Marine Diesel Exhaust Gas Emissions: Bulk Carrier 2015 ECA Ready

Clean Marine’s Exhaust Gas Cleaning System (EGCS, or more informally ‘scrubber system’) fitted to Torvald Klaveness’ bulk carrier MV Balder is the first, say the manufacturers, to operate this type of system inside the US Emission Control Area (ECA). The ship’s master obtained prior permission from the US Coast Guard to enter and exit the zone burning its normal Heavy Fuel Oil, with diesel engine exhaust gasses scrubbed by the EGCS, rather than burning the more expensive Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (1% Sulphur content).
Subsequently, officials from the U.S. Coast Guard and EPA, conducted a Port State Control examination in Baltimore and confirmed that the installed Clean Marine EGCS was operating satisfactorily and in full compliance with MARPOL Annex VI as an alternative to burning low sulphur fuel oil as set out in the vessel’s International Air Pollution Prevention Certificate. MV Balder thus already complies with the much stricter 2015 emission regulation when operating in Europe and North America ECA’s.
Features of the patented Clean Marine EGCS
The manufacturers say it is the only system currently on the market with true multi-stream exhaust gas handling with all exhaust sources onboard – including boilers – served by one common EGC unit without any increase in back pressure. This (cost saving) feature is achieved by employing two fans and a gas recirculation mechanism integrated into the EGC unit, which ensures that pressure at the common gas meeting point is maintained at ambient level, irrespective of the amount of exhaust fed to the system.
Clean Marine say that their open or closed loop (hybrid) wet scrubbing system differs from other systems in that it uses caustic soda in both modes, which means vessels can operate in all types of water (including low alkaline and saline water) in either mode and without loss of efficiency. Furthermore, the use of caustic soda enables this EGCS to meet the current pH limit for wash-water discharges with a good margin in hand.
It appears that this scrubber system is not only efficient in sulphur separation but is also a formidable opponent of exhaust gas particulate matter (popularly, soot) filtered out as the exhaust passes through Clean Marine’s high speed ‘Advanced Vortex Chamber’ trapping mechanism.
Located in Oslo, Norway, the company was formed in 2006 and adds that they hace invested more than US$20-million in pioneering and patenting their multi-stream hybrid EGCS system development.
Source: Maritime Propulsion