Ocean-going ships, presently in an excess for the amount of cargo to be lifted, increasingly steam at slower speeds in order to save expensive fuel oil bunker costs; better that than to be laid up reckon shipowners.

Photo courtesy of Maersk Line

The problem is that large marine diesel  engines are not designed to operate below 85% power for long periods without harmful effects; effects best ameliorated by getting lubricating oil of the right specs. After a quick look at lubricating oil solutions, a handy little device to check cylinder performance is spotlighted.

Marine Diesel Engines & Slow Steaming

Experts at Castrol Marine drew on OEM reports and their own engine performance tests to analyse the effects of slow steaming on engine performance, finding that the oil-feed rate as well as a lower engine operating temperature had a bearing on the amount of corrosion caused on piston rings and cylinder liners.

At lower loads, the cylinder oil’s feed rate is reduced, making less available BN (Base Number) constituents to neutralise acids and reducing the protective oil film thickness. This can mean lubricants degrade, increasing the potential for acidic corrosion and increased wear rates. Lower engine operating temperatures that come with slow steaming also further increase the risk of cold corrosion.

The conclusion drawn by Paul Harrold, Castrol’s Technology Manager, Marine & Energy Lubricants: “Higher BN lubricants provide greater neutralisation and hence better corrosion protection across the fuel sulphur range during slow steaming.”

While 40 BN cylinder oil suits vessels predominantly operating in ECAs, cylinder oils of 70 BN and above are better suited to those vessels regularly slow steaming, to ensure piston ring packs and liners remain in good condition.

With slow steaming likely to cause damage to cylinder components it seems apposite to mention a portable, inexpensive gadget made in Sweden  – Prisma Teknik’s ‘Bohman DEC-Tester'  –  which provides a simple, yet useful tool for  assessing cylinder condition.

Bohman DEC-Tester

Prisma Teknik’s ‘Bohman DEC-Tester': Photo courtesy of Prisma Teknik

Air (at standard 6 − 8 bar) is injected into the cylinder via the DEC-Tester, which the manufacturers say is an improvement on similar methods as it controls the pressure as well as the flow of air.

The unit is connected to the indicator valve of a cylinder whose piston has been cranked near TDC and will immediately show a reading on a scale 1 – 10. For example, a recently overhauled cylinder might show a reading of 1.5, another unit with a reading of 7.4, would indicate the need for investigation, while a reading at the top end of the scale normally suggests serious valve problems exist.

The tester can be used on both auxiliary and main diesel engines with a bore diameter of from 160 mm to 460 mm for both continuous follow-up of cylinder condition as well as for troubleshooting.

Worth its 3 kg weight in gold for the solutions it provides, the DEC-Tester comes for just 862 Euros.

The case for solar energy as a viable power source for marine propulsion was well made when news came just a few days ago that the world’s largest vessel entirely powered by solar energy, PlanetSolar, had completed its trans-world odyssey, returning to Hercule Harbour, Monaco, where it had set out for the world circumnavigation attempt.

An entry in the ship’s log the day before final arrival recorded the highest day’s energy yield –  661 kW hours –  from the 537 square meters of photovoltaic solar panels , the vessel’s sole source of energy,  since the voyage began on 27, September 2010.

PlanetSolar in Hamburg: Photo credit Wiki CCL Dr. Karl-Heinz Hochhaus

Constructed of weight-saving carbon fibre, the 31 m (101.7 ft) long PlanetSolar  (Swiss registered as Tûranor PlanetSolar or ‘Power of the Sun’ in Tolkien’s fiction) was launched in Spring 2010 from the Knierim Yachtbau shipyard in Kiel, Germany. Construction was to a design by LOMOcean Design (formerly known as Craig Loomes Design Group) for delivery to owners PlanetSolar SA, whose inspirational idea was to send the ship around the world with a view to showing that renewable energy and technology can be applied right now to achieve sustainable transportation.

Key to the success of the venture was the array of photovoltaic panels that predominate the upper deck of the vessel, totally responsible for capturing the energy to drive the four electric motor propulsion system that give Solar Planet a cruising speed of 7.5 knots, or for shorter periods a maximum 14 knots.

DuPont Tedlar® polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) film was used as an essential component of the photovoltaic ‘backsheet’ that was key to protecting the PlanetSolar’s panels (also supplied by DuPont) in the harsh weather conditions encountered by ‘Planet Solar’ over the nineteen month long voyage.

