Inexperienced Ray mission to develop options minimising methane slip from LNG-fuelled engines

Co-ordinated by VTT Technical Analysis Centre of Finland, the Inexperienced Ray mission brings collectively a number of corporations from throughout the delivery worth chain: shipyard Chantiers de l’Atlantique, ship proprietor CMA CGA, classification society DNV GL, the Finnish Meterological Institute, ship supervisor MSC Cruises Administration, non-profit organisation Revolve Water, and vitality main Shell.

The mission will develop on-engine applied sciences for low-pressure dual-fuel engines – each two- and four-stroke – in addition to a novel aftertreatment idea. These options shall be superior to a excessive state of know-how readiness, together with demonstrators put in on two newbuilds and one retrofitted to an current vessel. All of the applied sciences developed in Inexperienced Ray may also be totally succesful to utilise bio- or artificial methane as an alternative of fossil LNG.

Wärtsilä will develop know-how particularly for low strain four-stroke dual-fuel engines that allows methane slip discount, will increase effectivity, and lowers operational prices in any respect engine masses. This know-how targets the biggest four-stroke engines in the marketplace as extensively utilized by cruise ships, ferries, and fuel carriers.

Wärtsilä may also develop an on-engine know-how for two-stroke engines round a patented LNG injection system to scale back methane slip from tankers, container ships, and so on. Each applied sciences shall be demonstrated at sea in actual utility through the mission in collaboration with the Inexperienced Ray companions.

The usage of LNG as a marine gasoline is accelerating, pushed by a well-developed provide infrastructure, a transparent transition to cleaner fuels and important air air pollution and local weather advantages. The difficulty of methane slip – unutilised and thus unburned gasoline escaping into the ambiance from engines and throughout the manufacturing and provide chain – is seen as one of many major challenges to wider uptake.

“Methane slip has turn into an necessary consider ship house owners’ choices about whether or not to make use of LNG gasoline,” stated Kati Lehtoranta, Principal Scientist, VTT. “With these promising applied sciences, we intention to scale back the slip contributing on to discount of the full greenhouse fuel (GHG) emissions, opening this pathway to even wider section of the maritime market.”

Shell has developed a proprietary methane abatement catalyst system that has been lab examined and scaled as much as a area demonstration, the place it was confirmed to be efficient not solely in considerably lowering methane slip (over 90%), but additionally in dealing with typical compounds that may degrade the catalyst, by way of the inclusion of a guard mattress.

“Shell’s local weather ambition to turn into a web zero emissions vitality enterprise by 2050 would require us to discover a spread of avenues which have the potential to assist us, our companions, and prospects to decarbonise the prevailing LNG worth chain. We’re repeatedly working to enhance the worth proposition of LNG via devoted know-how analysis, and we’re eager to develop potential options to minimise methane slip at such a related mission as Inexperienced Ray,” defined Alexander Boekhorst, VP Gasoline Processing and Conversion Expertise at Shell.

“This analysis will permit us to construct on the continual enhancements made in lowering methane slip from engines over the previous 20 years,” commented Sebastiaan Bleuanus, Normal Supervisor, Analysis Co-ordination & Funding, Wärtsilä Marine Energy. “Taking these options for newbuilds and retrofits to close business readiness shall be an necessary step for the long-term viability of LNG as a marine gasoline.”

The mission has acquired funding of roughly €7 million from Horizon Europe. It would run till 2027.

Learn the article on-line at: https://www.lngindustry.com/liquid-natural-gas/27022023/green-ray-project-to-develop-solutions-minimising-methane-slip-from-lng-fuelled-engines/