolding as forces unite within each of the three main shipbuilding nations.

42 50 year ago

Online motorship.com 5 Latest news 5 Comment & analysis 5 Industry database 5 Events

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FEATURES

Remote assistance and predictive maintenance were among the technological advances anticipated in 1971.

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14 Shifting boundary conditions

Turbocharging designers are taking a second look at axial turbocharging solutions amid renewed interest in two-stage solutions, Stevie Knight hears.

18 MAN demos new ME-GA platform

MAN Energy Solutions demonstrated its new ME-GA low-pressure dual-fuel engine, and reveals plans to extend the range below 50cm-bore version.

20 Pearl River hydrogen trial

China Classification Society (CCS) is stepping its eﬀorts in the alternative fuels area, and plans to trial a PEM FC-powered vessel in Guangdong province.

22 Zero-emissions bulkers

The EU CHEK project will initially be used to design a near-zero emissions bulk carrier and a cruise ship, but it is also expected to expand holistic design concepts to other vessel types.

28 Caveat operator

Rising oil prices and rebounding demand from other industries could lead to more problems with VLSFO this year as refiners explore cheaper VLSFO blends.

100

YEARS

2021

The Motorship’s Propulsion and Future Fuels Conference will take place this year in Hamburg, Germany. Stay in touch at propulsionconference.com

MARCH 2021 | 3

NEWS REVIEW

ZERO-EMISSION, MODULAR SHIP DESIGN FOR STENA BULK

VIEWPOINT

8 Stena Bulk's InfinityMAX concept design is intended to be flexible in size and the commodities carried

NICK EDSTROM | Editor nedstrom@motorship.com

When planning this month’s issue focussing on alternative fuels, I expected that we would be able to consider the effects of the EU’s hotly-anticipated FuelEU Maritime initiative. While the initiative is likely to encourage the adoption of alternative fuels within the waters of the EU’s member states, and will incentivise the adoption of shore power connections to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while at berth, the devil will surely lie in the detail. In a reversal of Greek poet C.P. Cavafy’s 1898 poem ‘Waiting for the Barbarians’, where a delegation of bureaucrats passively awaits the arrival of a barbarian horde, we in the maritime industry are awaiting for a delegation of bureaucrats to unveil their proposal for promoting the uptake of alternative fuels in the EU. The report is now expected to be published in April 2021. Some attention has focused on the consultation’s expected support for shore power connections in European ports as a means of reducing emissions produced by vessels while at berth. We will wait to see the detail before considering the implications for the introduction of energy management systems for some vessel types in the EU. We can also expect that the European Commission’s initiative to provide significant encouragement for alternative fuels within the EU, including methanol and ammonia. The development of solutions for both methanol and ammonia has continued to accelerate since the beginning of 2021. However, it is less clear how far the initiative will go in proposing the extension of market-based mechanisms to incentivise the take-up of alternative fuels. How the proposal will affect LNG, which remains the only alternative fuel to fuel oil that is commercially available at scale, is likely to be a key consideration when the initiative is judged. Critics of the proposal have noted that the introduction of regional levies would complicate the introduction of global market-based measures at the IMO. This is just one example of the cross-cutting implications of such measures. Others include the parallel proposed extension of the Emissions Trading System to cover emissions from vessels, which raises the risk of double-counting emissions, while using the EU’s MRV data in novel ways. The proposal will also be affected by other EU green initiatives, such as the expected effect of the update of its Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) on biofuel availability. Unlike the passive citizens in Cavafy’s poem, the maritime industry has been highly active in developing and trialling potential solutions to their energy transition. One could argue that the recent acceleration of upstream fuel supply projects demonstrates that the industry is more than capable of trialling and bringing to market alternative fuels for the maritime sector. We include a feature on the expansion of methanol supply in this issue. A.P. Moller Maersk announced that it would bring a methanolfuelled feeder vessel into service by 2023, and reiterated its previous support for ammonia and methanol as potential fuels for its vessels in February 2021. This was followed in March by further agreements committing ship owners In Germany and Singapore to the construction of (and conversion to) NH3-fuelled vessels once the development of MAN Energy Solutions’ AEngine is completed. Meanwhile, Bureau Veritas awarded an AiP to GTT’s Mark III containment system for use with ammonia.

4 | MARCH 2021

Stena Bulk has unveiled its InfinityMAX concept design for a fuel cell hybrid ship with detachable modules that the company says represents a paradigm shift in bulk cargo transportation. In a proposed advancement comparable in impact to containerisation, the creation of standardised and modular cargo units that can carry dry bulk, liquid bulk or liquified gas products such as methane, hydrogen or ammonia - is expected to significantly streamline the transport of bulk cargoes and to improve fleet utilisation. The InfinityMAX concept will be flexible in size and capacity because each cargo unit will be independent and able to be attached or released from the main unit of the ship as desired. This creates the potential for more standardised supply chains and reduces the unnecessary environmental impact of empty tanks being shipped around the world in search of new cargo, says Stena Bulk. The ship will use liquified hydrogen as fuel for the main fuel cell system and wind turbines to generate further energy. Collapsible wing sails and a shark skin hull have also been incorporated in the concept design to improve eﬃciency. An azimuth thruster on the main unit will be used for propulsion and manoeuvring.The cargo units are designed to be self-suﬃcient in terms of their energy use, with wind turbines and solar panels generating all the electricity needed for internal systems. They will transfer excess power generated to the main unit and thereby contribute to the ship's propulsion indirectly, although they won't have propulsion systems themselves.

Credit: Stena Bulk

Waiting for the Commission

The units have been designed to be able to be dropped off outside ports and picked up by tugs, avoiding congestion and reducing call times dramatically. Erik Hånell, President & CEO of Stena Bulk, said: “We envision autonomous or semiautonomous tugs to handle the port logistics in the future, but the cargo units could just as well be transported with traditional tugs. As for port infrastructure, the cargo units will require shore power and equipment for loading, discharging and tank cleaning. Apart from that, existing infrastructure will be sufficient.” The concept is based on optimized flexibility and efficiency, says Hånell. “We have based the concept on our main segments today: energy and liquid resources, and that's what the picture is showing. Powerto-X will certainly be a big part of that, but adding dry bulk to the mix enables for more flexibility, broader potential and higher efficiency, and this concept works just as well regardless of type of cargo.” Although the concept is built mostly on already existing technology, some areas need more development, says Hånell. The technical solutions for module stability and how they will be connected, for example, are part of the detailed design work that is yet to be completed. “Technically, we believe the ship could be built in 10-15 years' time. However, we also believe that strong partnerships and collaboration across the industry will be required for new standards and efficiency gains to be achieved.”

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Source: The Swedish Club Main Engine Damage Report (ﬁgures quoted are average costs)

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NEWS REVIEW

BRIEFS Shell DF VLCCs

Shell has signed long-term charter agreements for ten newbuild LNG-fuelled VLCCs. The ten vessels will be built at DSME in South Korea, with the first vessel scheduled to enter service in 2022. Shell signed separate agreements for four VLCCs with Advantage Tankers, and three apiece with AET and International Seaways. The energy major expects to lift the proportion of its longterm chartered crude tankers running on LNG to 50% in 2023.

6 | MARCH 2021

GTT OBTAINS FIRST AiP FOR NH3 MEMBRANE CONTAINMENT SYSTEM 8 Bureau Veritas has awarded approval in principle (AiP) to GTT's Mark III membrane tank technology for the containment of ammonia

Image courtesy of GTT

Bureau Veritas awarded the industry's first approval in principle (AiP) for an ammonia membrane containment system to French technology and engineering company Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) in February for its Mark III membrane tank technology. The award of the NH3 Ready classification recognised that GTT's Mark III system was suitable for the containment of ammonia in LNG as fuel applications without any major design changes. The company noted that a compatibility assessment with ammonia has been carried out for the primary barrier of Mark III technology over the course of the AIP study, demonstrating that the technology was suitable for ammonia's specific properties. As ammonia has a greater gravimetric density than LNG, a test campaign was conducted to determine the level of reinforcement required for the containment system. The award is consistent with GTT's strategic long-term approach to developing solutions to meet client requirements before customer demands materialise. Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and CEO of GTT, commented that: “GTT targets bringing increased flexibility to ship-owners required to adapt as well and as quickly as possible to an ever changing fuel world. While we are convinced that LNG is the solution of choice for cleaning-up ship emissions even

further, we have to take into consideration that ammonia, coming from green hydrogen, could bring additional reductions in emissions. In oﬀering ammonia compatibility, we open the perspective to owners of a much longer period for ship amortization.”

Matthieu de Tugny, President, Bureau Veritas Marine & Oﬀshore, commended GTT for obtaining the first approval for an ammonia membrane containment system. M. de Tugny added: “Bureau Veritas is helping the industry prepare for the future fuel landscape. It is therefore exciting

to support GTT in their continued journey of innovation. Our role is to help the industry understand - and address - both risk and opportunity as we look for energy transition solutions.” Alongside the NH3 ready award, Bureau Veritas awarded a higher design pressure of “1 barg” in LNG as fuel applications. The award represents the culmination of a process of modifying containment designs to be adapted to the operational profile of new vessel types using LNG as a fuel, such as large container vessels. GTT noted that the AiP oﬀers shipowners more flexibility in the selection of fuel tanks operations.

DUAL-FUEL RETROFIT FOR RORO COMBI CARRIER Halliburton AS, the oil fields service provider, has awarded Høglund Gas Solutions AS a turnkey contract to manage the conversion of a RoRo combination carrier to operate on LNG fuel. The delivery of the retrofitted M/V Hannah Kristina is expected to take place in March 2022. The 101-metre long, 5,850dwt vessel is owned by Base Marine Norway AS and under technical management by Larvik Shipping AS and operates along the Norwegian coast. Høglund will collaborate with long-time partners HB Hunte Engineering GmbH and Fiskerstrand Verft AS for the naval

architecture and shipyard elements of the project, respectively. The entire project will be classed by DNV. The scope of work under the contract consists of a 250m³ capacity storage tank and Fuel Gas Supply System (FGSS) with a dedicated Gas Control and Safety System to serve the already installed nine-cylinder 4-stroke dual-fuel engine with natural gas. As part of the conversion work, which will carried out at Fiskerstrand Verft in Norway, the 20-year-old vessel will also have a shore power connection installed. This will allow the

vessel to be powered from the shore while berthing, reducing emissions in port, and to charge the existing 994kWh Energy Storage System (ESS). As part of the shore power upgrade, Høglund will supply and install a package consisting of shore connection cabinets of 690V/600kVA compatible with state-of-the-art shore power supply, following IEC80005-3 standards. Both systems will be seamlessly integrated into the existing Automation System (IAS), Power Management System (PMS) and ESS control system of the vessel.

Methanol NH3 MoU

BIMCO backs MBM

Remote survey first

Hartmann Gas Carriers signed an MoU with nitrogen and methanol producer OCI and MAN Energy Solutions. Hartmann will own and operate an unspecified number of newbuildings propelled by MAN ammonia-fuelled engines. The vessels will be chartered by OCI. OCI and MAN also inked an MoU with Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) to convert a number of EPS’ tanker fleet to NH3 or methanol operation.

BIMCO is calling on states and the industry to consider establishing a global set of rules for market-based measures. Market-based measures for shipping should be governed by global rules so industry does not run the risk of paying for carbon emissions multiple times. A market-based measure can be described as a rule or legal framework that encourages a desired behaviour through financial incentives.

K-Line’s new dual-fuel PCTC Century Highway Green is the first newbuilding to be awarded ClassNK’s remote survey (RMSV) notation, indicating that the vessel is adapted for remote surveys by ClassNK. The vessel has been equipped with upgraded WiFi connections in the engine room and cargo deck, as well as LCX wireless communications equipment. The vessel is also trialling an advanced Nokia 4G/Field Area Network connection..

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LEADER BRIEFING

STRATEGIC CLARITY IN A TIME OF UNCERTAINTY Oliver Riemenschneider, President, ABB Turbocharging, oﬀers his perspective on the wider energy transition, and calls for greater regulatory certainty to support the industry Speaking at the end of February, Oliver Riemenschneider, President of ABB Turbocharging oﬀered his perspective on the broader energy transition, and the impact of the changing maritime regulatory environment on ABB Turbocharging’s business. Before turning to the maritime market directly, Mr. Riemenschneider placed the evolving market in the context of broader changes. “Looking at the energy markets, there is a lot of focus on decarbonisation at the moment. The focus on renewable energy sources is driving interest in solar and hydro, but we are also seeing the emergence of interest in new technologies like carbon capture, and energy storage and handling. There are a lot of good initiatives, including the first engine in operation in a power plant in Germany running on LNG and hydrogen.” ABB Turbocharging’s involvement in the stationary hydrogen combustion engine project had given the company experience in the engineering and design of combustion systems using such fuels. Mr. Riemenschneider cited A.P Moller Maersk’s interest in introducing a methanol-fuelled vessel into its fleet by 2023, and the introduction of ammonia into the fuel mix for the maritime industry in 2024 as examples of technological developments in the maritime industry. However, Mr. Riemenschneider noted that the development of technical solutions formed only one part of the energy transition. “The equation is much bigger.” Beyond technical questions about combustibility or the cost of production, there are questions about making fuels available globally, as well as considerations about the CO2 footprint of the fuel. The issue of CO2 footprints was a key issue in decarbonisation, Mr. Riemenschneider said. He gave the example of electrification in the maritime market as an area where regulatory choices risked leading the market in a “suboptimal” direction. ELECTRIFICATION IN THE MARITIME SECTOR At present, the emissions emitted during the generation of electricity supplied from a shore power connection are not compared with emissions produced by energy generated onboard a vessel. In some European countries, the CO2 intensity of electricity supplied from the local grid exceeds that of energy produced onboard a vessel running a diesel genset. Mr. Riemenschneider challenged the view that electrification is the answer to decarbonisation in Europe – without even looking at the energy generation mix in other parts of the world, such as south Asia or east Asia. “This is one of the key shortcomings of the view about electrification,” “The answer would be to take a well to wake approach, rather than a tank to wake approach – otherwise, there is a risk that we might sub optimise or even move in the wrong direction in the long run.” Riemenschneider said.

8 | MARCH 2021

REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS Focusing on the maritime market, Mr. Riemenschneider noted that the IMO had a role to play in helping the industry come to terms with these wider considerations. Mr. Riemenschneider noted that while clarity around the regulatory environment would help provide certainty for commercial decision making, a wider issue surrounded how regulations “rewarded” or incentivised low carbon fuels. “That is not part of the equation yet. I think we would need the regulators to think about how to bring that into the total equation, and get stability, so that we can make the best decisions around fuel choices from a CO2 footprint, fuel availability and cost perspective.” Certainty was also going to be welcomed by players outside the maritime industry. Because of the scale of the necessary investments required, the ability to encourage inward investment is one of key constraints. “From a broad perspective, I think the real challenge is in attracting investments in renewables, as well as in the development of supplies of new fuels for decarbonisation.” Mr. Riemenschneider noted that upcoming regulatory developments at the IMO were already driving customer interest. Although the industry was waiting for the exact effects of the CII (Carbon Intensity Index) rules to become clearer, the regulation was likely to affect the older installed base. “CII is a tough regulation that will have an effect on less carbon efficient installations,” Mr. Riemenschneider said. By contrast, the discussion about engine performance limitations would not affect a lot of ships that are already operating at slower speeds. But it would have an effect on some trades, such as tankers, which are typically running at over 50 or 60% maximum continuous rating (MCR).

8 Oliver Riemenschneider, President, ABB Turbocharging

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LEADER BRIEFING “I would say this is a business challenge that will have an impact on the balance sheet of the owners.” “We have received many more requests from owners and operators about upgrade possibilities. So that is already a direct impact on ABB Turbocharging.” ABB Turbocharging has responded by developing solutions in conjunction with engine builders to meet the interest from customers for upgrades to improve the performance of older installed machinery. “We have defined quite a number of packages with OEMs, where for example, we can include valve timing and some injection timing, and similar improvements. This can result in significant improvements: in one case we achieved improved eﬃciencies of 5%. Now that is a commercially interesting proposition,” Mr. Riemenschneider noted. However, looking further ahead, with the ratchet eﬀect of more stringent CII requirements every year, shipowners will need to look at a range of other solutions to reducing their CO2 footprint. This might include whether it would be economical to specify alternative fuels for new engines, or even potentially assessing the business case for converting existing engines to alternative fuels. ADVANCES IN TURBOCHARGING TECHNOLOGY One of the challenges for the industry is the range of potential new fuel solutions under consideration. The choice of potential future fuels for the industry means that it is essential that ABB Turbocharging works collaboratively with engine OEMs to pursue a number of parallel R&D developments.