 “Our planet deserves a better, brighter and cleaner future,” said Raphaël Domjan, initiator and leader of PlanetSolar's expedition who first conceived the idea for the boat in 2004.  "I hope our success will motivate engineers and scientists to continue to develop innovative technologies …”

In complete accord with Domjan’s motivational ideals we are reminded that the annual ‘Dong Energy Solar Challenge’ (formerly known as the ‘Frisian Solar Challenge’) kicks off in The Netherlands in July next. Far smaller solar-powered boats than the PlanetSolar compete for six days over a 220 km course through the Frisian waterways with the aim of promoting sustainable energy among young people and students in technical colleges; the organisers have an eye to the part these participants may play in the future commercial development of solar-powered marine propulsion systems.

Dong Energy Solar Challenge Entrant: Photo credit Dong Energy

Ramform vessel construction made news last week as marine geophysical survey specialists Petroleum Geo Services (PGS) announced they had kept, but extended, their option with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for two more of their 5-G Titan-class ‘Ramform’ seismic research vessels to add to the pair presently under construction by the Japanese shipbuilders for 2013 delivery.

Seismic Survey Vessel 'Titan-class' Ramform: Image credit: PGS

Once seen, never forgotten, eight instantly recognizable Ramform vessels are currently operating globally (seven of them owned and operated by PGS). Ships built with an unusually broad after-deck to handle the deep tow of multiple arrays of equipment used to detect and signal back 3D pictures of untapped reservoirs of hydrocarbon fuels. What’s going to be different about the new Titan-class Ramforms?

PGS’s Next-generation Ramform Ships

The unique hull shape of the Ramform Class vessels was originally drawn from Marjata, a special Norwegian vessel whose role was to collect underwater defence electronic intelligence data from submarines; a ship whose sinusoidal curved waterline provided the stable operating base essential for its purpose, together with plenty of space aft for machinery and equipment for towing the transponders.

The latest 5-G Titan-class Ramform vessels under construction by MHI for PGS will have wider hull forms than the existing series in order to deploy the spread of streamer tows (up to 24 steamer cables, each a thousand metres in length) called for by PGS’s upgraded GeoStreamer® platform; a technology that is said to provide subsurface geophysical images of unprecedented quality. These streamers and source arrays are handled from workstations on two separate deck levels at the stern.

Seismic Survey with GeoStreamer®: Photo courtesy of PGS

Ramform Titan Class Specifications:

The main propulsion system is to be diesel electric, with six 3,840 kW gensets powering electric motors and electrical systems (contracted to ABB) to drive three controllable pitch propellers with associated nozzles and propellor shafts.

LOA: 104.2 m (341.9 ft)
Breadth: 70 m (229.7)
Draft: 6.4 m (21 ft)
Classification:  DNV +1A1, including SPS, ICE C annotations, etc.
Fuel capacity: 6,000 cu.m
Endurance: 150 days
Transit speed: 16 knots
Accommodation: 60 single & 10 double cabins
Helideck: 26 m 15t Super Puma/EH-101
Workboats: 2 x 30 ft davit-slung in well-deck hull spaces each side

Titan class Ramforms with the upgraded GeoStreamer®, ghost-echo free, seismic package are intended to operate in the ‘High Density’ offshore exploration market segments where large spreads, long streamers and towing efficiency are key to success in geologically complex areas off the coasts of Brazil, West Africa, and in the Gulf of Mexico.

Merchant ships in MARPOL Vl Emission Control Areas (SECA) have to burn either low sulphur fuels/distillates; or heavy fuel oil plus an exhaust gas scrubber; or LNG, in order to comply with engine exhaust gas emission regulations – it’s as simple as that. The first two fuels are readily available worldwide, but not liquid natural gas (LNG). The past week saw minds concentrated, in locations half a world apart, on ways to make LNG with its cleaner exhaust gas emission characteristics, and (likely) lower price more widely available.

LNG Bunkering in Europe

A few days ago the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) brought together in Zeebrugge, Belgium, a group of fifty professionals to consider safety aspects of LNG bunkering, where it became clear that a number of ports within the European SECA area are already well advanced in setting up LNG bunkering stations, with supply mainly by special bunker barges.

Clearly though, Norway, which incidentally has large natural deposits of LNG, leads the field in its take-up of the fuel. At present, there are 25 LNG fuelled ships operating in the Baltic and North Sea Emission Control Area.

