A Review of U.S. Marine Fuel Oil Availability and Quality—Present and Future

An experimental investigation is presented of the influences of emulsification of marine fuel oils A and C with water on the micro-explosion phenomenon and combustion characteristics of a burning droplet. The amount of surfactant and water-to-oil ratio by volume in the emulsion are varied to observe the variations of ignition delay, flame length, time required to attain the maximum flame length, duration as well as intensity of micro-explosion, flame appearance, and overall burning time. The measurements show that the emulsification effects on the combustion of marine fuel oils A and C are different. A droplet of C-oil emulsion is shown to be influenced by the addition of water and surfactant more significantly. The micro-explosion phenomena of droplets of A-and C-oil emulsions are seen to occur after and before their ignition, respectively. In addition, separate combinations of water and surfactant content exist for these fuel oils to achieve better emulsification effects on combustion. Droplets of emulsions with W/O = 15/85, E% = 2% for fuel oil A and W/O = 25/75, E% = 1% for fuel oil C are found to have the most violent droplet-disruption phenomenon and the longest flame length.

Download Full-text

Marine Pollution Mitigation by Waste Oils Recycling Onboard Ships: Technical Feasibility and Need for New Policy and Regulations

Frontiers in Marine Science ◽

10.3389/fmars.2020.566363 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

Author(s):

Michela Mazzoccoli ◽

Marco Altosole ◽

Veronica Vigna ◽

Barbara Bosio ◽

Elisabetta Arato

Keyword(s):

Marine Pollution ◽

Cost Savings ◽

Waste Recycling ◽

Fuel Oil ◽

Waste Oil ◽

Marine Fuel ◽

Waste Oils ◽

Simulation Results ◽

Oily Waste ◽

To Receive

About 80% of the total pollution from ships is caused by operational oil discharges into the sea, often made deliberately and in violation of international rules; the main reasons can be due to cost savings or lack of adequate facilities in ports to receive waste oils. Therefore, reducing waste oil discharges is crucial for a proper protection of the marine environment. In this regard, the paper presents the preliminary feasibility of a particular waste recycling technology, aimed at obtaining marine fuel oil from sludge, through a pyrolysis process to be carried out in a small reactor onboard. The originality of the research consists in the adaptation of pyrolysis to oily waste produced by ships, since this technology is traditionally applied to solid waste and biomass. Furthermore, the plant has to be designed for operation on board the ship, therefore under very different constraints compared to traditional land plants. Although the preliminary lab tests and simulation results in the chemical process are promising enough, there are still some technical criticalities due to the energy optimization of the reactor for an efficient use onboard of the whole system. In addition, the possibility of recycling waste, directly onboard ships, is not yet covered by mandatory regulations, which is why shipowners generally still feel unmotivated to invest in such technologies.

Download Full-text

Temperature and water effects on the biodeterioration for marine fuel oil

Fuel ◽

10.1016/s0016-2361(99)00267-7 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 79 (12) ◽

pp. 1525-1532 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Y Chung

Keyword(s):

Fuel Oil ◽

Marine Fuel ◽

Water Effects

Download Full-text

LNG as marine fuel – where technology meets logistics

The APPEA Journal ◽

10.1071/aj17082 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 58 (2) ◽

pp. 593

Author(s):

Douglas Raitt

Keyword(s):