“The dice are rolling, but not yet resting.” Expanding on the complexity of the technical solutions required, Mr. Riemenschneider compared the combustion characteristics of some of the current alternatives. While HSFO and LNG share a similar flame speed, ammonia has a much slower flame speed, while hydrogen, at the other extreme, has a flame speed that is six times faster. This means that the whole combustion system will require a different control and management system compared with today. “Now I think that's the challenge we are facing as an industry, we will be dealing with fuels which have very different combustion characteristics.” This is likely to result in different fuel injection concepts, with the possibility of more accurate valve timing and different valve actuation possibilities. This will create opportunities for ABB Turbocharging to meet the requirements of engine designers, Mr. Riemenschneider added. But it also means that ABB Turbocharging has a strong vantage point from which to offer its perspective, both from a technical point of view, and also from a longer-term perspective. Mr. Riemenschneider noted that this went beyond acting as an interlocutor with academic, research institutes or as an industry representative with regulatory authorities. “We’d also like to act as a speaking partner to all those who are sitting in their boardrooms right now having to make decisions about how their next ship will look.” “We want to keep the combustion engine as a part of the solution, rather than seeing it only as a part of the problem.”

Enhanced CO2 repo ing and emission control Fuel Pe ormance System 2.0 The EU MRV and IMO regulations require ship owners and operators to annually monitor, report and verify CO2 emission caused by shipping. The FPS 2.0 assists you to bundle all required data in a report on a per-voyage basis and guides you to reduce your carbon footprint. www.aquametro-oil-marine.com

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MARCH 2021 | 9

SHIPYARD REPORT

LEADING PLAYERS TREAD NEW BUSINESS PATHS A new era in global shipbuilding is unfolding as forces unite within each of the three main shipbuilding nations, writes David Tinsley

8 In preparation for its planned merger with DSME, HHI has restructured its shipbuilding firms, including its Ulsan yard (pictured), under its KSOE subholding company

Perhaps generally understated as to its scale and potential long-term implications for customers, consolidation among the major players in the Orient is changing the face of worldwide shipbuilding. As in other sectors of what economists and mass media glibly refer to as 'traditional heavy industry', the creation of larger groupings through mergers and takeovers holds the promise of a stronger business platform through the combination of production, research and technological resources and synergistic eﬀects. The process has been going on for many decades in shipbuilding. It reflects the ever-intensifying competitive and legislative pressures on a relatively fragmented industry that must countenance high fixed costs, long-cycle project and contract timelines, and ensure production continuity in the face of constantly fluctuating shipping markets and associated demand. Now the shift towards larger and fewer organisations has accelerated due to a clutch of recent, farreaching initiatives taken within the shipbuilding powerhouses of China, South Korea and Japan. Not only has the pace of structural change quickened, but it is occurring against the backcloth of the economic and social havoc wrought by the global pandemic, and at a time when a fundamental energy transition is under way, aﬀecting every aspect of the design, engineering and construction of vessels. The skills required to realise a newbuild project through its multifarious stages from concept to trading vessel are considerable, and a workforce age profile reflecting many years of declining recruitment give added import to the availability, quality and use of high-technology tools and plant. The light on the horizon for a slimmer but possibly more resilient industry is the rising demand for environmentally

10 | MARCH 2021

compliant and more energy efficient tonnage. The drive towards shipping reducing its carbon footprint, fostered not only by legislation but by the corporate agendas of a rising number of shippers, charterers and shipowners, is rendering more of the existing fleet uncompetitive and outmoded technologically. How the rationalisation of shipbuilding into fewer contractors wielding greater influence will impact on newbuild prices, and on the requisite flexibility and elasticity in capacity to withstand the market's highs and lows, remains to be seen. Furthermore, prices and the financial conditions offered to buyers will continue to be affected by the interplay between the shipbuilding powers as regards the hand of government, whether open or covert. Direct and indirect support remains a contentious issue, as much within the eastern Asian region as between Europe and the Far East. A Chinese behemoth has come into being through the remerger after 20 years of the two government-owned groups, China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and China Shipbuilding Industry Co (CSIC), together controlling over half the nation's shipbuilding industry and some 10% of the global orderbook. The combined asset value of CSSC and CSIC amounts to approximately US$115 billion, making the merged entity the largest shipbuilding undertaking in the world. The new enterprise, which continues under the banner of CSSC, also oversees the network of R&D institutes formerly in the lap of separate organisations. The move was in part spurred by the prospect of South Korea's pending link-up between the world's single largest newbuild producer, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME). But it also encapsulates China's characteristically long-term thinking, as a measure to lay a more solid platform for

For the latest news and analysis go to www.motorship.com/news101

SHIPYARD REPORT realising the national shipbuilding strategy of securing greater business value and international standing through increased emphasis on higher-technology, high quality vessels. The industry's achievements and progress over the past 30 years are wholly indicative of its future possibilities. The CSSC combine's leadership has already given pointers as to an enhanced commitment to research at all levels to foster innovation in targeted sectors and cutting-edge and disruptive technologies. While Japanese concentration on continuous design refinement and shipyard productivity gains has maintained the industry's prominence in certain sectors of the deep-sea merchant shipbuilding market, financial results generally have suffered the onslaught of aggressive competition from its Asian counterparts, whom the Japanese contend enjoy greater direct or indirect support driven by national economic and strategic goals. Although a recurring theme, consolidation in Japan assumed new dimension on January 1 this year through the formation of a capital and business alliance between Imabari Shipbuilding and Japan Marine United (JMU) Corporation, with respective 51%/49% holdings in the joint venture company Nihon Shipyard. The new entity's remit is the marketing, sale, product development and planning of all types of merchant ships bar LNG carriers, whereby subsequent production design, procurement and construction is fulfilled by either Imabari or JMU. Imabari is already the country's largest and most prolific builder, controlling 10 shipyards, while JMU has seven domestic yards plus two technical research centres. According to the founding partners, Nihon Shipyard will leverage respective strengths to “create a system that enables them to offer proposals that will exceed traditional frameworks with a greater sense of speed, aiming to survive in the international market”. While outside the new venture's province, the LNG tanker sector is embraced by Imabari through an earlier agreement with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The high-profile merger on the cards in South Korea remains subject to dilatory review by foreign bodies, most significantly the EU's anti-trust agency. Two years ago, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Korea Development Bank (KDB) signed a definitive agreement on the acquisition of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) under which Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering (KSOE) would be established as an HHI subsidiary holding company. Of the six overseas jurisdictions which have to approve the planned merger of DSME into HHI, only two have so far sanctioned the move. The European Commission has repeatedly postponed its decision, citing problems over data collection due to the pandemic. EU go-ahead would likely see other jurisdictions follow suit. Korean sources have indicated that KSOE and KDB have now pushed back the completion of the HHI-DSME merger until the end of June this year. In preparation, the HHI conglomerate has restructured HHI into two entities, comprising KSOE and a reorganised HHI. KSOE, as the sub-holding company of the Group, controls the latter's three shipyards, namely the HHI complex at Ulsan, Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI) and Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD). KDB is to transfer all shares in DSME in return for an equity stake in KSOE, which will then be expanded by the assimilation of the DSME yard at Okpo. Having shifted into a new holding structure with KSOE at the centre, HHI's shipbuilding sector has embarked on a business development strategy in which greater-than-ever emphasis is placed on technological intensity and engineering capabilities, underpinned by high-level R&D resourcing. Notwithstanding the extra challenges posed in 2020 by

markets suffering the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, KSOE re-asserted the HHI group's prowess in key areas of newbuild construction by landing orders for 12 LNG carriers and 27 VLCCs over the course of the year. The latter stages of December yielded contracts covering four of the gas tankers plus two of the crude carriers. Three of the quartet of 174,000m3 LNGCs, all booked on the strength of long-term charters to Shell, have been assigned to HHI's Ulsan complex, with the fourth sister plus the pair of scrubberfitted, 318,000dwt VLCCs allotted to Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries. HHI has this year augmented its longstanding working relationship with energy group Saudi Aramco by entering into a new fuel supply agreement and by partnering on a related scheme for a combined LPG/liquefied CO2 carrier. HHI refining subsidiary Hyundai Oilbank, in which Aramco gained a shareholding two years ago, will import LPG from Saudi Arabia to be used in the production of 'blue' hydrogen, signifying hydrogen derived from fossil fuel resources such as natural gas. CO2 captured and stored during the production process will be shipped back to Aramco, using a new class of tanker suited both to CO2 transport as well as Korean imports of LPG. Hyundai Oilbank envisages 300 hydrogen charging stations across South Korea by 2040. The Korean company has also signed a deal to buy 'blue' ammonia from Aramco. HMD is pressing ahead with plans to commercialise ammonia-fuelled ships by 2025, drawing on expertise of MAN Energy Solutions and Lloyd's Register. A concept design of 50,000dwt medium-range tanker powered by ammonia-capable two-stroke propulsion machinery has been prepared. Unerring technological progression in the group's offering is exemplified by plans to build a liquefied hydrogen carrier. The domestic project advanced by logistics specialist Hyundai Glovis in cooperation with HHI and HMD foresees a significantly larger vessel than the pioneering hydrogen tanker recently built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan. In the meantime, both South Korea and China are looking to provisional agreements with Qatar covering a potentially considerable volume of LNG carrier tonnage being converted into firm orders. Last year, the Gulf state reserved delivery slots among Korea's 'Big Three' and at CSSC's HudongZhonghua Shipbuilding for approximately 120 vessels in total. Qatar's recent, final investment decision relating to the North East Field Project, which will raise the country's LNG production capacity from 77 million tons per annum to 110m tpa, brings the prospect of the major new round of fleet development closer.

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8 Imabari Shipbuilding formed a capital and business alliance with Japan Marine United (JMU) at the beginning of 2021

MARCH 2021 | 11

FOUR-STROKE ENGINES

FIRST 20V175D HIGH-SPEED ENGINES NOW IN PRODUCTION MAN Energy Solutions' 20V175D engines are expected to enter service early next year with record-breaking models to follow Initial production models of the 20V version of MAN Energy Solutions' 175D engine are under construction and the first unit is expected to go to sea in the first quarter of 2022, Benjamin Andres, Head of High-Speed, Marine Four-Stroke, at MAN Energy Solutions, told The Motorship in early March. These first machines are the heavy- and medium-duty versions of the 20V175D engine, oﬀering up to 3,700kW, with the first of its light-duty engines, delivering a record-breaking output for a high-speed engine of 4,000kW, due for production at the end of this year. An even more powerful variant oﬀering 4,400kW is listed in MAN Energy Solutions' online engine fact sheets and Mr Andres promised more details about its capabilities later this year. This is the latest version of the established 175D engine to be built at its Frederikshavn plant in Denmark, which is its expert centre for high-speed engines and marine propeller systems and its introduction is the latest step in the engine's development programme, Mr Andres said. Even when the engine was first announced as a V12 machine in 2015, both V16 and V20 variants had been planned for future development, but their introduction has followed a careful sequence of technology upgrades, as Mr Andres recalled. “We started with a number of 12V cylinder variants as genset configurations followed by the diesel mechanical propulsion configurations,” he said, since when the existing units have accumulated more than 30,000 running hours in the field. Along the way, the engine builder introduced IMO Tier II variants and later developed its own selective catalytic converter (SCR) exhaust gas aftertreatment system, making the engine IMO Tier III-compliant. That SCR has been available for 2.5 years “and is very much appreciated by many of our customers,” he said. Only then did the company turn its attention to extending the range to larger models, with the 16V being announced in 2019 and the 20V in 2020, which introduced the recordbreaking upper power rating for light duty installations. This light duty option was introduced across the whole 175D range, made possible by the commonality of parts, Mr Andres said. “It was a logical step” that, while new models

8 A design rendering of the 20V175D engine type, which will eventually include the most powerful high-speed engine

were being added to the range, light duty ratings with a higher output power should also be introduced. Across the whole 175D programme, he added, there has been a significant increase in demand, with naval and governmental applications contributing a particularly important part. There has been interest across the entire 175D output power range for genset applications in complex naval platforms, he said, often for use in situations where noise enclosures or double-resilient seating with shockabsorbing capability are required, or for diesel-mechanical applications in oﬀshore patrol vessels and fast patrol vessels. It is also popular in non-naval craft because of its “versatility and configurability ... with features fulfilling a vast bandwidth of demands,” he said. This makes it suitable for a wide range of applications, ranging from standard to special-purpose vessels with a high degree of complexity. These include workboats such as tugs, shallow water anchor handlers, wind turbine installation vessels, trawlers, live fish carriers and research vessels, but also passenger vessels including highspeed ferries and megayachts. These ship types are suited to the 175D because it is a compact engine with a very good power-to-weight ratio, he

MAN 20V175D engine data Engine model Rating definitions

20V175D-MH Heavy duty

2,500

2,900

3,100

3,400

3,700

4,000

4,400

rpm

1,600

1,800

1,900

2,000

Average load (%)

100.0

85.0

80.0

70.0

40.0

65.0

60.0

SFOC at 100% MCR (Tier II)

189.5

196.0

194.0

192.5

192.0

193.0

196.5.0

199.0

SFOC at 100% MCR (Tier III)

190.5

197.0

195.0

193.5

193.0

194.5

197.5

199.5

TBO (Time between major overhaul)

30,000

30,000h

24,000h

18,000h

16,000h

12 | MARCH 2021

20V175D-M Medium duty

20V175D-ML Light duty

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Image: MAN Energy Solutions

FOUR-STROKE ENGINES

said. This is typical of high-speed engines in general but especially so for the 175D, he believes, which can often be specified in its 12-cylinder version where competitors have to offer 16-cylinder equivalents. He hinted at further development work in this area, saying that MAN Energy Solutions “will certainly further identify the needs of an even higher power density of our 175D” and promised to report updates on that ambition later this year. He also stressed the engine's other credentials, saying that the 175D “is designed to deliver its highest output power continuously, even under tropical ambient conditions” and that it gives operators “longer vessel endurances due to its best-in-class fuel consumption.” In addition, the engine allows long maintenance intervals between major overhauls, which can be carried out in-situ, “which keeps the vessel in operation longer and keeps operational expenses low.” These parameters are reflected in reduced operational costs, which is important in selecting “the right propulsion solution,” he said. ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGY MAN Energy Solutions is “continuously improving and optimising engine efficiency,” Mr Andres said, in response to “the ever-growing demand for lower emissions,” in particular CO2, NOx and PM. He drew attention to the SCR designed for use with the 175D, which has a closed-loop design and a temperature control system that remains active over the engine's entire load range to ensure low urea consumption and low NOx emissions. It has been certified in line with Marpol Annex VI's Scheme A approval guidelines, which require an initial certification of exhaust gas cleaning performance, followed by periodic surveys and continuous monitoring of key system operating parameters, backed up by daily emission checks. This approach “reduces the commissioning and certification efforts on board,” he said, but stressed that the engine had been designed from the outset to accept exhaust gas aftertreatment to ensure that its specific fuel oil consumption “can be kept on a best-in-class level even when running in IMO Tier III.” He also indicated that, because

8 MAN ES' latest order for hybrid use of its 175D engines is for two mine sweepers for Indonesia

the 175D has a high back-pressure capability, further aftertreatment systems, such as diesel particle filters, could be added while maintaining output power. More than half of its European and North American orders for the engine have been specified with the SCR system, which Mr Andres attributed to the engine's compactness “and the variety of possibilities to integrate its components into the engineroom.” Hybrid installations feature among the 175D's references, the latest being for two mine hunters to be built at Abeking & Rasmussen in Germany for the Indonesian Navy. The contract also illustrates the significance of a link forged in 2018 with the hybrid specialist Aspin Kemp and Associates (AKA), which is supplying a hybrid PTI system to allow the ships to operate silently while minehunting, during which they will operate at slow speed with electric propulsion. MAN Energy Solutions' supply to these ships will include two 12V175D-MM engines, each delivering 2,220kW at 1,900rpm, and an MAN Alpha CPP twin screw-propeller system, including an Alphatronic 3000 propulsion-control system intended to provide eﬃcient and flexible manoeuvring. In a statement issued when the order was announced, Mr Andres said that delivering propulsion packages to these two minehunters “fulfils our ambition to increasingly becoming a supplier of complete solutions.” FUEL OPTIONS A range of fuels can be used in 175D engines, in addition to marine gas oil. It can also use ultra-low sulphur EN 590, NATO's F-76 distillate fuel, B30 biofuel (a blend containing 30% biofuel), gas-to-liquid (GTL) fuel derived from natural gas and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), which is a pure biofuel. In the future, other fuels may be suitable for the engine, Mr Andres indicated. “Liquid fuel will play a major role for the time being on board small craft due to its density and availability, but we believe fuels should come from renewable sources to reduce CO2 emissions,” he said. With that in mind, MAN Energy Solutions is working on several concepts to apply future fuels such as biomass-derived products and synthetic fuels based on H2.

