The Viking Energy, an oil platform provide shippresent process a pioneering retrofit to run on ammonia gas, is now scheduled to start operations in 2026—two years later than initially deliberate. As soon as accomplished, it will likely be the primary vessel able to working full-time on ammonia, marking a serious milestone in efforts to scale back carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions within the maritime trade.
IEEE Spectrum beforehand reported on ammonia as a potential replacement for petroleum fuels within the delivery trade in 2021, at which era key stakeholders—together with Norwegian power giant Equinor, expertise supplier Wärtsilä, and delivery firm Eidesvik Offshore—anticipated the Viking Vitality to set sail in 2024. Nonetheless, progress has slowed.
Business specialists attribute the delay to the advanced infrastructure required to deal with ammonia safely. “Ammonia is poisonous, explosive, and corrosive. We should use particular piping, storage tanks, and vehicles outfitted with supplies engineered to be each leakproof and proof against ammonia’s corrosive properties,” says John Prousalidis, a professor of marine engineering on the National Technical University of Athens. (Equinor, Wärtsilä, and Eidesvik Offshore didn’t reply to requests for remark.)
One of many largest environmental issues with ammonia-powered ships is the potential launch of nitrogen oxides. “As a substitute of CO2, which contributes to global warming, we may find yourself with nitrogen oxides, that are deadly to breathe,” says Prousalidis. “To keep away from merely swapping one pollutant for an additional, ammonia propulsion techniques should embrace emissions-control applied sciences to stop dangerous nitrogen oxides from coming into the environment,” he provides.
A promising various to combustion engines is ammonia-powered fuel cells, which generate electrical energy with out producing nitrogen oxide emissions. By avoiding combustion totally, these gas cells enable ammonia’s nitrogen content material to stay in its inert type, eliminating a key well being threat.
Ammonia Gas Delays for Viking Vitality
Regardless of the challenges, specialists imagine ammonia may change into a mainstream maritime gas—however not in a single day. “Twenty or thirty years in the past, the delivery trade made a serious shift to natural gas, believing it was the gas of the long run. Now, we all know it wasn’t the suitable step,” says Prousalidis.
Trying again at previous gas transitions, he famous that every shift—from steam to grease, after which to pure gasoline—took round 20 years to realize full adoption. He expects the same timeline for the adoption of ammonia or hydrogen. “We should be affected person whereas persisting in our efforts and never getting discouraged by early challenges.”
That perspective aligns with what Equinor’s vice chairman of renewable and low-carbon expertise, Henriette Undrum, informed IEEE Spectrum in 2021 when she urged the general public to be affected person: “We aren’t simply fixing one small drawback for one ship. It’s a part of the larger image. Will probably be a place to begin to construct up the marketplace for zero-carbon fuels.”
Eidesvik’s ammonia-powered Viking Vitality is now slated to ship out in 2026.Eidesvik
As ammonia and hydrogen achieve traction as maritime fuels, seaports may play a pivotal position in in fixing ammonia’s chicken-and-egg drawback. Vitality corporations are cautious of investing in various gas infrastructure when there aren’t any ships that run on the brand new gas, and shipbuilders are wish to keep away from shelling out a whole bunch of thousands and thousands of {dollars} to construct vessels for which there isn’t any regular gas provide.
“Seaports are already present process an power transformation,” says Prousalidis. “It will make sense for them to function as power hubs—producing, storing, and buying and selling alternative fuels for gas cells and different power-generation gadgets.” By doing so, he says, ports may flip a revenue whereas additionally breaking the stalemate and contributing to world decarbonization efforts.
Though issues about nitrogen oxide emissions stay, corporations together with the partnership that’s retrofitting the Viking Vitalityare reportedly designing post-combustion techniques, analogous to the catalytic converters in vehicle exhaust techniques, to filter out dangerous byproducts. A method referred to as selective catalytic discount converts nitrogen oxides into nitrogen and water. Ammonia slip catalysts seize unburned ammonia and break it down into the identical two inert merchandise.
In the meantime, momentum for ammonia- based mostly propulsion continues to construct. Hanwha Ocean, a shipbuilder based mostly in Geoje, South Korea and Houston-based power expertise firm Baker Hughes have introduced a partnership to develop a commercial ammonia-compatible propulsion system by 2027. The businesses are engaged on gas turbines able to working on 100% ammonia, with dual-fuel choices for pure gasoline.
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