Wärtsilä unveils methanol fuel option for new and existing ships
The MethanolPac fuel supply system and the Wärtsilä 32 Methanol engine form a unit for the use of methanol in marine applications (Source: Wärtsilä Corporation)
Technology group Wärtsilä has released details of a new fuel supply system, MethanolPac, which can operate with the Wärtsilä 32 Methanol engine to provide an entire system for new and existing ships. Suitable for both main engines and auxiliary applications, the system is a potential option for a wide range of ship types.
MethanolPac, which includes low- and high-pressure components and control and safety arrangements, can be retrofitted to any of the more than 5,000 conventionally fuelled Wärtsilä 32 engines currently in use, the company said. The fuel injection system makes such conversions relatively simple because one supplier provides both the engine and the fuel supply system.
The first MethanolPac fuel supply system, together with Wärtsilä 32 Methanol engines, is to be installed on a new wind turbine jack-up currently being built for Dutch marine engineering and dredging company, Van Oord. The vessel is being built at Yantai CIMC Raffles shipyard in China.
Methanol, used in many industrial processes, is widely available. In its renewable form, it is a very low carbon fuel that can be produced from biomass (bio-methanol) or from carbon dioxide and hydrogen produced from renewable electricity. According to the Methanol Institute, renewable methanol cuts emissions of carbon dioxide by 95%, NOx emissions by up to 80%, and SOx and particulate pollution almost entirely.