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MARCH 2021 | 13

FOUR-STROKE ENGINES

SOLVING THE CLEAN-UP CONUNDRUM

Image: ABB Turbocharging

Two-stage turbocharging has been around for quite a while, but there's recently been a resurgence of interest. However, the targets diﬀer from those of automotive applications which focus on dynamic behaviour, writes Stevie Knight

Firstly, as Michael Willmann of ABB Turbocharging points out: “Any step that helps to minimize the engine footprint, such as increasing the power density through the use of higher receiver pressure, is desirable.” But it's broader than that: for marine's medium-speed engines, “concern centres rather more on eﬃciency and peak pressure”, says two-stage turbocharger development lead for PBST, Sebastian Spengler. Here, it's not just an enabler for high power densities, it's also aimed at NOx and SFOC reduction. However, there's a conundrum: “A greater mean eﬀective pressure in the engine requires more mass coming through the air intake,” says Johannes Kech of Rolls-Royce's Power Systems business unit. This doesn't necessarily sit well with combustion clean up techniques aiming to meet IMO Tier III and EPA Tier 4 NOx requirements (which this year reached the Baltic and North Sea ECAs). All of which puts yet more demand on the turbos. Take Exhaust Gas Recirculation: this diverts some of the exhaust flow back into the intake manifold, diluting the charge, reducing available oxygen, combustion temperature and NOx formation on the flame front. However, large engines require considerably higher EGR rates to achieve the same NOx reduction level as their smaller automotive counterparts - the fraction sometimes reaching over 50%. Therefore, the EGR can be asking for more while the turbo itself might be feeling the pinch. Another technique is playing with the timing to change the combustion characteristics: on a Miller cycle, the charge is limited by either late or early intake valve closure. This can be tweaked to reduce the work required by compression, stretch out the intake charge to cool combustion temperatures from NOx-formation levels, and harvest more energy from the cycle. While a turbo can mitigate the consequent power loss, stronger Miller timing necessary to meet advancing NOx

14 | MARCH 2021

8 Both power density and emissions are concerns

requirements also means “there's much less time for bringing the air through into the cylinder”, explains Kech. He adds that even relatively straightforward particulate filters “put a higher back pressure on the exhaust system, so to ensure the exhaust flows out of the cylinder, again you need more pressure on the intake side”. Initially, EGR, filter pressure and Miller cycle demands were supported through single-stage turbochargers. These are comparatively simple and cost-effective, so they've gained a good slice of development: ABB's product has lifted the pressure ratio ceiling from 6.0 to 6.5, while PBST has been investigating how to move towards 7.0 with package, cost and performance benefits for medium speed and high speed gas engines. But these single-stage units have shortcomings. While they can deliver emissions savings, above a pressure ratio around 5 or 5.5, “the topological map of the compressor tends to narrow, and in this situation, the engine's overall performance becomes rather limited”, says Kech. In other words, it can be set up either for a wide speed range or a high boost pressure - but there's generally a trade-off between the two. Just adding another TC for increased speeds will fix a number of issues. “A sequential system means starting the engine with one turbocharger: accelerating to a higher power triggers a second, then a third and so on,” he explains. That in turn allows more boost at low engine speeds and faster transient response. However, sequential turbocharging has a different focus: broad performance maps and greater surge margins remain the highest priority for compressor development. But as these systems still operate within the confines of single-stage TCs, Kech points out “this setup can't reach the pressure ratios required for emission reduction technologies”. Instead, the answer lies in two-stage TC arrangements

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FOUR-STROKE ENGINES

‘‘

which can push the pressure ratio into double figures. Here, the inlet air is speeded up and compressed, first by one or two low-pressure turbines in parallel, giving it a leg up. It's then cooled to make it denser before it's transferred to a high-pressure stage and possibly another intercooler, explains Willmann. However, he adds that the load distribution between the lower and upper stages “influence both the system efficiency and its size”. That means that for OEMs like Rolls-Royce - currently working on a new two-stage offering for its mtu series 4000 marine four-stroke - the effort is not merely to get the highest peak pressure rise out of the individual turbines. Instead, it's to tailor their highest efficiency regions to their operating position on the now combined, two-stage compressor map. But for manufacturers like ABB Turbo and PBST, the focus is adaptability, offering matching combinations between a variety of high and low pressure turbines. Spengler adds that even inside these stages, different fuel type or application requirements can change the arrangement. Therefore, tailoring each stage isn't easy. Firstly, “the load split between HP and LP is typically defined by static matching,” he says, with parts like nozzle rings and diffusers being modelled to meet the engine's most common demand. Further, operational points outside this area can be so diverse as to require changing the balance. Variable geometries (used onboard MAN's 51/60 GTS engine) and other devices have their place: Rolls-Royce, for example, is incorporating a valve or flap mechanism to alter the flow with a bypass that allows the LP side to pick up more of the load as speed rises and it also acts as a wastegate to protect the HP side at very high flow rates. It opens up the possibilities but also creates another level of complexity, and more, “any methods need to be closely linked to the engine control and operation”, adds Spengler. Still, the (often iterative) matching process may be somewhat eased by further turbine developments. Radial - centrifugal - designs have been the general go-to choice for single-stage compression. These work by hurling out the gas at an angle: it then flows through the spiral chamber where the velocity gets converted to pressure. While radial units can maintain overall efficiency across the rpm range and deliver a considerable step-up in pressure ratio in one hit, the limits are blade size and impeller stresses from supersonic gas speeds. Recently, two-stage solutions have opened the door to axial compressors. These typically have a set of rotating blades - more like propellers - which accelerate the gas directly along the flow path to a stator, which converts it to pressure. They make a better job of handling large volumes than radial types, but two features have held back take up: they don't yield as big a jump in pressure, and their efficiency isn't that even, generally rising with speed. Despite that, axial flow's characteristics are still attractive for larger four-strokes, and some marine manufacturers may be considering them for the initial, low-pressure stage. For example, although Kech underlines Rolls-Royce's development decisions aren't set in stone, he says “the advantage of an axial turbine is its low momentum of inertia compared to a radial turbine, achieving higher agility”. ABB Turbo also appears to be contemplating their advantages, as

Image: MAN ES

The advantage of an axial turbine is its low momentum of inertia compared to a radial turbine, achieving higher agility

Willmann notes: “With increasing airflow, the classical tradeoff between radial - high-pressure ratio - and axial - high mass flow - machines may lead to consideration of axial turbines for large-bore marine engines.” Interestingly, as part of its modular approach, PBST is already offering its new, axial TCT series as its smaller, lighter design makes it suited for the LP turbo in two-stage systems. However, the HP side “is generally more physically demanding,” says Spengler. Here, radial versions have their advantages, as they have a very robust, well proven and compact design while covering all efficiency requirements. But he adds: “The blade vibration is higher, forces on the bearings are more powerful - and nearly all the components are subject to more stress .” So it has taken effort. Both RollsRoyce and PBST have been working on geometry; PBST's radial TCX has recently benefited from smoothing the internal flow alongside tweaks such as channelling water-cooling toward higher temperature areas and thicker walls in certain regions. Further, some of the designs also offer ramp-up support: for example, the TCX has a Jet Assist which blows high-pressure air onto the compressor blades, assisting TC acceleration. Finally, two-stage turbos have enough potential to support all kinds of clean-up technology. “It is a big enabler for Miller timing,” says Spengler: “If you deliver very high pressure to the cylinder, you can afford to lose a bit, and you still have enough power density in the cylinder afterwards. That's the key.” While there is still a trade-off, tests demonstrate that with a strong Miller cycle, you can drop NOx or SFOC significantly compared to single-stage TCs. There's still a world of possibilities. Rolls-Royce's initial two-stage model for the mtu 4000 marine engine looks likely to have twin LP turbines running in parallel - while other installations could offer two HP compressors. But as Kech points out, imagination is limited: it all has to fit into nothing much larger than the envelope presented by earlier single-stage designs.

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8 The needs of the high pressure side of two-stage turbochargers may still be best met by radial flow compressors

8 Two-stage TC's have potential to support a variety of clean-up technologies

MARCH 2021 | 15

LNG

UECC PUSHES LIMITS TO TEST NEW TECHNOLOGIES

Credit: UECC

United European Car Carriers (UECC), the Norway based company that operates a fleet of 16 pure truck and car carriers in intra-European trades, is upping its game to meet client expectations

Early in 2020, the company appointed Daniel Gent as Energy and Sustainability Manager to add momentum to its green drive. The company's ambitions to exceed minimum GHG reduction targets have led it to becoming an early adaptor of new technologies, although it means accepting a sharp learning curve that follow from this. Gent added that the greatest change had been in terms of corporate mindset. “In 2010-12, I would probably have asked how could LNG technology work, it was an oil mindset,” he told The Motorship. It is unlikely that Gent would have envisaged working with dual-fuel battery-hybrid PCTCs in 2010. However, UECC is waiting to take delivery of the first of a series of three 3,600 car equivalent unit (ceu) capacity LNG-fuelled battery-hybrid PCTCs before the end of 2021. The vessels were ordered in March 2019 at Jiangnan shipyard, and are expected to be delivered by early 2022. "We are investing in the future," said Glenn Edvardsen, CEO of UECC in a statement at the time, adding: "Our solution will take us beyond IMO's target for a 40% reduction in carbon intensity by 2030”. The combination of an energy storage system with WinGD 6RT-Flex50DF main engines offers specific peak shaving efficiency advantages, Gent noted. But extending the use of the battery technology will have to wait for further advances in battery technology in the coming decades. Perhaps a new pack can be installed in the future that can offer possibilities that are not available at the present moment, Gent mused. Turning back to the present, UECC has also acted as an early adopter with liquefied biogas (LBG). In December 2020, its Auto Energy, bunkered gas containing 90% LNG and 10% LBG at sea outside Gothenburg from Gasum's bunkering vessel Coralius. Dual fuel engines can and have run smoothly on bio oil, bio

16 | MARCH 2021

8 UECC's Auto Energy and LNG bunker vessel Coralius in December 2020

gas and LNG blends, Gent noted. Finding the supplies of bio oil and gas, however, is an entire diﬀerent matter. This is sourced from waste treatment plants, mainly in Scandinavia, that produce bio methane or bio oil from discarded cooking oil. The supplier network is therefore fragmented and localised, which marks a sharp contrast to the historical global supply chain of fossil oil and gas. However, high grade bio gas is very clean burning and, like bio oil, is much greener than fossil fuel sources, which makes the search for supplies worthwhile. “With green energy, we will see an increasing a shift to local production and relatively local consumption. We look at renewable sources to make bio methane - it can be produced by using green hydrogen and we believe this is an exciting pathway to investigate. It is important to draw on our experiences and to show the market a vision of sustainability,” Gent continued. ADVANTAGES OF LINER SERVICES The UECC fleet operates in regular liner service in an extensive pan-European network, which is an important and helpful feature of its business. It makes it a lot easier to e.g. look for local suppliers of bio fuels and to set up the necessary infrastructure compared to vessels that operate in tramp trades. That said, Gent expressed the ease at which the company adapted to using biofuel: “Our seafarers are amongst the best there are and we managed to take a pioneering fuel onboard our vessel and make a success of it. Many of our seagoing personnel have been with us for a long time which adds continuity to the training and high standard we are renowned for.”

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LNG

EEXI AND CII Despite UECC's green credentials, Gent noted that the introduction of EEXI (existing ship energy index) and CII (carbon intensity indicator) rules at the IMO poses specific challenges for companies like UECC, whose ships are volume rather than dwt critical in their operations. “On our vessel Autosky, we have demonstrated that carbon-neutral sea logistics are possible with the implementation of biofuel. Our commitment to biofuel in 2020 saw a reduction of over 20 million kilograms of CO2. We need carbon calculus that accurately capture these remarkable improvements,” Gent said. “The index as proposed does not work at all for vessel that max out on volume: a brand-new ship can be deemed ineﬃcient due to the current proposed methodology. Using gross tonnage as the base of the index for such ships would make more sense,” he said. “We have seen that exceptions exist in other maritime sectors and we strongly support IMO looking again at ours.”

2 NOV 4 ȠǼȠ1 TO

Credit: UECC

“Understanding fuel characteristics and handling them appropriately is key to a successful transition to carbon neutral transport. This can be replicated on any seagoing vessel with the right technical expertise.” This became apparent in 2016-17, when the company introduced its first LNG power ships. The bunkering infrastructure was not readily available in each port. UECC developed their vessel in parallel with the LNG bunker vessel Green Zeebrugge and as years passed, the infrastructure across Europe has gradually expanded. Gent mentioned a case regarding CII, in which a ship sailing between two ports at 15 knots can perform worse than one that covers ten times the distance at 13 knots, because of the impact of slower speeds on index calculations. “IMO holds the key and bureaucratic processes are slow. Once legislation has been passed, it has hardly ever been revised, so it is important to get everything as right as possible from the start,” he continued. The planned legislation is due to take eﬀect in 2023 and time is passing quickly. Any revision to the proposed legislation should really be made this year to take into account the slow decision making at IMO. “We are in the future now. We need to talk,” Gent said. UECC, which is jointly owned by Wallenius of Sweden and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) of Japan, regards itself as a pioneer in eﬀorts to make shipping greener and more sustainable. The nature of its business makes it well positioned to explore new technologies, but it is its willingness to make bold investments and to learn from each step that it takes what makes progress on that path possible, Gent highlighted.

8 Integrating an ESS and shaft generator into the hybrid dual-fuel PCTC design allows the vessel to reduce the number of auxiliaries to two

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Submit your abstract on: 6 3I[ IRKMRI ERH TVSTYPWMSR TVSTIPPSV HIWMKRW QSHMǰ GEXMSRW 6 8IGLRMGEP WSPYXMSRW XS QIIX VIKYPEXSV] HIQERHW 6 1S[ Ǳ EWLTSMRX JYIPW ƭ XLI IZSPZIQIRX SJ 13, TPYW SXLIV EPXIVREXMZI KEW JYIPPIH WSPYXMSRW ƭ 15, QIXLERSP IXLERSP ERH IXLERI 6 8SQSVVS[ưW JYIP TS[IVMRK WSPYXMSRW ƭ EQQSRME L]HVSKIR I JYIPW [MRH TS[IV EMV PYFVMGEXMSR ERH JYIP GIPPW 6 *RIVK] QEREKIQIRX W]WXIQW ERH PEVKI ZIWWIPW 'EXXIV] 5S[IV W]WXIQ MRXIKVEXMSR MRXIKVEXMSR [MXL HYEP JYIP IRKMRIW IXG 6 *QMWWMSRW EFEXIQIRX W]WXIQW MRGPYHMRK *,7 ERH (7 EW [IPP EW [EWXI LIEX VIGSZIV] ERH :4( VIGSZIV] 6 )MKMXEPMWEXMSR ƭ WSPYXMSRW JSV XLI ERH KSEPW

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MARCH 2021 | 17

LNG

FIRST DEMONSTRATION OF MAN LOW-PRESSURE ME-GA ENGINE Engine designer MAN Energy Solutions held a public demonstration of its new low-pressure dual-fuel engine platform at its Copenhagen Research Centre in mid-March 2021

8 The MAN B&W ME-GA engine (pictured) at MAN Energy Solutions’ Research Centre Copenhagen

The demonstration, which was held remotely to comply with Covid-19 public health requirements, was accompanied by the announcement of the first orders for the company’s new Otto Cycle engine platform. Bjarne Foldager, Senior Vice President and Head of TwoStroke Business, revealed the ME-GA engine had already been specified in several LNG carrier newbuilding projects. The details of the first of the projects will be revealed by mid-April. The timeline for the commercial launch of the Otto Cycle engine has remained largely unchanged, despite the disruptive eﬀects of the Covid-19 pandemic on collaboration with engine licensee HHI-EMD and with Hyundai Heavy Industries' shipyard division. The testing of the first, commercial ME-GA design is expected to begin by the end of 2021, with the first engine delivery following in early 2022. The response from other shipyards in Korea and East Asia had also been encouraging, Foldager noted. This was no surprise, as the new engine platform had been designed with commercial as well as technical requirements at its heart. The 700mm bore design retains the same outline and footprint as a G70ME-C10.5 engine. The five cylinder version of the 700mm bore G70ME-C10.5-GA is explicitly aimed at the LNG carrier market, where twin five-cylinder 700mm bore engines are frequently specified. Shipyard considerations were also reflected in the choice of a high-pressure EGR solution. The solution could be integrated into existing engine-room designs, while the EGR unit itself does not change the engine footprint.

