World Bunkering > News > Winter 2010 > Burning brighter

Both the increasing cost of fuel and the prospect of financial penalties associated with carbon emissions are leading shipowners to look at a range of measures for increasing the efficiency of their engines. While solutions such as waste heat recovery systems are effective, and can mean large savings when installed at the newbuilding stage, they are not necessarily suitable – or economic – for retrofitting. Fuel additives to improve the ignition and combustion, however, can improve performance, and thereby cut emissions, with no need for expensive modifications.

Jamie Pender, Marine Business Development Manager, EMEA region at Infineum, which produces fuel additives, told World Bunkering: “Environmental legislation and recessionary factors have brought about many challenges for the shipping market and there will be many more difficult challenges ahead. Dealing with these challenges means ensuring that every detail of shipoperation is optimised and that potentially hazardous consequences of new fuels and operation patterns are mitigated.

Fuel additives can contribute towards emissions reductions, optimising fuel combustion and marine engine operations, and improving maintenance efficiencies for shipoperators.” Infineum continues to undertake tests to establish the extent to which additives can contribute to reducing shipping emissions through the simple application of robust additives, he said. Fuel additives can also help mitigate the effects of slow steaming and the use of low-sulphur fuel, both of which can have adverse effects on engine condition and performance.

Some major shipowners are conducting their own trials into combustion improvers. MOL announced at the end of last year that it had developed a fuel additive that would improve the ignition and combustion efficiency of marine fuels, thereby reducing carbon emissions from its ships. The additive, Taicrush HD, was developed in conjunction with Taihokohzai, Japan’s largest fuel additive manufacturer.

MOL announced that it would use the additive, Taicrush HD, on its operated vessels to reduce the environmental impact of its operations. MOL claims Taicrush HD improves the ignition performance and sludge dispersion in heavy fuel oils, reducing ignition delay and afterburning time by more than 30%. In addition, MOL and Taihokohzai verified fuel efficiency improvements ranging from 1.12% to 1.46% from data from engine tests both on shore and at sea. Operational trials were carried out on 106 voyages of a largescale Japanese coastal ferry which has a constant sailing schedule and is rarely affected by disturbance effects such as severe marine weather.

Compared to conventional fuel oil additives for large-scale vessels, Taicrush promotes improved combustion and reduced fuel consumption, MOL said. Taicrush also plays a role in MOL’s concept large-scale iron ore carrier, the ISHIN-III, ensuring more effective ignition and combustion of fuel oil. MOL estimates that the use of combustion-improving fuel additives will reduce CO2 emissions by 1.5% The design showcases elements that MOL believes will play a key role in future transport, indicating that fuel additives are seen as a long-term solution for improving fuel consumption, rather than a short-term fix necessary only because engines are not currently adapted for slow steaming.