Trond Giske, Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry, describes the LNG bunkering infrastructure problem as something of a conundrum – bunker distributors do not want to set up a supply network until there is sufficient demand from shipping, while shipping cannot change to LNG without a supply infrastructure. He referred to this as a ‘chicken and egg’ problem; solved in Norway by the allocation of funds from the national budget to clean energy development company Enova to set up the necessary natural gas infrastructure.

 Meanwhile, DNV hosted the annual Process and Asset Risk Management Conference (PARC) in Brussels that focussed attention on LNG opportunities, with news that Antwerp, Zeebrugge and Ghent add to the list of European ports making an investment in LNG bunkering facilities, joining those in the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland and Poland.

Photo courtesy of Lloyd's Register

LNG Bunkering in South East Asia

If Europe is leading, Asia-Pacific regional bunker hub Singapore aims to catch up. Its Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) established a joint industry project (JIP) managed by DNV earlier this year to investigate the operational feasibility of LNG bunkering in Singapore with finance from MPA’s ‘MINT’ fund (the Maritime Innovation & Technology Fund).

Just as in Europe, the key barrier to more widespread adoption of LNG as ships’ fuel was recognised to be an immature bunkering infrastructure. It was mainly to address this issue that the MPA set up its JIP project, which includes participation by a household-name list of shipping industry stakeholders.

Dr. Anthony Barker, General Manager for BG Singapore Gas Marketing, and Chairman of the JIP steering committee said: “This JIP is a school book example on how industry and regulators can work closely together to accelerate the implementation of new technologies and industry solutions that one single player can not accelerate alone.”

Despite that though, resolution of the LNG bunkering infrastructure ‘chicken – egg’ problem may best be hastened, as it has been by LNG leaders Norway, with a financial push from an interested government.

Unmanned surface vessels took a step further toward becoming a reality when a U.S. Navy research and development programme attained its first objective –  to build and demonstrate a vessel on the assumption that no person steps aboard at any point in its operating cycle.

The Textron Common Unmanned Surface Vessel (CUSV) vividly met this objective during the Navy’s 2011 ‘Sea Warrior’ experiment at Hampton Roads near the Norfolk Naval Base, clearing the way for subsequent Federal Government invitations to tender for work on the remaining objectives set out by the Defense Advanced Research Agency (DARPA) in its Anti-submarine Warfare Unmanned Vessel Continuos Trail (ACTUV) programme. A project aimed to develop an unmanned X-ship optimised to robustly track quiet diesel electric submarines.

Patrol Boat – Unmanned & Autonomous: Photo courtesy of AA! Systems

Fleet-Class Common Unmanned Surface Vessel by Textron

Not only was the unmanned patrol boat in the Norfolk trials able to intercept and warn off an intruding vessel – click here for video – by means of a threatening pre-recorded loud-hailer ‘Level 1’ order, but with DARPA’s anti-submarine warfare requirements in mind the boat's equipment bay was able to contain a submarine-tracking, robotic device.

The patrol boat autonomous control system incorporates a developed obstacle-avoidance technology that Navy researchers call ‘Sliding Autonomy’ that offers a range of capability from fully autonomous operation to man-in-the-loop intervention.

‘Sliding Autonomy’ modes range from the most basic, in which the operator has direct manual control over the rudders and engines individually, to semi-autonomous modes with a specified speed and course, to full autonomous mission mode using the vessels collision avoidance system. In addition, it allows users to create a single, seamless operational network of airborne, sea-based and ground-based assets from ship to shore, shore to ship, or ship to ship.

Textron has developed its multi-purpose ‘Fleet-Class’ CUSV incorporating AAI's (AAI is an operating unit of Textron Systems) unmanned maritime command and control station as part of a multi-warfare, multi-mission and multi-payload solution. The CUSV includes:

 AAI's common command and control system; data link; reconfigurable and versatile payload bay; common payload launch and recovery controller; and modular USV system open architecture using commercial, off-the-shelf technology.

Patrol Boat Equipment Launch Bay: Photo courtesy of AAI Systems

The 'Fleet Class' CUSV is of modular construction, capable of executing mine warfare; anti-submarine warfare; communications relay; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; anti-surface warfare; and UAS/UUV launch and recovery missions.

Now that an unmanned craft capable of sophisticated collision avoidance has been demonstrated one wonders if an unmanned autonomous vessel (with that ‘man-in-the-loop’ control condition) might be developed not only for military purposes, but also for commercial merchant shipping operations. Perhaps an offshore support vessel to begin with; beyond doubt the crew-less vessel offers considerable financial and organizationnal benefits to ship owners.