18 | MARCH 2021

However, the MAN B&W ME-GA engine is also being aimed at other vessel types and applications, where low capital outlay is a priority. These include Aframax tankers, for example. The company plans to add a 500mm bore version of the engine - S50ME-C-GA - to its engine programme alongside its existing 700mm bore G70ME-C10.5-GA and 600mm bore G60ME-C10.5-GA options. However, Wayne Jones OBE, Chief Sales Oﬃcer, confirmed to told The Motorship that the company was considering developing other engine sizes. Foldager noted that the company had no plans to develop a larger 950mm bore version of the ME-GA. The technical challenge of developing a 950mm-bore Otto Cycle engine was significantly greater than simply scaling up a 700-bore engine. He added that as MAN ES’s ME-GI high-pressure dual-fuel engine was frequently specified by shipyards for ultra large container vessels newbuildings, there was little commercial demand for such a development. TIER III COMPLIANT OPTIONS The presentation confirmed many of the details released during earlier stages of the product development cycle. As previously reported, the engine will be Tier III compliant in gas mode without emissions abatement equipment. Meanwhile, specifying the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) option would ensure the engine met Tier III requirements in both fuel oil and gas modes without additional aftertreatment. The exhaust gas recirculation aftertreatment option would lower the engine’s methane emissions by between “30-50%”.

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LNG The company reports that EGR will enable the ME-GA to reduce specific gas consumption by around 3%, and specific fuel-oil consumption by 5%. The EGR aftertreatment option offers particular advantages for fuel consumption at part-loads within the load range. Thomas S. Hansen, Head of Two Stroke Promotion & Customer Support, noted that this improvement was seen in the engine for both specific fuel oil consumption and for specific gas consumption. Hansen cited the MAN B&W MAN B&W G70ME-C10.5-GA, which lowered SFOC by 7.4g/kWh to 170.1g/kWh at 50% load in Tier II mode, compared with the low-pressure SCR version. A similar reduction of 5.6g/kWh was seen at 75% load. Comparable reductions in SGC were seen, with gas consumption lowered by 6.8g/kWh to under 134g/kWh at 50% load in Tier II mode, compared with the low-pressure SCR version. A similar reduction of 5.1g/kWh was seen at 75% load. One particular area of focus has been the pilot fuel oil consumption, given its connection with NOx emissions in gas mode for Otto Cycle engines. In gas mode, the ME-GA engine required no more than 0.5% pilot fuel consumption. The ME-GA design also included a microbooster system, which allowed high sulphur fuel oil to be used for pilot fuel injection in Tier II gas mode, Hansen confirmed during the presentation. Hansen that several of the ME-GA’s design features offered opportunities to bear down on CAPEX costs during the newbuilding process. He gave the example of the separation of the Gas Valve Unit from the Gas Regulating Unit within the design. By locating the GVU outside the gas safe area, this eliminated the need to install a cofferdam box in the engine room, as the unit did not need to be specified to comply with gas safe area rules. Hansen also identified the ME-GA’s purging concept as an area where the application of ME-GI concepts led to CAPEX reductions. Rather than injecting nitrogen from the GVU, the nitrogen is applied at the engine end, and the purged volume is carried along existing piping. The simplified solution

Engine

MAN B&W G70ME-C10.5-GA

MAN B&W G60ME-C10.5-GA

Bore

700mm

600mm

Stroke

3,256mm

2,790mm

Stroke/bore ratio

4.65

Power per cylinder, L1 rating

2,830kW @78rpm

2,080kW @91rpm

Power/cyl, L2 rating

2,260kW @78rpm

1,660kW @91rpm

Power/cyl, L3 rating

2,400kW @66rpm

1,760kW @77rpm

Power/cyl, L4 rating

1,920kW @66rpm

1,410kW @77rpm

Mean eﬀective pressure, L1 rating

17.4 bar

Engine versions, cylinder numbers

5, 6

5, 6, 7, 8

Power range(SMCR), 5cyl model

9,600-14,150kW

7,050-2,080kW

Power range(SMCR), 6cyl model

11,520-16,980kW

8,460-12,480kW

Power range(SMCR), 7cyl model

9,870-14,560kW

Power range(SMCR), 8cyl model

11,280-16,640kW

reduced the amount of pipework and components, and significantly lowered the volume, reducing nitrogen consumption, Hansen noted. Hansen noted that the engine also employed a safe gas admission valve, placed on the manifold and exhaust side of the cylinder. By being located close to the cylinder, it minimises the potential volume that could enter under the piston case in case of a release. The valves also have a window valve function. Hansen confirmed that the standard 3 piston-ring package used on ME-GI engines was being applied to the ME-GA design. MAN had gained considerable experience with the CERMET coated ring pack concept in service on existing G70 engines. Hansen noted that the ME-GA engine was expected to have similar cylinder oil requirements as the existing ME-GI engine. While MAN ES would recommend the use of a BN40 Category II cylinder oil as soon as one became available, a BN100 Category II cylinder oil.

8 Principal particulars - MAN B&W ME-GA engine

Putting the market at the heart of MAN ES’ programme Speaking just after the first demonstration of MAN Energy Solutions’ new low-speed, two-stroke Otto Cycle engine platform on 18 October, Wayne Jones OBE, Chief Sales Oﬃcer, discussed the ME-GA project and wider market trends. “Speaking as an engineer by training, technology and R&D is the lifeblood of a company like MAN Energy Solutions,” Mr. Jones said. However, bringing new engine platforms like the ME-GA to the market represents a significant investment in terms of time and resources. The company had 150 engineers working on the project and conducted over 800 tests at the Research Centre Copenhagen. This connection with the market comes from MAN ES’ strong partnerships and relationships, with shipyards, with engine licensees, and with shipowners in pilot projects. But it also comes from the company’s own connections with the market, which extended well beyond the commercial side of the business.

Mr. Jones said that it was a source of pride that MAN’s high-quality engineers were all grounded in commercial realities. “Our R&D is not internally focused but client-led.” This outward-facing approach was an integral part of the ME-GA project from its initiation in late 2017 when demand for a lower-cost alternative to the ME-GI engine, primarily from the LNG carrier market, began to make itself felt. elt. As such, Jones es took as much pride in announcing thatt MAN ES’ new Otto Cycle engines had been en specified in multiple newbuilding projects ojects as in the successful public demonstration tration of the engine itself. This market-led ed approach was more important than ever as the industry undergoes whatt Mr Jones called “an ultimate change”. Decarbonisation bonisation and digitization are set to transform m the industry. The changes of the energy transition sition were also being felt in individual trades, s, with the expansion of existing trades such as methanol. cluded by noting that the Mr Jones concluded

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delivery of the latest addition to MAN ES’s dual-fuel portfolio demonstrated the company’s ability to deliver technically-challenging solutions that meet client needs. “We didn’t see anything that surprised us [during the ME-GA development],” Mr. Jones concluded. A reassuring thought, as many of the solutions to the industry’s decarbonisation challenges lie in the hands of companies like MAN ES.

MARCH 2021 | 19

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

CHINA UPS PACE IN DRIVE TOWARDS ALTERNATIVE FUELS In line with China's aim to reach carbon neutrality before 2060, and to focus on ensuring its greenhouse gas emissions peak in the next decade, China Classification Society (CCS) Wuhan branch is stepping up its focus on alternative fuels. Earlier in 2021, CCS Wuhan branch awarded China's first certificate of type approval for a marine fuel cell product to Wuhan-based PEM fuel cell supplier Troowin Power System Technology Co. This will provide a "new channel" for the application of hydrogen fuel cells on ships. This is just part of its work towards a zero-carbon future in line with President Xi's announcement, to the United Nations in September 2020, that China will reach carbon neutrality before 2060 and ensure its greenhouse gas emissions peak in the next decade. "The Chinese government has established a long-term goal to become a carbon neutral country by 2060," said Jia Siqing, General Manager of Industrial Products for CCS Wuhan branch. “We must also reach the peak of carbon emissions before 2030. As the marine industry is one of the major sources of these emissions, it must make its share of the contribution to this inspiring target." CCS had been actively researching low or zero emission fuels long before these new targets were announced. For example, as far back as 2013, CCS was already exploring hydrogen and seeking to quantify its potential in everything from powering fuel cells to how to tackle a hydrogen-fuelled fire. At the same time, its researchers were also evaluating a host of alternatives, such as liquified natural gas (LNG), various alcohols, bio-fuels, ammonia and renewable electricity from wind and solar. They also looked at how these could be harnessed more eﬃciently with better power management systems. Even once a new technology is proven, CCS goes further, running exhaustive tests to decide if the application would be practical. "Take the use of bio-fuel," said Siqing's colleague, Luo Xiaofeng, Director of CCS Rules & Research Institute in Wuhan. "With China having such a large population, we need all the available farmland to feed our people. This means biofuel isn't a solution for us - we can't grow crops for powering our ships." THE RISE OF HYDROGEN By contrast, hydrogen is abundant and is an ideal candidate as a zero-emission fuel in internal combustion engines. Hydrogen can also react with a catalyst to create electricity in a fuel cell, and so power an electric drive train. CCS published its first reliable guidelines for harnessing hydrogen as a commercial marine fuel as long ago as 2015, 'Guidelines for Application of Fuel Cell System'. In 2017, this was followed by 'Guidelines For Ships Using Alternative Fuels'. These guidelines were updated in 2020. The detailed research found a hydrogen-enabled ship could be as safe as one powered by conventional fuels such as diesel. However, this comes with caveats. "No fuel is absolutely safe by nature," said Jia Siqing. "Only good management can ensure that level of safety. We think that hydrogen has some very distinctive characteristics

20 | MARCH 2021

which make it easy to manage. So, in that sense, it is inherently safe." Jia Siqing also supports the policy of allowing leaking gas to easily escape to atmosphere, rather than forming a gas cloud between decks. "The marine environment has issues very diﬀerent from land-use hydrogen," he said. "These include vibration, high and low temperatures, tilting and swinging, damp and other stressors that need to be tested for verification. Hydrogen fuel cells are usually installed in a small engine space. We protect this space with an enclosure, and then discharge any leaked

8 Luo Xiaofeng, the Director of CCS Rules & Research Institute in Wuhan

‘‘

Hydrogen is clearly the future. In China, we are asking all our stakeholders to help us to achieve the zeroemission solution for shipping, and no later than 2060 For the latest news and analysis go to www.motorship.com/news101

ALTERNATIVE FUELS hydrogen through a ventilation system. Working with CCS approved companies, we have seen a lot of improvements, such as metal pipes for hydrogen, with all joints either welded or connected with gas-tight fittings. All the materials used should be resistant to hydrogen embrittlement and corrosion. We have specified that a seamless steel pipe should be used for transporting fuel, and the materials used should be made from austenitic stainless steel." CHALLENGES OF STORAGE The main downside of hydrogen is its low energy density and the challenges of storing enough of it to take a ship on a protracted voyage. To this end, CCS is researching the most cost-eﬀective ways to store the gas in large quantities, and in how to combine it with other fuel sources to extend its range. "Since hydrogen is the lightest natural element, more space is needed to store it," said Jia Siqing. "We are looking at methods to create hydrogen at sea, such as the use of methanol or ammonia, which can be easily and cheaply transported. However, this still requires the addition of a fuel reformer for conversion. Methanol as a fuel is still accompanied by the production of carbon dioxide. Ammonia itself is corrosive and toxic, but as a zero-carbon fuel, it will have a wide range of applications in the future." Instead, the main focus is on carrying bulk hydrogen, enough for an entire voyage. "We think liquid hydrogen may be a good contender," Jia Siqing explained. "Alternatively, hydrogen can be stored in some organic compound in liquid form, but there may be some other issues with this technology. At present, in terms of storage methods, we still consider high-pressure gas cylinders as a viable solution." TESTING THE THEORY CCS is planning a series of real time tests on a purpose-built bulk carrier of 2,100DWT. The ship is currently at the design stage but is expected to be powered by four 130kW hydrogen fuel cells. A large bank of Li-ion batteries will also act as an energy reservoir. Once completed, the ship will be trialled along the Pearl River in Guangdong province, where it will carry operational cargoes. Reinforcing the data from these tests will be feedback from other sectors, such as the burgeoning Chinese electric automotive sector, as Luo Xiaofeng explained. "Today's car technology is tomorrow's ship technology,"" he said. "Hydrogen is a hot topic in China, so we work with other ther hydrogen-use sectors and universities to share the research. rch. Breakthroughs elsewhere can help the marine industry. The safety of a new hydrogen system is the base line, then we develop the theory and economics of the various ous technologies, and soon we will be able to test them hem thoroughly in the Pearl River project." Luo Xiaofeng is realistic about the future, and appreciates ates that while the zero emissions target is achievable, in the short-term trans-ocean hydrogen technology will still need eed to be supported with low-carbon and hybrid systems for propulsion. He also feels that new hydrogen systems should ould be installed in brand new ships rather than trying to retrofit rofit the existing fleet. Once again, safety is the main consideration, ion, as this can be optimised in the design. "Hydrogen is clearly the future," Luo Xiaofeng concluded. ded. "In China, we are asking all our stakeholders to help uss to achieve the zero-emission solution for shipping, and no later ater than 2060. Throughout history, the human race has always ways found solutions to its problems, and our new knowledge e of hydrogen systems will help Chinese shipping to meet the current climate challenges."

DEVELOPMENT OF DOMESTIC REGULATIONS In addition to conducting research on various forms of marine hydrogen fuel storage technology, CCS has also jointly carried out special research on the application of hydrogen fuel on ships with China State Shipbuilding Corporation. The research included risk assessment, ventilation, fire-fighting, as well as other areas which are essential to the safety of hydrogen fuel-powered ships. Some of the other aspects of a marine fuel cell system included the storage of hydrogen as a fuel, the bunkering and fuel gas supply system and hydrogen piping. The above studies were aimed to evaluate the feasibility, reliability and safety of hydrogen fuelled ships and provide support for the simultaneous development of relevant technical regulations. At the same time, CCS is now authorized by the China Maritime Safety Administration to research and develop the first domestic technical regulations for ships using hydrogen fuel, and it will be released at end of 2021.

