Abstract
Currently, most ships use internal combustion engines (ICEs) either as propulsion engines or generator sets. The growing concern in environmental protection along with the consequent international rule framework motivated shipowners and designers to replace conventional power systems in order to mitigate pollutant emissions. Therefore, manufacturers have made available on the market many technological solutions to use alternative fuels (Liquefied Natural Gas or LNG, methanol, etc.). However, the main energy source is still fossil fuel, so almost all the ICEs are made up of turbocharged diesel engines (TDEs). TDEs have still the potential to improve their efficiency and reduce fuel consumption and pollutant emissions. In particular, the interpretation of Industry 4.0 given by manufacturers enabled the installation of a robust network of sensors on TDEs, which is able to allow reliable power management systems and make ships much more efficient regarding operating costs (fuel consumption and maintenance) and environmental footprint. In this paper, a software tool that is capable of processing the in-live performance of TDEs is described. The great novelty consists in the ability to process all the information detected by the sensor network in-live and dynamically optimize TDEs’ operation, whereas the common practice involves the collection of performance data and their off-line processing.
Highlights
On board all operative ships, internal combustion engines (ICEs) are installed with the function of both propulsion engines and auxiliaries in electric energy generators
These automation systems are made up of a dense network of sensors that allows the detection of performance data of the turbocharged diesel engines (TDEs) and a series of actuators that are able to adjust the functional parameters of most of the auxiliary devices, in order to make the TDE always work at a maximum of its possibilities
Turbocharger efficiencies in terms of compressor efficiency η, turbine efficiency η, and During the first phase of Configuration Set Up, the software requires the user to make all the choices previously mentioned in order to generate a Set Up Environment
Summary
On board all operative ships, internal combustion engines (ICEs) are installed with the function of both propulsion engines and auxiliaries in electric energy generators. Given the effectiveness of the application of exhaust gas treatment systems such as SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) and Scrubber, the main energy source in marine industry is still Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) In reality, this choice is a consequence of the fact that shipowners must guarantee an adequate return on investment, and the major contributors in the life cycle cost of a ship are precisely maintenance and fuel. The adoption of the Industry 4.0 paradigm by engine manufacturers has led the development of a new generation of products equipped with advanced automation systems [13] These automation systems are made up of a dense network of sensors that allows the detection of performance data of the TDEs and a series of actuators that are able to adjust the functional parameters of most of the auxiliary devices, in order to make the TDE always work at a maximum of its possibilities. Given the importance of determining the emissions, the tool calculates them by using two methods, the Air Nozzle and the Carbon Balance methods, both widely described below
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