ABB: Market is Moving Towards Dual-Fuel Engines

Keyurkumar Patel writes that demand for dual-fuel engines is already rising

With bunker prices and pollution becoming greater concerns for ship owners, the market is moving toward dual-fuel engines capable of running on liquefied natural gas (LNG), Keyurkumar Patel writes on the website of power and automations technology company ABB.

"The next decade… could see a remarkable change in the fuel being used on ships," Keyurkumar writes.

"Dual fuel engines are, in fact, already in strong demand today."

Keyurkumar writes that, with heavy fuel oil (HFO) prices on the rise for more than a decade, bunkers now represent 60 to 70 percent of a ship's operating costs, while new industry rules force ship operators to look more closely at their vessels' emissions of CO2 and other pollutants.

New dual-fuel engine designs using two turbochargers arranged to generate increased air pressure and air flow allow for an efficiency rating of up to 76 percent, improving power density by as much as 10 percent while reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, and additional engine systems or exhaust gas after-treatment can drop emissions further.

"The trend toward dual fuel engines is evident already today in the activity we are seeing in LNG carrier development," Keyurkumar writes.

"Although the propulsion system on these types of vessel were typically steam turbine based in the past, most of the vessels on order at the moment are 4-stroke duel fuel electric driven.

"The reasons are obvious: being able to run both diesel and gas, with higher efficiency and lower emissions, combine to make this solution a very attractive option for the future."

Some observers, including Lars Petter Blikom of Det Norske Veritas (DNV), have predicted that LNG bunkers will become nearly universal, but others, such as Nick Brown of Lloyd's Register, say deep sea ships are unlikely to switch from HFO.