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8 Wuhan-based Troowin Power System Technology Co.'s PEM fuel cell received the first type approval for a hydrogen fuel cell from China Classification Society (CCS) Wuhan branch earlier in 2021

8 Jia Siqing, General Manager of Industrial Products for CCS Wuhan branch

MARCH 2021 | 21

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

HOLISTIC DESIGN PLATFORM TO COMBINE LOW-EMISSION TECHS A new design platform being developed as part of the EU CHEK project will initially be used to design a near-zero emissions bulk carrier and a cruise ship, but it is also expected to expand holistic design concepts to other vessel types. The three-year deCarbonising sHipping by Enabling Key technology symbiosis on real vessel concept designs (CHEK) project will get underway in June 2021. It is being undertaken by a consortium consisting of the University of Vaasa, Wärtsilä, BAR Technologies, Cargill Ocean Transportation, Climeon, Deltamarin, Hasytec Electronics, Lloyds Register, MSC Cruises, Silverstream Technologies and the World Maritime University. The project will design a Kamsarmax bulk carrier that will use wind energy and a Meraviglia-class cruise ship that will operate with a Wärtsilä engine running on hydrogen fuel. It is estimated that by combining these and other technologies, including batteries, heat recovery, air lubrication and new anti-fouling technology, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by 99%, energy savings of up to 50% can be achieved and black carbon emissions can be cut by more than 95%. Several key enabling technologies will be demonstrated in practice on actual operational ships. “Shipping of the future must combine emerging technologies into a systemically symbiotic entity,” says CHEK project coordinator, Dr. Suvi Karirinne, who heads VEBIC, University of Vaasa's energy and sustainability research platform. To support this, the project will develop the FutureProof Vessel Design Platform to provide a way of combining new technologies as favourably as possible. It is expected to then also be applied to other vessel types, such as tankers, container ships, general cargo vessels and ferries. MULTI-OBJECTIVE OPTIMISATION A central challenge will be identifying how each solution contributes to overall CO2 emissions reductions. Mia Elg, R&D Manager at Deltamarin, says the company will use its digital design tools including energy simulations as a starting point to resolving what she considers will be very complex, multi-objective optimization problems. “Many of the ships we design today will still be in operation in 2050, so it's exciting to be an engineer today!” However, she says that it is also important to remember that the best fuel savings are actually the result of having a smart operational strategy as well as an optimized design and new technologies. There's still much to be saved by simple operational optimisation such as slow steaming, minimising port times and weather routing. For some ships, this can lead to savings of around 20%, although in others, shipowners believe that they've done all they can, says Elg. Another important component is the vessel design optimisation including hullform, maximising cargo capacity and the combination of technologies such as waste heat recovery, batteries and wind power. A third path to decarbonisation is zero or low-carbon fuels. Elg emphasises the growing importance of teamwork, not just designer, shipowner and yard but also, increasingly, technology and data providers. Deltamarin has been building

22 | MARCH 2021

capability to facilitate this. A previous research project resulted in the company being capable of analysing larger amounts of data, faster, for its energy models and simulations. They can now also be run in a cloud environment. “It's really important to establish the savings claimed by technology providers,” says Elg. “But how do we actually, technically, do that? How do we actually get enough data to simulate the energy savings, because, for sure, we are not going to be sharing all the relevant, detailed models protected by IP. We have to establish good ways of sharing the data so that we can all have our own IP protected while being able to simulate, together, what the combined result is of all the technology and operational design choices we're making.” She notes that many of the partners have already worked together extensively and is positive about the project's success.

8 Deltamarin's digital design tools include energy simulations to address "highly complex, multi-objective optimization problems"

WIND ASSISTED BULKER Consortium partner BAR Technologies aims to achieve annualised savings of up to 30% via its solid wing sail array, WindWings, for the Cargill Kamsarmax bulk carrier. The vessel will also feature energy storage, waste heat recovery, air lubrication and an automated, optimised vessel routing system to take advantage of prevailing and forecast wind conditions. Wärtsilä's contributions to the bulk carrier concept will include system integration, including hybridisation, energy storage and shore power connections. The company will also be developing a compact and modular fuel-flexible 4-stroke powertrain for reduced fuel consumption and optimum eﬃciency.

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ALTERNATIVE FUELS 8 From left to right: Kenneth Widdel, Senior Project Manager at Wärtsilä; Mia Elg, R&D Manager at Deltamarin and Sebastiaan Bleuanus, General Manager for research coordination and funding at Wärtsilä

An increasing amount of wind assist means the engine load decreases for the same service speed, so more output flexibility is needed from the powertrain. Wärtsilä will focus on medium speed engine designs to provide this flexibility, as the classic two-stroke and controllable pitch propeller layout may no longer be the optimum solution. Sebastiaan Bleuanus, General Manager for research coordination and funding at Wärtsilä, notes that traditionally these bulk carriers would sail at 12.5 knots, but it is now typically 10 knots. With around 30% of propulsive power provided by the WindWings, the engine load will be even lower. “We need a lot more operational flexibility,” he says. “We're sure the conventional layout is not optimum, so one of our major development items here is to determine what the best power train would actually be. Would it be one single engine, driving a single propeller through a gearbox? Would it be diesel-electric? Would it be two engines, one twin-in, single-out gearbox driving a single propeller? And on top of that, we will be working on route optimization to take maximum advantage of anticipated wind conditions.” A gate rudder system, consisting of a rudder either side of the propeller rather than behind it, offers enhanced manoeuvrability and better efficiency and is expected to reduce fuel consumption by around 10%. With the rudders situated beside the propeller, the total propulsion train is reduced in length, freeing up more space for cargo or passengers. The actual savings will be modelled using CFD techniques rather than at full-scale. “Quite simply, if you want to test all of these technologies at full-scale, you will run out of money,” says Bleuanus. “The gate rudder can be done quite well using CFD, and by doing it virtually, we free up funds for other things, like the sails, which we were very keen on to demonstrate in practice.” HYDROGEN FUELLED CRUISE SHIP The cruise ship will operate with a gate rudder system and a Wärtsilä designed engine running on hydrogen fuel. Wärtsilä is doing the engine development including injection technology, with the University of Vaasa responsible for the fuel system, piping, pressure controls and bunkering stage. Wärtsilä has already demonstrated its current internal combustion engines can operate on LNG mixed with 20% hydrogen. The goal now is pure hydrogen which could take two years of development, leaving the third year of the project for lab-based demonstration. Senior Project Manager, Kenneth Widdel, who will lead Wärtsilä's participation in CHEK, emphasises that the project will look at the vessel designs from a total cost of ownership perspective. “We're not just stacking on different technologies. Rather, we are seeing how they work and interact together and how to get the best out of that interaction.” He says that

optimising system integration, energy flows and waste heat recovery will be key components, particularly for the cruise ship design eﬀort. The CHEK project dovetails with Wärtsilä's extensive investments in developing an ecosystem of co-creation including the company's Smart Technology Hub in Vaasa. “There is no silver bullet to meeting the challenge of combating climate change,” says Jonas Åkerman, Director of Research and Technology Development at Wärtsilä. “You need to exploit a number of parallel paths, and that's exactly what we are doing together with our partners here. What makes the project so exciting is that we are stretching what is economically viable to be done.” RULE DEVELOPMENT In February, Lloyd's Register (LR) released its Guidance Notes for Fuel System Risk Assessments, Hazard Identification - Hydrogen, and the project will contribute towards LR's work to build on the guidance to develop Rules sks of using hydrogen as a fuel are to ensure that the risks mitigated. “The work being undertaking on this project on nt and testing of the hydrogen design, risk assessment eful in strengthening the engines will be a useful rstanding of the safety Rules and our understanding aspects of hydrogen as a fuel,” says Chris ead, Shipping Markets. Hughes, LR's Global Lead, echnologies included in “For several of the technologies tarting from a relatively the project, we are starting strong point in termss of existing rules and experience. For some of the newer technologies, nges that need to be there are safety challenges roject includes considered, and the project work packages that investigate these and assess the risk of the solutions developed.”

8 Chris Hughes, Lloyds Register's Global Lead, Shipping Markets

WHAT THE INDUSTRY WANTS cludes LR's scope also includes work on modelling the ssing eﬃciency gains, assessing ments infrastructure requirements beyond the ships and new development of at will facilitate commercial models that ons developed. the uptake of the solutions nd-users such Hughes says having end-users uises involved as Cargill and MSC Cruises ensures that the technology solutions developed are practical, he industry viable and what the ultimately wants.

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MARCH 2021 | 23

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

GREENER METHANOL SUPPLY TO MEET RISING SHIPPING DEMAND

Credit: Methanex

Green methanol is establishing itself as a contender in the 2050 bunker fuel market, with the chemical industry motivated to go green and new production facilities and new ships raising optimism around the world

The pricing of sustainably produced methanol means that its uptake as a bunker fuel will likely need the social and political mandate that is already building towards 2030 and 2050 deadlines. A technology transition will also be required for greener methanol, and it will be required at scale. A recent report, Innovation Outlook: Renewable Methanol by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Methanol Institute recognises this but maintains a positive outlook because of the many benefits methanol has over competing future fuels. As a marine fuel, methanol emits no sulphur, very low particulate matter and, according to data from MAN Energy Solutions, it results in carbon dioxide emissions around 20% lower than conventional marine fuel oil. To meet IMO NOx Tier III requirements, methanol can be blended with water, negating the need for expensive exhaust gas after treatment. It is also miscible in water and readily biodegradable, characteristics that the Methanol Institute says make it ideal for use in polar waters. “Methanol provides considerable retrofit potential as an IMO compliant bunker, being very close to a drop-in fuel for most 2 or 4-stroke marine engines. As such, some vessels may be cost eﬀectively repurposed, extending their useful lives in the process,” says Chris Chatterton, COO of the Methanol Institute. “Methanol's share of the marine market may be diﬃcult to predict today, but it seems that it will steadily increase the closer we move to 2030 as experience with it as a compliant fuel is shared, pricing visibility is maintained and availability is proven up.” The cost of producing fossil-fuel based methanol is

24 | MARCH 2021

8 Methanol has been produced at Methanex's Motunui plant in New Zealand since 1999

currently in the range US$100-250, and it is already a competitive option, at least for Emission Control Areas, states the IRENA/Methanol Institute report. By 2050, the cost of bio-methanol (produced using waste biomass streams) could be US$220-560, and the cost of e-methanol (produced using green hydrogen and CO2 captured from renewable sources) could be between US$250-630 per tonne. It's still not clear how methanol prices will compare to key competitors such as hydrogen and ammonia, but it is likely to be cheaper to move, store and to repurpose existing infrastructure to accommodate its use as a bunker fuel. Ammonia is likely to take five to 10 years to be cost competitive and available at scale for shipping. For hydrogen, it will probably take 15 to 20 years. SUPPLY/DEMAND BALANCE Current global demand for methanol at close to 100 Mt per year and growing. The report estimates that by 2050, there could be 135Mt of methanol produced from biomass, 250Mt produced from green hydrogen and captured CO2 and 115Mt from fossil fuels. Demand from land and marine transport will be a key driver for the production of renewable methanol due to increasing regulation of GHG emissions. The top five methanol producing countries are China, Saudi Arabia, Trinidad and Tobago, Iran and Russia. Methanol (CH3OH) is typically produced from fossil-fuel based natural gas by reforming the gas with steam to produce syngas (hydrogen and carbon monoxide) and then converting and distilling it to produce methanol (steam methane reforming). Less than 0.2Mt of renewable methanol is produced

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ALTERNATIVE FUELS

GREENER PRODUCTION ROUTES A study led by the University of the West Indies evaluated the cost and sustainability of multiple diﬀerent future technologies for producing methanol. The researchers found that both pyrolysis and auto-thermal reforming (ATR) were the premiere climate-smart choices for production when based on circular CO2 utilisation and storage. ATR proved to be the least energy demanding technology, mainly due to the high energy recovery from the partial oxidation that powers the reformation. Solar-powered electrolysis was also a sustainable solution, but one that was determined to be significantly less profitable than pyrolysis. “The problem with renewables is the economies of scale issue,” says Dr Keeran Ward, study coauthor. “Although the technology is getting cheaper, it can't compare with large scale or even normal scale production capacity. For example, a 5,000 MTPD methanol plant requires about 50 tonnes/h of hydrogen while large scale electrolysis can produce 50 tonnes/day.” He foresees a gradual transition away from cheaper, nonsustainable fossil fuel-based production, although ATR technologies are already mature enough for new projects. “And it has been shown that ATR is cheaper than steam methane reforming at large scale production capacities (5,000MTPD and higher), so logically it will be the winner.” Methanex also considers it the most economically viable technology when there is excess hydrogen from the purge gas of its existing steam methane reforming plants. The company is developing a project in the US based on ATR. Construction of a growing number of renewable and biomethanol plants have been announced globally including in China, the US and numerous EU states, and for e-methanol, new production can be readily sited close to renewable power capacity, with access to both water and CO2. This significantly broadens the potential for new production hubs. For example, in January, Germany-based energy and chemical provider Mabanaft and Chile-based Highly Innovative Fuels (HIF) announced a Memorandum of Understanding in relation to the purchase and sale of up to 500 million litres of carbon neutral e-fuels per year from HIF's projects located within Chile including a project that will use wind power to produce hydrogen which will be combined with CO2 extracted from the atmosphere to produce methanol. The methanol will then be converted into gasoline. Swedish energy supplier Övik Energi is providing access to

Credit: Marinvest

annually, mostly as bio-methanol. Green production alternatives include using the pyrolysis of biomass to produce the syngas, the use of electrical heating from renewable power sources for the energy-intensive reforming step or the auto-thermal reforming of methane where an extra exothermic step, typically partial oxidation, is used to generate the necessary heat to complete the reformation. Producer BASF, for example, is now producing methanol as a biomass balanced product, replacing the fossil resources needed with biogas or bionaphtha. This means that BASF reduces greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% compared to methanol produced from fossil raw materials. Methanex, the world's largest producer of methanol, is currently involved in a number of green methanol initiatives including in Iceland where the company has invested in Carbon Recycling International (CRI). CRI operates the world's first renewable methanol plant which uses emissions-toliquids technology, converting renewable energy and recycled CO2 emissions to renewable methanol. In Canada, Methanex produces low-carbon methanol through sequestration and injection of CO2 into the production process. one of its biofuel-based energy facilities to Sweden-based Liquid Wind so that the facility's carbon dioxide emissions will be captured and combined with renewable hydrogen to form methanol using wind power. Once operational in 2024, the fuel facility will upcycle 70,000 tons of CO2 into 50,000 tons of carbon neutral fuel annually and make it available as a shipping fuel. Liquid Wind's plant will include technology from partners such as Axpo, Carbon Clean, Haldor Topsoe and Siemens Energy. Having secured crowdfunding partners in Europe, Liquid Wind is now crowdfunding in Canada, a country it says could be a prime location for e-fuel production, as it is growing in both hydrogen and carbon capture industries. Liquid Wind is planning 500 facilities by 2050, providing 25 million tons of fuel. Haldor Topsoe has announced the construction of a facility to produce solid oxide electrolyzers (SOEC) with a total capacity of 500MW per year with the option to expand to 5GW per year. With Topsoe's SOEC electrolyser, more than 90% of the renewable electricity that enters the electrolyser is preserved in the green hydrogen it produces, compared to around 70 % for alternatives such as PEM and alkaline electrolysis technologies. The high operating temperature of SOECs oﬀers more favourable thermodynamics and faster kinetics, and the technology uses abundant raw materials such as nickel, zirconia, and steel. The SOEC technology can be thermally integrated with a range of chemical synthesis processes enabling the eﬃcient production of future fuels such as methanol and ammonia. The company says that electrolysis technologies play a central part in power-to-X solutions, and to meet the future needs for decarbonization globally, electrolysis technologies must be deployed at a massive scale.

8 The interior of the engineroom of Marinvest's methanol-fuelled tanker, Mari Couva

METHANOL AS MARINE FUEL Methanol is already available in around 100 ports around the world and is being used on around 20 large ships. There is more coming, with Proman Stena Bulk expecting to take delivery of a methanol-fuelled 49,900dwt vessel in early 2022. Waterfront Shipping Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Methanex, has announced eight new methanol fuelled dualfuel ships to be built at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard and delivered between 2021 and 2023 in partnership with Marinvest, NYK, Meiji Shipping, KSS Line and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines. Fredrik Stubner, Director Ship Management at Marinvest Shipping, says it is diﬃcult to predict the future economics of

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MARCH 2021 | 25

Credit: Marinvest

ALTERNATIVE FUELS

using bio-methanol and e-methanol. “What will the carbon taxes be? What incentives will contribute towards paying a premium for de-carbonized fuels? With stricter regulations and the cost to comply with them, it is expected it will tilt the balance in favour of greener solutions.” He says that LNG is a cheaper fuel source, but the cryogenic technology required is expensive compared to methanol, a stable liquid at ambient temperature that is easy to store onboard. “I can't say methanol will be a winner, but it is definitely one very good alternative. One has to keep in mind that the alternative greener fuels have less energy value, meaning larger amounts are required to meet the required cruising range for a specific vessel type and trade. So how to store the fuel whilst maintaining an equivalent cargo volume as before needs to be considered.” A white paper from Chevron Marine Lubricants notes that a vessel would need to burn about twice as much methanol to produce the energy equivalent of MGO. This raises concern about the size of bunker tanks, but as it is biodegradable, methanol can be stored in ballast tanks in some cases. As a low flashpoint fuel, there are fuel system design requirements such as double-walled piping to the engine, but the white paper concludes that the premium for upgrading a newbuilding to be dual-fuel methanol is typically less than five percent. MAERSK'S METHANOL-FUELLED LINER A.P. Moller - Maersk is accelerating its eﬀorts to decarbonise with the planned launch of the world's first carbon neutral methanol-fuelled liner in 2023 - seven years ahead of its initial 2030 ambition. However, a spokesperson for the group says: “At the moment, there is no at-scale production of carbon-neutral e-methanol or sustainable bio-methanol with net-zero emissions across the lifecycle. There are a number of pilot projects and projects under development, and we are engaging with these projects so that they can advance to ensure we have carbon-neutral fuel available by the start of the feeder operation.”