Engine size – minimum; torque, power and efficiency – maximum, sums up the claims of Scuderi Group who filed US and global primary patent applications last week for a revolutionary split-cycle design internal combustion engine, claimed fully scaleable for marine and other power applications. What is different about the Scutari engine?

The Scuderi Split-cycle Engine

Fundamentally, the split cycle engine design divides the four strokes of the combustion cycle between two cylinders — one intake/compression cylinder and one power/exhaust cylinder – and these two cylinders are interconnected by a Crossover Passage™.

Internal Combustion Engine Schematic: Image courtesy of Scuderi Group

 The Scuderi Engine gains a massive advantage from turbocharging, Miller-like valve control strategies and extended expansion that is not possible with conventional engine designs. Just like the conventional four-stroke engine, the combustion cycle of the Scuderi Engine has two high-pressure strokes – compression and power. The power stroke is positive work, or energy that is produced by the expanding gases to create mechanical work. The compression stroke is negative work, or energy that the engine consumes to create mechanical work.

The difference is that the Scuderi engine separates the compression cylinder from the power cylinder, so that the size of the compression cylinder can be reduced to eliminate some of the negative compression work and, by incorporating a turbocharger into the engine's design, exhaust gas-energy can be recovered to achieve other substantial reductions in negative work.

 Main features of the engine, say the developers, are:

• Combustion process – fires after top dead centre
• One combustion cycle per crankshaft revolution
• Heat release optimally phased with peak power location
• Fully variable intake and exhaust valves
• Outwardly opening Crossover Passage valves
• High geometric compression and expansion ratios

By optimising the split-cycle concept, the engine can drastically reduce NOx and CO2 emissions, substantially improve fuel efficiency, compared to a conventional engine, and can be configured to run on gasoline, diesel, bio-diesel, natural gas, etc.

The engine requires one crankshaft revolution to complete a single combustion cycle and is projected to have higher torque, thermodynamic efficiency, and lower emissions than possible with other internal combustion engine designs. 

Is all this pie-in-the-sky? It seems not, as independent laboratory results have confirmed that the Scutari Engine has unusually fast and robust combustion; has a diesel-like, flat torque curve; is highly knock resistant; and produces less NOx than conventional internal combustion engines.

The Founding Father of the Scuderi Engine

Carmelo J. Scuderi (1925-2002), an American inventor, spent much of his working life as a professional mechanical engineer contemplating the inefficiencies of the conventional Otto cycle engine, and in 2001 finalised the design of his Split-cycle engine.

His challenging goal was taken up by his children and others after his demise. Now, Scuderi Group is headquartered in West Springfield, Mass., with offices in Frankfurt, Germany and Nagoya, Japan. The company has raised more than $85 million in funding to date and its patent portfolio contains more than 500 patents.

Prototype Scuderi Engine: Photo courtesy of Scuderi

Wing-in-Ground (WIG) craft development took a firm step forward with the recent announcement that two Korean companies –  Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and Wing Ship Technology Corp –   are to co-operate to make production of WIG craft a viable operating and commercial proposition. The offshore support vessel market is in their sights, and they also have plans to develop a 200-seat WIG craft for military use.

Wing Ship Technology successfully produced their 50-seat prototype WSH-500 (classed by Lloyd’s Register) late last year with $6.3 million funding assistance from DSME.

Wing-in-Ground Effect Craft WSH-500: Photo courtesy of Wing Ship Technology Corp.

WIG Concept & Maritime Safety

A WIG craft is a vessel capable of operating completely above the surface of the water on a dynamic air-cushion. The 'ground effect' refers to what a pilot (commonly passengers too ) feels when landing a large aircraft – just before touchdown it’s as if the plane wants to go on and on – due to the cushion of air trapped between the wings and the runway. Hence ‘aerodynamic ground effect’.

Presently there are no safety standards in place for WIG craft, although the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) did publish interim guidelines ten years ago. The United States Coast Guard, in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration and the IMO (a pairing that underlines the WIG concept’s intersection with both air and sea) say this is a work in progress.

Propulsion & General Particulars WSH-500

Gas Turbine Engine by MTT & Shaft Prop: Photo courtesy of MTT

US-based MTT Corp was contracted to design the special 1,400 hp gas-turbine propulsion systems for the WSH-500 to drive customised 10 ft propellors developing 4,800 lbs thrust.