Deep Sea ◽

Oil And Gas ◽

Oil And Gas Industry ◽

Fuel Oil ◽

Main Mode ◽

Marine Fuel ◽

Gas Industry ◽

Trade Routes ◽

Human Element ◽

Conventional Oil

Following the establishment of the ‘LNG Marine Fuel Institute’ in Australia and research projects on alternative fuelling of ore carriers operating out of Australia, the focus of the marine and oil and gas industry is turning increasingly towards the adoption of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a fuel oil. The development of LNG bunkering facilities on Australian soil followed. For LNG to be a viable option for deep sea shipping, it is all about infrastructure, technology and the human element. Thus far, LNG as fuel oil was only applied on LNG carriers; outside of that, LNG has mainly been used for short sea applications, which are tightly controlled from a technical and human element perspective mainly through shore-to-ship custody transfer. For deep sea shipping however, the infrastructure needs to be in place to allow regular refuelling options on various global shipping trade routes. It is anticipated that for deep sea shipping, the main mode of LNG fuelling will be through ship-to-ship custody transfers with required risk management. LNG bunkering technology standards and procedures are largely maturing, and efforts are underway to harmonise these standards globally to allow for flexible fuelling locations for ships traversing large distances. The remaining challenge will be to enhance a ship’s crew competence. The level of sophistication required of a crew for LNG bunkering is not something attained thus far in conventional oil bunkering and needs to be addressed. Continuous Competence Management Systems taking LNG cargo trading vessel experience into account, together with the ‘Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers’ requirements, is vital for the safe development of gas bunkering for deep sea shipping.

Download Full-text

Review and proposed extension of the APPEA Method for estimating levels of financial assurance

The APPEA Journal ◽

10.1071/aj17043 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 58 (1) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

David Horn ◽

Kristina Downey ◽

Andrew Taylor

Keyword(s):

Case Studies ◽

Initial Period ◽

Fuel Oil ◽

Marine Fuel ◽

Environment Management ◽

Fuel Oils ◽

Financial Assurance ◽

Safety And Environment ◽

Offshore Petroleum

In 2014, the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) published the ‘Method to assist titleholders in estimating appropriate levels of financial assurance for pollution incidents arising from petroleum activities’, referred to as the APPEA Method. The APPEA Method provides a standard approach to quantifying the appropriate level of financial assurance required under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (OPGGS Act). The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environment Management Authority (NOPSEMA) endorsed the APPEA Method for an initial period of 2 years (until December 2016) with the requirement that APPEA review the method against a broader range of case studies to confirm its validity. In 2017, APPEA applied the APPEA Method to 18 case studies, comparing independently calculated cost estimates with the APPEA Method cost band for each case study. For 17 of the 18 case studies, the independent cost estimate was less than the APPEA Method cost band, confirming the validity of the APPEA Method for those case studies. For one of the case studies involving marine fuel oil, the APPEA Method cost band potentially underestimated the response and clean-up costs. The robustness of the APPEA Method can be improved by amending the hydrocarbon type impact score for fuel oils. Based on the review, NOPSEMA has since endorsed the APPEA Method until September 2018. The APPEA Method is currently endorsed for incidents in which the total volume of hydrocarbon released is <1 000 000 m3 and the total volume of oil ashore is <25 000 m3. Based on an assessment of the response and clean-up costs from three additional case studies that exceeded these limits, amendments to the APPEA Method are proposed that would extend the range of incidents to which it could be applied.

Download Full-text

Promoting LNG as A Marine Fuel in Norway: Reflections on the Role of Global Regulations on Local Transition Niches

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12229476 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (22) ◽

pp. 9476

Author(s):

Sofiane Laribi ◽

Emmanuel Guy

Keyword(s):

Transition Process ◽

Global Scale ◽

Fuel Oil ◽

Heavy Fuel Oil ◽

Marine Fuel ◽

Complex Process ◽

International Regulations ◽

Multilevel Perspective ◽

Perspective Model

Contemporary societies are marked by constant tensions between the notion to improve sustainability and the reluctance to engage in uncertain changes. In any sector, the transition is a delicate and complex process that involves many actors, organizations, and institutions. Niche analysis approaches such as the multilevel perspective model (MLP) explain how such a process grows from innovation within a very restricted field to its generalized application on a global scale. Shipping is a sector particularly challenged by the transition process away from heavy fuel oil towards more environment-friendly alternatives such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) or even non-fossil alternatives. Within this industry, Norway stands as an early adopter and leader of the emerging transition. Drawing from a wide discussion of the treatment of scale in transition literature and from this national case study, we propose that the transition process can emerge not only from a local niche perspective, as widely documented in the literature, but can also be driven by changes at a much larger scale and initiated by new international regulations.

Download Full-text