26 | MARCH 2021

One project is a partnership with Copenhagen Airports, DSV Panalpina, DFDS, SAS and Ørsted for the development of a hydrogen and e-fuel production facility in Copenhagen which could start producing hydrogen by 2023 and methanol by 2027. When fully scaled-up by 2030, the project could deliver more than 250,000 tonnes of sustainable fuel annually. Production would potentially be based on a total electrolyser capacity of 1.3 gigawatts, making it one of the world's largest facilities of its kind, and a large-scale supply of renewable electricity could be obtained from offshore wind power produced at Rønne Banke off the island of Bornholm. Investing in the methanol feeder is anticipated to stimulate development further. “If we - through commitment from customers - can create a real market at a reasonable price point, we believe that the combined effort and collaboration of developers, manufacturers, financers and carriers can accelerate the supply quite fast.” For Stuart McCall, Head of Global Marine Fuel, Market Development at Methanex, it too early to tell what production volumes from new sources will be in 2050 with any degree of certainty. “All we can say at this stage is that the green methanol market, like most alternative fuels, is small but growing.” The most important future development, he says, “is simply to encourage the shipping industry to use the dualfuel technology we have today to start the transition to a lower-carbon economy. We can't let perfect get in the road of good. Conventionall metha methanol anol will immediately offer up to a 15% reducti reduction tion o in in-sector CO2 as well as complying plying w with itt ith the strictest air emission standards andards in place today. Methanol dual-fuel technology is proven; it's globally available; it's cost-competitive ive with conventional fuels and is lower emission. We just need regulations to encourage the use of cleaner fuels. Methanol anol is also ar pathway to future-proofed as it offers a clear 2050 decarbonization goals.”

8 Mari Kokako is fitted with a six-cylinder 500mm-bore MAN B&W ME-C9.5 LGIM main propulsion engine

8 Chris Chatterton, COO of the Methanol Institute

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FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

VLSFO MAY STILL ADD TO NEW FUELS' DISRUPTION More problems are anticipated with VLSFO this year, adding to the potential of new fuels to “disrupt” the industry ahead of 2030 and 2050 “There will be very exciting years to come,” says Søren Høll, CEO of marine energy services provider KPI OceanConnect. “We have now overcome the 2020 mountain, and we can see the 2030 mountain and 2050 mountain ahead of us.” However exciting the future though, he warns that the 2020 mountain may not be completely behind us yet. Through 2020, only 55 cases of 0.50% compliant fuel being unavailable had been reported in IMO's Global Integrated Shipping Information System, and there have been fewer quality issues than many analysts predicted. However, potential issues may have been partly masked by the pandemic and depressed oil prices. More challenges may arise once the world starts to recover from Covid-19 and distillate demand and prices increase in other industries besides the bunker industry - and if unscrupulous suppliers start using cheaper components for blending, says Høll. Bharath, Technical Manager for Singapore-based bunker testing house Maritec, says that around 95% of VLSFO samples tested on a monthly basis are within ISO standards. “Of late, there are quite a number of cases where the fuel, despite meeting ISO specifications, is still found as unstable due to the nature of the blend or chemical contaminants/ deleterious substances that were detected. For the latter it is worrying to the vessel operator, as there are few countermeasures available to combat the issue.” He says one option is to dilute the fuel with a suitable bunker. “We have seen vessels suﬀer excessive wear to fuel injection components, total breakdown of fuel purifiers, sludging of fuel system filters and pipes, to name a few. In worst case scenarios we have seen the vessel debunker the fuel.” MEPC75 has clarified the 0.5% sulphur cap by defining the sulphur limit according to the specific sampling location. The MARPOL delivered sample will continue to have a sulphur test result limit of 0.50% maximum. “Due to the inherent variance in the test results, suppliers now need to have a lower blend target with respect to sulphur content (ideally below 0.47% m/m),” says Bharath. There is a leeway to the in-use and on board samples to have the sulphur test result limit of 0.53% maximum. “We advise not to accept any argument from suppliers with regards to the 95% confidence boundary of 0.53% when tested sulphur content of lab samples sourced at the manifold exceed 0.50% m/m,” says Bharath. “Your MARPOL delivered sample may very well be above the limit when it is from the same primary source during future verifications by the administration. Moreover, a higher sulphur content at the manifold inlet will raise the probability of in-use and on board samples testing above the 0.53% limit.” NOT JUST VLSFO Bharath foresees potential challenges with microbial growth and the oxidative and long-term stability of biofuels. “Biofuels may require a cleaner environment and to be kept away from moisture sources (of which there is plenty at sea.) There might be a need to periodically test the fuel as long as it is in

28 | MARCH 2021

storage to check its viability either by onshore lab tests or onboard test kits. “Like any clean fuel, biofuels have the tendency to flush out the previous fuel in use, and this will be an issue when changing over the plants. It has a higher wax forming temperature than conventional diesel oil which might pose some risk to the fuel gelling at lower temperatures. Due to the acidic nature of the fuel, there might be compatibility issues with the materials used throughout the fuel systems. Specialised tank and pipeline coating might be required. Fuel injection and combustion equipment materials will need to be assessed if they can sustain long term contact with the fuel.”

8 Søren Høll, CEO of marine energy services provider KPI OceanConnect

THE GOOD NEWS Dirk Kronemeijer, CEO at sustainable biofuel company GoodFuels and sustainable supply chain advisory GoodShipping, says there have been only a few filter clogging problems during fuel switchover in the last couple of years, and the root cause is linked to the fossil fuels used before. “Once the fuel system is clean, no sediments can be soaked oﬀ anymore and no problems will occur.” Regarding higher wax forming temperature, he says that some biodiesels have cold flow properties that meet the winter quality requirements of certain countries, for example the Netherlands. Meanwhile, some biodiesels have cold flow properties that are well above zero degrees Celsius.

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Fuel injection and combustion equipment materials will need to be assessed to ensure they can sustain long term contact with the fuel. “There are indeed compatibility issues with some materials. However, this is not per se linked to the acidic nature of biodiesel. The acidity of biodiesel can even be lower than the acidity of mineral diesel. The parts in the fuel system that are incompatible with biodiesel are often small components like rubber seals. Most of our customers did not have to replace anything in their fuel system to be compatible with biodiesel.” Typically, when using GoodFuels' biofuels, the CO2 footprint of a voyage is reduced by between 80-90% (wellto-propeller). The biofuels are not considered to be 100% carbon neutral as the calculation includes emissions generated by the transport and production of the biofuels, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's definition. GoodFuels uses waste and residue streams that would be otherwise burnt as feedstock. “As we produce biofuels that are sustainably sourced and completely derived from sustainable waste and residue products, we continue to work to scale up biofuel production. We are confident that with targeted growth, we can ensure that the maritime industry has all of the sustainable biofuel that it needs, as part of an alternative fuel mix towards decarbonisation,” says Kronemeijer. “It's a genuine triple-win for shipowners at the moment, as biofuels are the fossil-free equivalent and virtually sulphur free (therefore oﬀering compliance for IMO 2020),” he says. They are competitively priced and eliminate carbon thereby setting up shipowners/operators to meet the 2030 and 2050 targets. “Other future fuels are important, but advanced biofuels are a 'today' fuel, allowing instant decarbonisation impact.” EYES ON AMMONIA Carbon Neutral Consulting (CNC) has said it believes ammonia is a game-changer for the maritime industry. Principal Milton Bevington says: "In game theory, a 'dominant strategy' is a strategy that leaves you better oﬀ no matter what your competitors do in response. Dominant strategies are rare in business contexts because we're usually faced with options that have an upside if our competitors react one way and a downside if they react in another. Right now, for companies in the maritime sector, an ammonia-oriented action plan comes very close to being this kind of 'dominant strategy,' a business plan that enables commercial success across a period of intense disruption regardless of the actions of your competitors.” Like LNG, ammonia is a good transition fuel in that it meets all current IMO2020 requirements for emissions and is priced competitively with cleaner burning distillates like MGO, says Bevington. “Once IMO-mandated emissions tighten, electrolytic ammonia can be produced using carbon-free renewable energy (wind, solar, hydro), and vessels equipped with ammonia propulsion systems can simply switch from conventionally produced ammonia to green ammonia without any further capital investment or risk of stranded

‘‘

We are confident that with targeted growth, we can ensure that the maritime industry has all of the sustainable biofuel that it needs, as part of an alternative fuel mix towards decarbonisation

Credit: Carbon Neutral Consulting

FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

assets. Ammonia has the singular virtue of being both a viable transition fuel and a long-term zero-emission solution, and investing in it early protects the asset value over its full economic life, which can be 30 or more years in many cases.” Availability is already being increased. In February 2021, Yara International signed a Letter of Intent with Statkraft and Aker Horizons to establish Europe's first large-scale green ammonia project in Norway. The partners will target green hydrogen and green ammonia opportunities within shipping, agriculture and industrial applications by electrifying Yara's existing ammonia facility in Porsgrunn. Shipping currently accounts for 2% of global GHG emissions, of which long-distance shipping represents 80 percent. Yarra anticipates that converting all long-distance shipping to ammonia would require approximately 500-600 million tonnes of ammonia annually, 3-4 times the current world production. Integrated energy company, Mabanaft is ramping up its stake in ammonia as a future marine fuel. The company will be marketing 500,000 metric tons ammonia per year from a production plant in Texas. “We see ammonia as the best zero carbon fuel in shipping, building on existing infrastructure and existing merchant ammonia trade flows. There is not enough biomass and not enough e-fuels production capability soon enough to play a role for ocean transportation,” says Oleksandr Siromakha, Head of Sustainable Fuels. “The availability of green ammonia (produced from renewable electricity) will substantially increase in the future. However, already today grey and blue ammonia (produced from natural gas, and in case of blue ammonia carbon emissions are captured and nd stored) represent a feasible alternative to substantially ly reduce the emissions from shipping and to speed up the e decarbonization of ocean transportation.” Yet, challenges remain. n. A panel discussion held by the Ammonia monia Energy Association late last year acknowledged knowledged that ammonia users face relatively elatively high fuel costs and a lack of infrastructure rastructure in the short-term. Despite this, when polled, the audience and nd panellists expected rapid development ment of the fuel resulting in around d 30 ls ammonia-powered vessels being in operation by 2030.

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8 The Ammonia Report Fuel Price Comparison Chart For the three years (2017-2019) preceding the coronavirus outbreak, the strike price of various bunker fuels strongly suggests that ammonia can be competitive with low-sulphur options currently under consideration

8 Dirk Kronemeijer, CEO at sustainable biofuel company GoodFuels

MARCH 2021 | 29

FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

CYLINDER LUBRICATION DELIVERY FLEXIBILITY FOR TWO-STROKES The shipping industry's ambitions for reducing CO2 emission are likely to follow several technological pathways, so a more flexible and modular lubrication system is now available, says Dr Rathesan Ravendran, Technology and Innovation Specialist at Hans Jensen Lubricators There is a paradigm shift underway that aims to make the maritime industry more environmentally friendly. As part of this, the drive towards higher efficiency has led to design changes in slow speed two-stroke marine diesel engines, the most significant being the application of the electronical-controlled, supercharged and long-stroke engine, which allows more flexible usage and higher combustion pressure. There is a paradigm shift underway that aims to make the maritime industry more environmentally friendly. As part of this, the drive towards higher efficiency has led to design changes in slow speed two-stroke marine diesel engines, the most significant being the application of the electronicalcontrolled, supercharged and long-stroke engine, which allows more flexible usage and higher combustion pressure. These changes in engine design as well as the way engines are being run have led to challenges when it comes to cylinder condition and lubrication, because the lubrication systems and methods delivering cylinder oil to lubricate piston rings and cylinder liner have remained largely unchanged. LUBRICATION CHALLENGES WITH LOW SULPHUR FUELS A large majority of the vessels made the transition to lowsulphur fuel well. However, as anticipated, a number of issues was observed on several vessels. High cylinder liner and piston ring wear, severe scuffing, heavy deposits and piston rings sticking leading to heavy blow-by/ring breakage, were some of the issues occurring just a few days after changing over. The lower lubricity of low sulphur fuels has been made up for by cylinder lubrication oil, distributed correctly on the cylinder liner. Using a low 15-40 BN cylinder oil is currently the most widespread countermeasure adopted. However, using low BN oils creates new and other challenges, since the cleaning ability of the cylinder oil is not sufficient to keep the cylinder and piston clear of deposits, which potentially can lead to increased wear, bore polishing and scuffing. A common procedure when observing high wear rates is to increase the cylinder lubrication oil feed rate, but this is not always the right solution. Increasing the dosage of lubrication oil does not mean less frictional losses and wear. It can be as damaging as low oil dosage, as calcium deposit formation (unused BN additives), is naturally increased with the lubrication oil consumption. Operators are also advised that higher BN cylinder oils are needed to keep the cylinder clean from deposits, but attention must be paid to secure against cylinder liner bore polish. When using a high-BN cylinder oil, the risk of top land calcium deposits increases. The calcium deposits may polish on the cylinder liner surface and cause polished areas which can initiate a cylinder liner scuffing. To improve the cylinder condition in terms of cleanliness and deposit control, a number of tools have been recommended by OEMs and lubricant suppliers. Coated

30 | MARCH 2021

piston rings have become standard for every engine types. The coatings have higher melting temperature and hardness compared to standard aluminium coated piston rings, which ensures an increased safety margin against scuﬃng as well as low wear of the coating. Engine designers also recommend changing the piston configuration to three piston rings in order to minimize the deposit build-up between the rings. New cylinder oils have been introduced by lubricant supplies, which have improved their formulations with ashless additives increasing the dispersancy for better cleaning ability. A less practical approach for improving the cleanliness with traditional cylinder oils is manual alternation between low and high BN oils. This method is proposed to create a balance between the limited neutralization of sulphuric acids and having a suﬃcient deposit control. As an alternative to the manual BN alternation, an automatic cleaning sequence has been incorporated in lubrication systems which periodically increases the cylinder oil feed rate to facilitate better cleaning of the cylinder. For short periods, the additional oil is injected into the piston rings in order to react with and flush out deposited particles.