German naval architect Hanno Fischer, a pioneer in WIG craft development, brought his expertise to bear on the Korean initiative by Wing Ship Technology (founded in 2007) to develop the WSH-500, and the builders say they intend four vessels for delivery in the current year at a price of about US$ 6.7 million each for the basic configuration.

Principal particulars are as follows:

• Passenger capacity: 47 passengers and 3 crew
• LOA: 28.5 m (93.5 ft)
• Breadth overall: 27 m (88.6)
• Height: 6.7 m (22 ft)
• Displacement: 17.1 tons
• Construction material: aluminium alloy
• Propulsion: MTT gas-turbine: 2 x 1,400 Turbo-shaft/Prop
• Cruising speed 100 kts (on trial achieved 73 kts in GE mode)
• Fuel: 1 tonne capacity, consumption about 250 kg/hr
• Range: 300 (162 nm)
• Cruising height: 1 to 5 m (3.3 to 16.4 ft) with safe landing at all times

WIG Craft Advantages

High speed transportation without the need of an airport is the great advantage. Speeds of a light aircraft or helicopter are capable of being matched, but require less redundant systems as the craft can land quickly and smoothly in an emergency.

The designers reported good stability and minimal pitch and roll during sea trials of the WSH-500 in air-borne operating mode, assuring passenger comfort.

DSME vice president Y.Y. Koh said WIG craft are well suited to meet the needs of the offshore market, considering that they were safer and more economical than widely-used helicopters.

The European Commission proposed new rules a few days ago requiring ships of the European Union (EU) to be recycled (scrapped) only in facilities that are approved as safe for workers and environmentally sound; while shipowners would have to apply for an ‘Inventory Certificate’ of hazardous waste on board (reduced if deemed necessary) before delivery to a listed shipbreaker. Hazardous waste in lder ships contains many hazardous materials, including asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), tributyl tin and large quantities of oils and oil sludge.

Shipbreaking on Beach, Bangladesh: Photo credit Wiki CCL Stéphane M Grueso

Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: "Although the ship recycling sector has improved its practices, many facilities continue to operate under conditions that are dangerous and damaging. This proposal aims to ensure that our old ships are recycled in a way that respects the health of workers as well as the environment. It is a clear signal to invest urgently in upgrading recycling facilities.”

Ship Recycling – Asia the Preferred Destination

According to the current legislation (the Waste Shipment Regulation) EU flagged ships going for scrap can only be dismantled within a member state of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development  (OECD). This legislation is almost systematically circumvented by EU flagged ships, say the Commission ( on cost-saving grounds) and currently most EU controlled ships are dismantled in Asia (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh), usually through the ‘beaching’ method and with significant environmental and health impacts. The new proposal aims to address the shortcomings of this legislation and to allow, under strict conditions, the recycling of EU-flagged ships in these Asian non-OECD countries.

In 2009 ship dismantling data revealed:

Ship Recycling Yards and Shipowners – New Responsibilities

Some of the requirements to be met by the ship recycling facilities are stricter than those foreseen by the Hong Kong Convention on Ship Recycling (stalled, perhaps for some years, as ratification by member states is tardy) whose foundations are built on by the EU proposal. The proposed new regulations will ensure European-flag ships are better traced for accountability, and will guarantee that the waste resulting from dismantling (and any hazardous materials it contains) is managed in an environmentally sound way.

For shipowners, the proposal a system of survey, certification and authorisation for large commercial seagoing vessels that fly the flag of an EU Member State, covering the whole life cycle of the ship from construction to operation and recycling.

To ensure compliance, the proposal requires ship owners to report to national authorities when they intend to send a ship for recycling. By comparing the list of ships for which they have issued an inventory certificate with the list of ships which have been recycled in authorised facilities, authorities will be able to spot illegal recycling more easily. The European Commission also intend that sanctions proposed in the new regulations will also be more specific and precise.

For full information on the European Commission proposals click here.

MAN Diesel and Turbo said last week it will up-rate its popular four-stroke diesel GenSet L23/30H by almost 10% of current values (any more than that and the design would have to be submitted to classification societies for ‘Type Approval’ thus increasing costs and taking more time).

Introducing the upgrade, MAN adds a footnote lauding this particular engine, the classic 23/30 model first introduced by subsidiary Holeby fifty or so years ago, as one of its ‘original workhorses’, mentioning too an increase in orders for the new version of this, the Mk.2 engine .

