Final approval of ballast water system
At its 63rd session, the MEPC has granted Siemens final approval for its Sicure ballast water management system
Siemens's Industry Automation Division had received basic approval for Sicure in 2010. By granting final approval, the IMO confirms the system’s environmental compatibility and compliance with safety standards.
Sicure is a further development of the Chloropac system, which Siemens said had seen 35 years of successful shipboard use in treating seawater cooling circuits. The electrolytic system produces hypochlorite from the salt contained in seawater.
The Sicure system consists of a filtration stage followed by electrochlorination and a dosing unit that precisely meters the addition of hypochlorite. Electrochlorination occurs in a sidestream of the ballast water main. Only about 1% of the ballast water to be treated is carried through the system’s electrolysis cells. This makes for small system components that are easily integrated into existing vessels, according to Siemens.
Another key advantage of the Sicure system, Siemens said, is its use not only in treating ballast water but also in treating cooling water circuits on board. Since ballasting occurs only during very short periods in a ship’s lifetime, conventional ballast water systems remain idle 95% of the time. By contrast, the Sicure system can be used all of the time, eliminating the need for an additional system to treat cooling water. Siemens said it was particularly suited to vessels above a gross tonnage of 35,000.
The company noted that under an international convention adopted by IMO member states to avoid the spread of alien aquatic organisms and pathogens carried in untreated ballast water, all seagoing vessels must operate IMO-approved ballast water management systems. The convention will come into force in the near future and entail retrofitting approximately 50,000 vessels worldwide, Siemens said.