8 Dr Rathesan Ravendran, Technology and Innovation Specialist at Hans Jensen Lubricators

THE GROWING IMPORTANCE OF SERVICING Lubricating two-stroke marine diesel engines has become more complex over the years, as the engines are operating

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FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

A NEW PARADIGM IN LUBRICANT FLEXIBILITY Today’s changes in engine design and operation due to the environmental legislation are just the tip of the iceberg, and further optimization will be seen in the maritime industry. New technologies and methods for achieving optimal cylinder condition will be introduced. Digitalization and condition monitoring will be an important information source for early machine failure detection just like the role of the human blood sample testing in order to perform disease detection. The condition of lubrication oil and its circulation system reflect the health status of the machinery and its components. Furthermore, more flexibility and modularity in the lubrication system will be added to deal with the constantly changing engine operation and the availability in a variety of carbon-free fuels. Beyond the 2020 requirements, the future direction of new fuels for the shipping industry is largely insecure. There is an ambition to reduce CO2 emissions, but there are several technological pathways to achieve this. It is therefore necessary to have a flexible and modular lubrication system, that is able to handle diﬀerent situations. This has led to the introduction of a new approach for delivering the cylinder oil, which is currently the most flexible system available compared to all other

1.2

Feed rate [g/kWh]

under more demanding conditions and must be capable of using different fuel types. About 54% of vessels in operation today are not optimally lubricated, which could have a longterm impact on the engine’s lifespan, components and drydocking intervals. Selecting the optimal cylinder oil type and the feed rate is not easy, as it depends on multiple factors e.g. fuel quality, engine type, size and operating conditions. Furthermore, a large variety of different lubrication oil formulations have been introduced, which may be difficult to navigate through. This places a great challenge and burden on engine operators, as they must ensure good main engine condition as well as reduce operational expenses. Lubrication systems have become more flexible over the years, but this also creates more complexity for the endusers. Firstly, there is added complexity with the possibilities of the system. Experienced and trained crew are required to operate the system, which is today a challenge on the majority of the vessels. Secondly, there is also added complexity in terms of more advanced parts and critical components. This sets a great challenge of proper operation and service. A survey conducted by The Swedish Club has shown that most main engine claims are as a direct and indirect result of incorrect maintenance. Numerous cases have been noted where damage occurs shortly after the engines have been overhauled by ship or shore staff. This emphasizes the importance of correct training and maintenance. The lack of training and planned equipment maintenance is often the issue, when vessels are not achieving the full potential of the lubrication system with regards of optimal lubrication performance and minimum lubrication oil consumption. Today, the recommended minimum lubrication oil consumption is 0.60 g/kWh. However, practical studies by Jensen et al. (2016) have shown that the minimum oil dosage can be reduced to a new minimum using the HJ SIP lubrication system. Such low lubrication oil dosage has not previously been recommended and used in practice. The studies showed that the recommended minimum could be reduced to a feed rate of 0.30 g/kWh, and at the same time even lower wear rates could be maintained. It is therefore believed that there is room of optimization of lubrication oil consumption, and that the limits will be pushed with newer lubrication technologies and injection methodologies.

Recommended feed rate

1 0.8 0.6

Poss

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0.2 0 1990

1995

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redu

ctio

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Year current systems and making it compatible to all engine configurations and operations (scrubbers, LSFO, LNG, other). The system is HJ Smartlube 4.0, which is invented by Hans Jensen Lubricators. The system consists of a solenoid valve controlling the opening and closing of the valve. The hydraulic system comprises a frequency-controlled motor pump unit to build the common rail pressure and a pressure sensor to maintain correct pressure level of the cylinder oil. The electrical control system uses an Ethernet protocol for all signal communication, ensuring a thoroughly standardized and robust network with high bandwidth and low latency. With the possibilities of advanced control such as multitiming on individual valves, optimal utilization of the cylinder oil is achievable, which will lead to less cylinder oil consumption and better cylinder condition. Direct control of the valves means more accurately timed injections as there is minimal hydraulic delay from signal to injection. This gets the cylinder oil to the intended target and will lead to a higher utilization of the cylinder oil. Very small amounts can be injected while maintaining good spray quality. This makes the system able to deliver oil every revolution, or even multiple times per revolution (multi-timing). Multi-timing allows cylinder oil to be placed both on the liner surface above the piston and between the piston rings in the same revolution. The quantity can be adjusted between injections, enabling advanced multi-timing control. CONCLUDING REMARKS In recent years, changes in engine design as well as the way an engine is being run have led to challenges when it comes to cylinder condition and lubrication. Today, it is necessary to pay more attention to the cylinder lubrication system’s operation and service to achieve optimal cylinder condition, and the introduction of a new approach for delivering the cylinder oil has now been developed by Hans Jensen Lubricators.

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8 History of the minimum recommended feed rate for two-stroke marine diesel engines and the possibility for optimization

8 The development in lubrication technology

MARCH 2021 | 31

FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

SHIPYARD INERTIA SLOWING WATER LUBRICATION UPTAKE

Credit: Thordon Bearings

Shipowners want to return to a water lubricated propulsion arrangement, but shipyards are preventing the wider take up of the environmentally sustainable solution, writes Patrik Wheater

That was the opinion of some of the panellists speaking at an online webinar hosted in late February in which representatives from oil supplier Gulf Marine Oil, polymer bearings pioneer Thordon Bearings and shipmanager Delta Corp Shipping discussed the merits of oil lubricated and water lubricated propeller shaft. All three representatives appeared to agree that the water lubricated approach represented a better solution, although there were diﬀerences of opinion when it came to technical performance and pollution data. Gulf Marine Oil's technical director Don Gregory, for instance, was sceptical of the statistics, dismissing data compiled by New York-based Environmental Research Consulting that found 240 million litres of operational oil escape from ships annually. Gregory oﬀered a lower estimate of the amount leaked: 10 litres per month per ship, he claimed. Clearly, more research into sterntube oil consumption and pollution is needed. But even based on Gregory's trickle, it amounts to yearly 6 million litres of oil spilling into the marine environment, based on 50,000 ships in the commercial shipping fleet. Quantity aside and admitting that oil losses do occur from

32 | MARCH 2021

8 Composite bearings and housings

stern seals with the “flexing of the shafts”, Gregory, said water lubricated propulsion is gaining ground. “Costs seem to be driving the sterntube more to water lubrication. It appears water lubrication is turning back history,” he admitted. All parties agreed there are technical merits to both solutions, largely dependent on the type of vessel and the operational profile - whether it is slow steaming, for instance. Caroline Hout, Senior VP Shipmanagement, Delta Corp Shipping - a company with more than 50 vessels under its charge - acknowledged the possible long-term operational cost benefits of water lubricated propulsion but asked about the technical complexity involved in the transition from oil to water. “Until now I have only experienced an oil lubricated system [but] I am interested to know about the shipyards proposing this technology. The question is when you look at water lubricated shafts, are the guarantees suﬃcient?” she asked. While Chinese yards are successfully delivering water lubricated newbuilds, George Morrison regional manager, Thordon Bearings, suggested that on the whole shipbuilders are blocking the wider return to water lubricated propulsion - a solution common to most ships until the 1950s.

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FUELS AND LUBRICANTS

‘‘

“You touched on the relationship with the shipyard. That is one of the biggest challenges we have, because shipyards are used to producing standard ships, with oil lubricated systems. “The shipyard, as a business entity, largely speaking, doesn't care about the environment or the through life costs of the vessel.” Morrison referred to what he called “the unholy alliance” between the shipyards and oil-lubricated bearing manufacturers, of which the latter, he suggested, supplies bearings to the yards at cost, happy to squeeze the shipowner later on through frequent maintenance, repair work, after sales and spares. Morrison said when shipowners approach yards for water lubrication, some shipyards respond by lifting the price above the cost of the installation. “They say, okay, you can have it for an extra US$250,000. In reality, the diﬀerence in the build cost is pretty much zero. I would argue it is even lower. A lot depends on the balance of power between shipowner and shipyard.” The scales of power currently tip in favour of the yard, according to Morrison. “The shipyards are saying to their customers here is a standard vessel filled entirely with local equipment. Here's the price. Take it or leave it. That's essentially what's going on.” Morrison intimated that substantially more ships would be operating water lubricated shaft lines today if shipbuilders took a more pragmatic approach to not only protecting the marine environment but also their customers' bottom line. “Shipowners are concerned about the environment, but also cradle to grave costs of the ship right through to the disposal. And they are the other ones that are more interested in trying to push forward with this technology.” There's also the cost of the lubricant itself. A typical “sealed” oil lubricated sterntube system is filled with about 1500 litres of mineral or synthetic oil. Despite this being considered a closed system, frequent propeller shaft seal oil leakage and topping up of the head tank is viewed as normal operational consumption and acceptable. Questioning the technical diﬀerences between oil and water as a lubricating medium, Caroline Hout asked how the condition of water lubricated shaft is monitored, “considering the shaft is one of the most important elements for safe navigation?” “If you're measuring a high temperature, it's probably already too late,” said Morrison. “The reason is these materials are largely insulators. The basic principle is that you measure the quality of the inputs, so if you're supplying appropriate water at appropriate temperatures and appropriate flow rates, then you can have absolute confidence that the system is operating correctly. Through life measurements of bearing wear rates also provides information on what the bearing is doing.” Another point raised was that water is better than oil in terms of removing heat. And when a water lubricated sterntube is operating within its design parameters, at full power and speed and at lower RPM, the system “operates

Credit: Thordon Bearings

Shipowners are concerned about the environment, but also cradle to grave costs of the ship right through to the disposal. And they are the other ones that are more interested in trying to push forward with this technology

hydrodynamically,” the same way as an oil lubricating system. Morrison then alluded to something called the “Thomson Stern Space” - a concept that could create a cavity in the sterntube so that bearings can be inspected and changed from within the vessel. “One of the problems with a sterntube is that it is inaccessible, so this is a brilliant idea,” said Gregory. “As soon as you have access, you have a totally different scenario and you can water lubricate, you can oil lubricate, you've got choices.” Despite some differences, the speakers believed the industry has to take collective responsibility in dealing with marine pollution no matter the source. “We need to think about who is accountable,” said Gregory. “We have been going through 30 to 40 years of shipbuilding and optimising costs and you buy something off the rack, and you trade it, and that's that, but we're into a future now, where, as George says, we don't want to be discharging oil or we don't want to be increasing CO2 emissions. There's a number of different questions that we need to answer. And who's going to take responsibility for that. The shipowner? The shipyard? Somebody's got to take responsibility, otherwise, we're going to come to a dead stop. “We really need to start thinking about what the problems are we are trying to solve. And if we take a singularity view on it, say, we just try to solve oil leakage, I think we miss a lot. The shipping industry doesn't seem to be moving along in that direction whatsoever. It all seems to be driven by cost and I think this needs to change, if we are going to advance,” he said.

8 The COMPAC open water lubricated stern tube arrangement

‘‘

We really need to start thinking about what the problems are we are trying to solve. And if we take a singularity view on it, say, we just try to solve oil leakage, I think we miss a lot. The shipping industry doesn't seem to be moving along in that direction whatsoever. It all seems to be driven by cost and I think this needs to change, if we are going to advance

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MARCH 2021 | 33

DECK MACHINERY

THE LIFE OF CRANES, AND HOW THEY LEARN Both welded structures and machinery have a design lifetime that's exhausted not by the calendar, but by work cycles, weighted against load. There are established calculations (and an ISO standard), but while analyses based on previous cycles are all well and good, utilisation patterns can change and since it's onboard a ship, the foundation beneath the crane is inherently unstable, adding dynamic lifting moment. Further, there's an exponential increase in failure rate at the end of the design life, complicated by the fact that at this point, not all parts of the crane will age at the same rate. Notably, rotating machinery can develop issues faster than structural elements - and their failure curve will typically be that much steeper. So what can AI and in particular, machine learning (ML) add to the mix? Firstly, there's been a change in thinking. While a 24/7 support service provide a go-to when things are amiss, “this is a reactive solution” says Joerg Peschke, MacGregor's Director of Drives and Controls. However, since MacGregor has delivered cargo and load handling equipment onboard thousands of ships, preventative maintenance and real-time indication of potential trouble is far more eﬃcient for both the operator and the company. There's a problem. “You can't rely on high density data transfer when a ship is out at sea,” Peschke points out. So, MacGregor started to evolve an edge computing solution which keeps the bulk of the data crunching onboard. Here's where things get interesting: there's a lot of information to process spanning a wide number of sources, from load, pressure and heat sensors to those measuring position, speed and direction. And it doesn't stop with multiple feeds from each element or component, these also need to be tied in with vessel motion and weather. To try to wrap machinery health predictions up with written code would probably take decades especially given the wildcards of sea and air; further, it's likely it would require massive updates to take advantage of new, more accurate information. The other approach is to feed neural networks with labelled data sets. Then, those labels are applied to anything with similar characteristics - a numerically weighted response is applied to 'train' the brain. As a result, ML can be used to find hidden features and relationships, utilising them to flag up suspicious sensor patterns. Moreover, it can continue refining and updating these associations. For MacGregor, ML's ability to identify equipment malfunction is an “enabler”, says Peschke: it yields an ongoing condition-based check of the equipment, with real-time projections of the health and lifetime of both structural and power machinery, including hydraulic and electrical loads. First and foremost, “continuous observation of the sensor data minimizes the risk of equipment breakdown during planned operations” he says, making sure that the weather

34 | MARCH 2021

Photo: MacGregor

What place does machine learning have in the world of cranes?

windows can be fully utilised. Importantly, this works alongside other, more traditionally defined automation systems which have their own version of 'smart', being able to adjust the crane operation envelope to wind and waves and warn of inappropriate manoeuvres. With the ML distilling data down to manageable packets for transmission (ship to shore transfer being developed in collaboration with Kongsberg Maritime), landside oﬃces can benefit from a near real-time web-page view, updated with a lag of only a few seconds. As all parties access the same information at pretty much the same moment, crew, operation centres and third parties such as MacGregor can collaborate on the immediate situation. “Monitoring and analysing crane performance data that is streamed directly from the vessels will enable us to make better-informed decisions and reduce problem solving time,” says Yannis Voulgaris of Load Line Marine, one of MacGregor's OnWatch Scout service customers. However, crew are still on the front line of lifting operations; with that in mind, there's been a demand for a straightforward appearance to the interface. “We probably underestimated the work it would take to make it look simple,” admits Peschke “But we've managed it.” He explains the 'old school graphs' are still available, but an overview schematic shows 'OK' checkboxes at various points covering the main jib, knuckle jib, slew, tugger winch and so on. “If there's a critical message or warning, you can push the resolve button, this will display the error description and step-by-step, explicit, actionable instructions with links”, he says: “You don't have to search for anything - not even spares which you can push straight into the shopping basket.” He adds, “Our customers are not left alone with the sensor data, but are given the conclusions.”

8 For MacGregor, ML's ability to identify equipment malfunction is an "enabler", yielding an ongoing condition-based check of the equipment in real-time

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DECK MACHINERY

Photo: Optilift

Onboard cranes have other uses for machine learning. Although there's rising interest from commercial shipping, Optilift has so far been focused on the offshore sector. Unmanned operations are already being realised in the field, underlines CTO Torbjørn Engedal, the goals being lower OPEX, better asset optimisation - though arguably, most significant is reduced risk. Despite safety initiatives, stubborn peaks keep appearing in onboard lifting incident figures: for example, a 2019 report from the Norwegian offshore industry revealed they'd doubled in just a couple of years. But development faces a similar challenge to crane health monitoring: the bandwidth isn't up to sustaining a high density, long distance connection. So again, there has to be some onboard intelligence to fill in the gaps. This slots in nicely with the stepwise evolution toward full autonomy through 'assistance' modules: anti-pendulum, antisway and anti-collision are fairly familiar features by now, though ML adds further 'recognition' capabilities. However, Optilift has also developed a complete auto-lift and soft landing module. Watching the demo it seems unremarkable: the crane can pick up the load, position it over a deck and bring it down gently while compensating for heave. However, it's a little more difficult than it appears, requiring the crane “to have eyes as well as a brain”, says Engedal. Both lift and landing are timed based on relative velocities and measured tension of the wire to make sure there's no re-entry. The anticollision automatically adapts to structural changes on the landing or pickup site, the cruise control follows the vessels horizontal movement during sea lifts and pauses for the right moment to act. Interestingly, it can also release a specially designed hook by itself, with no intervention. But this iterative model toward autonomy requires it to work alongside humans. That's caused hesitancy around adoption of many 'intelligent' systems although here, the potential benefits of ML are more obvious: instead of attempting to define an image by code, train the brain on hundreds of thousands of pictures till it can recognise crew and prevent the load crossing above, or worse, hitting them with cargo or hook.

