World Bunkering >Articles > Fuel management > Equipment and Services

OSG opts for Datatrac system

OSG Inc has announced that a Datatrac system allowing engineers to generate engine-room logs electronically (EERL) will be used across its fleet. According to Datatrac Ltd, which manufactures the system, the EERL system reduces the paperwork associated with traditional handling of engine-room logs. Digital data is collected in a PDA, data entry is timed and PIN secured and the data is displayed on a web site.

OSG also purchased Envirotrac, another system from the same manufacturers, which tracks the integrity of a vessel’s waste stream systems. Envirotrac allows efficient monitoring, recording and audit of environmental tags. Vessels have environmental tags fitted to waste-handling pipe work, associated valves and flanges ensuring integrity of the system. Results from both systems are displayed on a hosted website where the data can be viewed by the ship operators.

According to Datatrac, engine-room staff find it helpful because it is simple to operate and takes less time to collect and log data; it also provides alarms on data which is out of acceptable ranges.

Imarest publishes advice on marine power plants

The latest title in Imarest’s Marine Engineering Practice Series, Safe Operation of Marine Power Plants by Professor Vladimir Lanchukovsky, is aimed at improving the safe operational skills of marine engineers before sending them to sea.

Topics covered in the book include the role of governors, distribution of engine load, prevention of overload and incomplete fuel combustion, and it includes algorithms of main engine safe control when malfunctions occur. It also draws attention to risk assessment, the identification of hazards and the importance of formal safety assessment of loss of propulsion.

“Operation with the minimum risk of accidents or faults which can cause loss of ship propulsion. Safe operation is carried out in accordance with the rules of operation and maintenance of ships and is based on the maximum use of human resources and modern means of automation,” explains Prof Lanchukovsky. Chapters cover “Problems of power plant safe operation”, “Diesel propulsion plant operation”, “Safe control of marine automated engines”, “Formal safety assessment of loss of propulsion”, “Simulator training of marine engineers”, and a full glossary. 

GL buys software company

Classification society Germanischer Lloyd Group (GL) has bought maritime consulting and software companies Friendship Consulting GmbH and Friendship Systems GmbH for an undisclosed sum. A GL statement says: “The acquisition of the business operations of Friendship Consulting serves to expand GL’s palette of advisory services for shipping companies, yards and the maritime supply industry. By taking an interest in Friendship Systems, Germanischer Lloyd will be able to offer its maritime and industrial customers a range of additional software programs for optimising the design process.

“In view of the looming price hikes for marine fuel and the expected emission limits, it is especially important to explore every possible avenue in reducing the consumption of newbuildings. Due to the great complexity of the relevant systems, mathematical models are playing a key role.” Friendship Systems GmbH supports “computer-aided engineering” (CAE) for ship hulls, propellers, turbines, pumps and other units.

Lintec warns on Riga bunkers

Fuel-testing agency Lintec Testing Services warned in late December that three fuel-oil samples taken recently from vessels that have bunkered in Riga, Latvia, have shown the presence of Dicyclopentadiene (DCPD), a synthetic substance not naturally occurring within marine fuel.

Lintec managing director Geoff Jones says: “The presence of DCPD was detected by Lintec’s chemical screening service. This fuel is clearly in breach of Section 5.1 of the ISO8217 specification, which clearly states that the fuels should be homogeneous blends of hydrocarbons derived from petroleum refining." Jones notes that ISO8217 also states: “This shall not preclude the incorporation of small amounts of additives intended to improve some aspects of performance. The fuels shall be free from inorganic acids and from used lubricating oils. The fuel should not contain any added substance or chemical waste which jeopardises the safety of ships or adversely affects the performance of machinery, or is harmful to personnel, or contributes overall to air pollution.”

Jones adds: “If a vessel has recently bunkered in Riga or surrounding areas, we would strongly recommend that owners and operators have knowledge of the quality of the fuel prior to its use. They should ensure that the samples are taken correctly, together with the supplier at the custody transfer point (ship’s manifold) and witnessed by the ship’s crew. The seal numbers on the samples must be recorded on the Bunker Delivery Note (BDN).”

Maersk installs flow meters

Maersk announced in late December that it is to install flow meters across its fleet in an effort to cut down on short bunker deliveries. Claus Møller Petersen, business development manager at Maersk Oil Trading, said that the industry had “silently accepted” short deliveries for decades, but that the technology now exists to “do something about it”.

“By mid 2009 we will have at least 50 flow meters installed,” he said. The flow meters are manufactured by Emerson Process Management. While Maersk intends to fit flow meters to all vessels in its fleet, the initial installations will take place on a wide variety of vessel sizes and on vessels operating in a number of locations, in order to give an accurate picture of bunker deliveries throughout the company. Petersen said that he would also like to see flow meters installed on bunker barges.

Plenty Mirrlees launches new heavy oil pump

Plenty Mirrlees Pumps has unveiled a new twin screw pump that it says is intended for use in oil terminals, bunkering and on tank farms for handling larger volumes of fuel oil. Heavy-duty fuel oil presents many problems when it comes to transfer pumping. It is viscous and can contain foreign matter that can influence and damage the internals of the pump. For these reasons and to attain economic running costs, the best solution is to employ a twin screw rotary positive displacement pump as it has high efficiency characteristics and low power consumption when operating at very high capacity/flow demand.

The principal design feature of the W375-750 is the absence of any metallic contact between the screws or between the screws and their bores. This enables them to handle a wide range of fluids, including those that lack any lubricating properties. When running, the liquid passes through the pump chamber in an axial direction with the minimum degree of shear and with little or no pulsation. For the marine industry a vertical configuration version is available to optimise space, this being an essential requirement of the expanding bunkering market.

Equipped with a 1.2MW, the W375-750 pump can deliver up to 1,250m³/hr of heavy-duty oil and will accommodate pressures up to 20bar and temperatures up to and exceeding 200º.