On the understanding that a workhorse is something that does a large amount of dull or routine work faithfully —  providing a ship’s electrical power seems to fit  —   then the title is well-earned by the GenSet. What made it so popular?

Genset Turbocharger Detail: Photo courtesy of MAN

Electricity Generator Workhorse in the Making

Unsurprisingly it was the saving in fuel costs offered by the alternator’s driving force medium speed diesel engine that first attracted customers, made possible by the unifuel principle, which meant in large ships that these auxiliary engines (normally a minimum of three) ran on the same heavy fuel oil as the two-stroke main engine. In port a three-way valve enabled the engine to run off marine grade diesel oil from a separate fuel tank.

The unifuel system also came to integrate the cooling water, and starting air systems between main and auxiliary engines to make best use of engine room space with simplified operation of plant and its maintenance. When in due course it became apparent that expenses for this GenSet’s maintenance and repair were among the lowest in the industry, market success for the new auxiliary was assured.

The common fuel system, shown in the block diagram below, features extensive fuel cleaning by centrifuges to remove solid and liquid contaminants from the common fuel oil, of major importance to the trouble-free fast revving diesel engine driver.

Uniflow Fuel Supply: Schematic courtesy of MAN Diesel & Turbo

GenSet Upgrade – The Main Features

Design improvements, the latest in a long line over the years, now give the MAN L23/30H Mk.2  engine an increased rating of 15 kW per cylinder at the same revolutions as the existing model (i.e. at maximum 900 rpm)

The Mk. 2 will be matched to comply with IMO MARPOL Tier-ll requirements.

A different turbocharger is fitted to the new version –  MAN type NR/R is replaced with the TCR type which the manufacturers say offers easier maintenance with a reduced number of parts; an extended interval between inspections, and easy access to the compressor wheel.

In common with the its predecessor the improved engine is expected to share the GenSet’s extremely long TBO of 16,000 hours when run at 720/750 rpm or 12,000 hours at the maximum 900 rpm.

Click here for more detail of the uprating (downloadable as a .PDF file).

Oil fuel and lube oil testing proves its worth (let the buyer beware) advises chemical analysis specialist companies Lintec and Intertek, telling a few days ago of their joining hands to provide a service to help guard ship operators world-wide against the perils of using off-specification oils. A case study illustrates their point.

The entire fleet of a Hamburg-based shipowner was placed on Lintec’s chemical screening programme. On one of the ships, on long-term charter, a sample fuel analysis revealed that bunker fuel containing DCPD (Dicyclopentadiene) and Styrene had been taken on board; the charterer being duly informed of the inherent risks to the ship’s engine that might arise from this bunker stem. Soon, operational difficulties, including blocked oil filters, were reported to the extent that the fuel had to be pumped out and replaced at the next port of call. Further lab analysis was done to determine the exact levels of contamination, with results that persuaded the charterer to accept financial liability for all costs incurred.

Oil Fuel Bunker Barge: Photo credit Wikipedia CCL DKrieger

Fuel Oil Contamination – a Global Problem

Oil fuel contamination is not limited to off-the-map bunkering ports. Another chemical analysis specialist in the field, US-based Guardian Marine Chemical has stated that samples of Low Sulphur Fuel Oil with DCPD levels in the range 200 ppm to 600 ppm, and Styrene from 500 ppm to 2,200 ppm were found at bunker stations on the Gulf coast of the US. At these levels, and lower, vessels have reportedly suffered serious engine damage, not only blocked filters, but also at greater cost, blocked purifiers, broken piston rings and seized fuel pumps.

Interestingly, Guardian Marine points out that high levels of these contaminants had exclusively been found in LSFO samples, whereas strangely enough, heavy fuel oil (high sulphur content) was free of DCPD and Styrene in that particular area. They thought a low sulphur cutter stock containing refinery waste might have been used to blend the fuel down to a MARPOL-compliant <1.5% Sulphur content.

In news of their liaison Lintec/Intertek say that an internet-based laboratory management system, a feature of their ‘ShipCare Services Programme’, offers an efficient and speedy process for testing bunker fuel in order to circumvent damage to ships’ engines, costly down-time and repairs, as well as to help avoid costly exhaust-gas emission related infringements. Reports of fuel analysis come with full engineering comments, and helpfully, in the event of off-specification fuel, recommendations by Intertek’s industry experts.