Photo: Optilift

But despite ML's buzzword status, it needs to be enclosed within more traditional calculations “that will use physical laws or models to carry out sanity checks” on the outcomes explains Engedal. That's because neural networks are “defined by what they're fed” - not by the kind of logic a human would, or could, follow. Further, he adds you can't go in and “tweak or fix the underlying cause of an 'illogical' decision”, so the biggest challenge remains “to select and tune the training data to cover all possible use-cases”. This is very hard work. For example, MacGregor already had ten years of historical sensor data - terabytes of it - which was made available to project partners. Despite that, examination found “there were gaps”, admits Peschke. A crystal ball would have come in useful as “most of the information was process oriented - we had the error messages and conclusions, but years ago, we didn't think it necessary to store background data, indications from the accelerometer or pressure sensors”, he explains. Therefore, an amount of back-working of the information was necessary. But as Peschke explains, bringing ML onboard will likely trigger changes that go well beyond the machinery. There was a need for collaboration “as we realised we couldn't do it all ourselves”, he says. Further, everyone has had to adapt to a new way of working: “Before, the sales team could lay out a well-known list of options,” he says: “Now, there's more questions to be asked... and our clients are far more involved in development.” Finally, ML has another layer of possible uses: it can also learn how sensor signals themselves degrade, warn, and potentially recalibrate to take up the slack. A technical paper by Yokogawa Electric reports 'slight diﬀerences in patterns .... which indicate the deterioration in the performance of the sensor caused by changes in the electrode' were spotted by ML. So, in future there should be less wondering if an anomaly is sensor failure - or if it's really signalling the beginning of trouble.

8 In future there should be less wondering if an anomaly is sensor failure - or if it's really signalling the beginning of trouble

8 Despite ML's buzzword status, it needs to be enclosed within more traditional calculations that will use physical laws or models to carry out sanity checks on the outcomes

‘‘

Monitoring and analysing crane performance data that is streamed directly from the vessels will enable us to make better-informed decisions and reduce problem solving time

For the latest news and analysis go to www.motorship.com/news101

MARCH 2021 | 35

DECK MACHINERY

DOING MORE WITH LESS Increasing a ship's remit isn't altogether easy, especially if it demands extra capabilities that don't fit into either onboard space - or power parameters

Photo: Navtek

8 Originally developed for landside HEVs and propulsion for small vessels, its character as a self-enclosed module also makes sense for smaller mission equipment

The HES880 from ABB could make all the diﬀerence e for vessels changing their work pattern and needing extra deck kit - whether winches, cranes, LARS or cable-laying aying units - but find they've got no space left for the drive below. elow. As product manager Vesa Kajander explains this simplifi plifies things as “it doesn't require an additional cabinet et or electrical room installation”. Originally developed for landside HEVs and propulsion on for small vessels, its character as a self-enclosed module “also makes sense for smaller mission equipment, the kind that's sometimes used for oﬀshore installation or distributed buted systems where space is cramped”, says Daniel Olsson, sson, marine sales manager for Drives in ABB Motion. “For thatt you might want temporary capabilities just for the duration of the campaign.” And ideally, “you also want it to come in a single, plug and play package”. Importantly, the drive, available in 350A, 600A or 900A modules, is ruggedized to IP67, “so it could be fitted on or in the base of a crane or other mission equipment without squeezing it into an existing e-room - and with a lot less cabling”, he explains, adding the requirements also extend to boxed kit: “We've had a few projects with containerised solutions since these don't always have the same climate control that you get in the electrical room.” A drive that can cope with damp, salt air, water ingress and so on can really simplify such concepts. However, where it gets particularly interesting is that with a HES880 in DC-DC configuration you could run the extra kit

36 | MARCH 2021

8 The HES880 from A ABB in DC-DC config guration can run ru mission equip equipment from a local energy source such as batteries, super supercapacitors or fuel cells c

from some kind of local energy source or hybrid combination, potentially bringing together batteries, supercapacitors and fuel cells with other solutions as yet on the horizon. Moreover, if utilised with active heave compensated equipment it can be used to regenerate otherwise wasted energy, pushing it back into the local ESS or main bus. As a result, a ship might be able to expand its power profile. A lot of work has also gone into making the HS880 not only robust, but as flexible as it can be: one hardware module has the options of three diﬀerent firmware flavours: a motor/ generator inverter, DC/DC converter and supply converter control. Usefully, good support is also available: remote monitoring and diagnostics allow engineers to resolve issues in realtime and it is backed by the same service network as all ABB marine products.

For the latest news and analysis go to www.motorship.com/news101

DECK MACHINERY So, with something that flexible, how easy is it to commission? The topology should be familiar to anyone acquainted with ABB's other drives, says Olsson. However tying it into the same family has been “challenging”, admits Kajander: “The main idea has been to use the same software so the interfaces and tools look the same - even though the hardware is very diﬀerent”. Those physical diﬀerences are significant: the HES880 has been designed from the ground up for a service-free life in extreme conditions “so it's not just a familiar drive in a more robust box,” underlines Kajander. For example, it's fully liquid cooled, withstanding -40 to +85°C temperatures even in warm seas and it has 4G continuous vibration and 30G shock tolerance. When designing for maintenance-free operation in rough environment, “a lot of the work is about intense heavy-duty testing from component level up to complete pilot projects with our partners - that's one of the most critical processes to ensure it lives up to the high reliability standards expected from all ABB products even in such harsh conditions”, says Olsson. For the HES880, development required avoiding moving parts such as fans, “and starting with components able to withstand higher temperatures” Kajander explains, as well as paying attention to small, practical details such as using larger PCBs with a greater number of fixing points: these give the assembled drive far better vibration and shock survival. However the final frontier has been “making it all fit in a very small box” concludes Kajander. The biggest, 675kW module measures just 430mm by 180mm by 525mm.

Photo: Navtek

8 The HES880 from ABB could make all the diﬀerence for vessels changing their work pattern and needing extra deck kit

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MARCH 2021 | 37

SHIP DESCRIPTIONS

WALLENIUS SOL RAISES ITS GAME IN BALTIC TRADE

Credit: Knud E.Hansen

Sweden's shipping industry is set to introduce the largest ro-ro freight vessels that combine the highest ice class rating with LNG-fuelled propulsion, writes David Tinsley

As a coalition of two august names in Swedish shipping, Wallenius SOL is poised to implement a new stage in the development of capacity to serve year-round industrial traffic between the northern Baltic and European markets. Four dual-fuel trailerships in the 'mega' size category under construction and on order at a Chinese yard have been specified to Finnish/Swedish ice class 1A Super standard, so as to ensure access throughout the winter period to icebound ports in the Gulf of Bothnia. At a length of 242m, and accommodating 5,800 lanemetres of freight on a deadweight capacity of about 27,000t, the design tops the scale in terms of Baltic ro-ro traders. Long-term agreements with pulp and forestry product groups will underpin the vessels' employment. The newbuild programme was landed by Yantai CIMC Raffles Offshore, consolidating its drive in the ro-ro sector, and Wallenius Marine is superintending the project on behalf of the shipowners. The concept was developed by Danish naval architectural consultancy Knud E. Hansen, entrusted with contract and basic design. Input has been provided by the shipbuilder's Offshore Engineering Institute(OEI) and by the CIMC Group's Gothenburg subsidiary Bassoe Technology. The lead vessel is expected to enter service during the autumn this year, to be followed at three-to-four month intervals by the sisterships. The Wallenius SOL combine's route network entails a nineport itinerary, calling for flexibility and rapidity in loading and discharge. The type of goods brought out of the northern Baltic also poses an additional hydrodynamic challenge, since the vessels will typically have up to 2.5m more draught on the southbound voyage than on the return trip. Each vessel has been specified with a pair of WinGD twostroke, LNG-capable dual-fuel main engines and in-line PTI/ PTO permanent magnet (PM) shaft generators. The primary power concentration will be just over 21,000kW, and direct

38 | MARCH 2021

8 The first of the record-breaking generation for Wallenius SOL is due in the northern autumn

drive will be made to twin, controllable pitch propellers, for a service speed of 20 knots. Notwithstanding the considerable expansion of the dualfuel oﬀering from engine makers and licensors over the years, in both the low-speed and medium-speed categories, Wallenius SOL has opted for models of the first design of two-stroke, low-pressure DF propulsion machinery, the RTflex50DF. Originally a Wartsila product, in turn born out of the Sulzer RT low-speed diesel series, the RT-flex50DF is wellproven, and remains competitive as regards consumption and power output in relation to dimensions and weight. In gas mode, Tier III emission requirements are met without the need for external exhaust gas aftertreatment. The installation in each of the Swedish newbuilds will comprise two RT-flex50DF units in eight-cylinder format, at a contractual maximum continuous rating (CMCR) of 10,500kW at 117rpm. The continuous service output, denoting the intended, eﬃcient transit setting, equivalent to 60% of CMCR, is 6,300kW at 98.7rpm. At its nominal MCR, the 8RT-flex50DF can deliver 11,520kW on a crankshaft speed of 124rpm. The Chinese yard contracted Ingeteam of Spain to develop and supply the hybrid electric propulsion element, featuring two Ingedrive LV400 multidrive frequency converters, and the two Indar PM generators. In PTO mode, the latter will deliver 2,200kW at 85-122rpm, and produce 1,000kW at 122rpm in PTI mode. The system has been prepared, in terms of space, wiring and ventilation, for future adoption of battery hybrid arrangements and incorporation into the vessel energy management system. During port calls, the intention is that the ships will primarily draw energy from the shoreside electric grid, while the alternative reliance on gensets will also chime well with environmental edicts and expectations since the nominated engines are of LNG dual-fuel type. Each of the two auxiliaries will be based on a nine-cylinder

For the latest news and analysis go to www.motorship.com/news101

SHIP DESCRIPTIONS model of L28/32DF design from MAN Energy Solutions. The latter's subsidiary MAN Cryo is providing the complete LNG fuel gas supply systems, embracing each shipset of two 685m3 Type C vacuum tanks, including tank connection spaces with LNG fuel pumps, plus bunker stations with a capacity of 500m3 per hour, and automation, emergency shutdown and gas detection arrangements. MAN Cryo claims that the tanks mounted under-deck with air locks will minimise the amount of ambient air drawn into the tank rooms. This is an important consideration in the tough winter conditions to which the ships will be exposed, whereby the amount of very cold air introduced needs to be kept to a minimum. Wallenius SOL commissioned the Swedish Environmental Research Institute (IVL) to quantify the advance in energy performance and emission curtailment promised by the nascent tonnage. A comparison was made with the 2006-built, 190m Thuleland, which plies the Baltic/Continent /UK route and is ranked best-in-class as regards environmental impact. While the newbuild type's significantly higher energy eﬃciency reflects upscaling with a greater load capability, design measures including the hydrodynamic characteristics of the hull, the design arrangement, weight reduction solutions and choice of machinery have enhanced eﬃciency to a similar degree. Despite embodying four cargo decks, the centre of gravity has been lowered, reducing the amount of water ballast needed. It was found that fuel consumption per freight unit will be halved, greenhouse gases will be reduced by 63%, sulphur and particulate emissions will be negligible, and NOx will be cut by 85%.

PRINCIPAL PARTICULARS - Wallenius SOL ro-ro Length overall 241.70m Length bp 234.25m Breadth, moulded 35.20m Depth, to main deck 11.10m Draught, summer 8.70m Draught, design 8.50m Deadweight, maximum c.27,000t Ro-ro freight capacity 5,800 lane-m Container capacity 800TEU Propulsion system Dual-fuel two-stroke Main engine power 2 x 10,500kW Speed, service 20kn Class LR Class notations +100A1, Ro Ro Cargo Ship, Container cargoes on weather deck, ShipRight (SDA, CM, ACS[B]), Ice class 1AS FS, IWS, L1, +LMC, LFPF(GF, NG), UMS, NAV 1, IBS Finnish paperboard company Metsa Board's shipping agreement with Wallenius SOL entered force at the beginning of 2021. The producer's goals for the next 10 year include fossil-free mills and 100%-sustainable supply chains, such that it was attracted to the environmentally-sensitive transport concept oﬀered by the shipowners. Other long-term industry customers include paper and packaging maker StoraEnso, and Wallenius SOL has recently included Vaasa in its regular liner network, to serve the logistic needs of industrial firms located there.

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The international magazine for senior marine engineers EDITORIAL & CONTENT Editor: Nick Edstrom editor@mercatormedia.com News Reporter: Rebecca Jeﬀrey rjeﬀrey@mercatormedia.com Correspondents Please contact our correspondents at editor@motorship.com Bill Thomson, David Tinsley, Tom Todd, Stevie Knight, Wendy Laursen Production Ian Swain, David Blake, Gary Betteridge production@mercatormedia.com

In March 1971, The Motor Ship reported that the shipping industry was poised to benefit from the oil majors waking up to the reality that the world demand for oil could not be met by the current supply of tanker vessels. So, an industry that -with the possible exception of Japan - was depressed through lack of orders, was about to see a worldwide rush for building berths. Not only did our predecessors foresee a boom for European yards, but they expected Taiwan, Brazil and Peru to emerge as major shipbuilding nations. A somewhat more accurate prediction came later in the lead editorial feature, discussing automation. “Perhaps,” they wrote, “the time is now approaching when marine engine builders will feed all relevant information into a computer against which all performance data from ships with such machinery can be related. The ship will transmit the symptoms and available data and the engine works will prescribe the remedial measures.” Which was, after all a rather verbose forecast of remote assistance and predictive maintenance, which now applies to all the ship's systems, not only the engines. But with cheap and reliable satellite communications some years away, such a comment probably seemed far-fetched at the time. A twin-engine medium speed propulsion plant for a mid-size bulk carrier sounds rather an unlikely choice today, but such was the strength of debate about the merits of large low-speed versus multiple medium-speed engines that the idea must have seemed well worth trying in 1971. In this case, it was a series of 23,655 dwt vessels from Haugesund in Norway, the second of which, Lyle Shipping's Cape Horn, received a detailed description. Apart from the twin side-by-side funnels, the vessel looked like any other bulker. The reasoning behind the choice of machinery, though, was that it oﬀered a potential 15% gain in cargo capacity compared with the normal single large engine. The prime movers here were a pair of 12-cylinder Ruston AOM diesels, each rated 6000 bhp at 450 rpm. Unusual in being trunk-piston engines operating on the two-stroke cycle, the units fitted to these vessels incorporated modifications to an earlier design which had been fitted to a general cargo ship and a ferry,

42 | MARCH 2021

8 The diesel-electric icebreaking research vessel Bransfield

but had proved troublesome. The faults were expected to be cured with changes to the fuel system and cylinder covers, enabling the Ruston Paxman company to oﬀer a comprehensive warranty. The main engines drove a single CP propeller, while Ruston also supplied the two auxiliary gensets. Another novel feature was the way that waste heat from the engines was utilised, meaning no boilers were required in the machinery room. Another pointer to future trends could be found in the second ship description - an ice-breaking research and supply vessel for the British Antarctic Survey, with diesel-electric propulsion. The Scottish-built Bransfield was powered by twin Mirrlees K8M engines burning diesel oil driving a pair of 1975kW DC generators, supplying power to a single electric motor driving a SMM CP propeller. The configuration had been chosen to enable the power to be used most eﬀectively at low speeds in ice conditions. As befits a research ship, there was a high degree of automation employed, with full control available through no fewer than four separate conning stations. Automation was obviously important in 1971, with a separate supplement covering the subject, as well as a look forward to computerised navigation, via Sperry Rand's 'integrated bridge' system. Another glimpse into the future came with an in-depth technical discussion on the design of membrane-type tanks for gas carrying ships.

SALES & MARKETING t +44 1329 825335 f +44 1329 550192 Brand manager: Toni-Rhiannon Sibley tsibley @mercatormedia.com Marketing marketing@mercatormedia.com EXECUTIVE Chief Executive: Andrew Webster awebster@mercatormedia.com TMS magazine is published monthly by Mercator Media Limited Spinnaker House, Waterside Gardens, Fareham, Hampshire PO16 8SD, UK t +44 1329 825335 f +44 1329 550192 info@mercatormedia.com www.mercatormedia.com

Subscriptions Subscriptions@motorship.com or subscribe online at www.motorship.com Also, sign up to the weekly TMS E-Newsletter 1 year’s magazine subscription Digital Edition: £GBP173.00 © Mercator Media Limited 2021. ISSN 2633-4488 (online). Established 1920. The Motorship is a trade mark of Mercator Media Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine can be reproduced without the written consent of Mercator Media Ltd. Registered in England Company Number 2427909. Registered oﬃce: Spinnaker House, Waterside Gardens, Fareham, Hampshire PO16 8SD, UK

8 Looking down at one of the two-stroke medium speed Ruston engines for bulker Cape Horn

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