Zero-carbon fuels and marine shipping: Both a will and a way? says an article on Greenbiz.
Marine shipping
The marine shipping sector consumes around 10 quadrillion British thermal units (Btus) of fuel and emits 1 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. That’s more than all of Germany’s emissions, more than all of Saudi Arabia’s emissions, and roughly equal to the emissions from all passenger vehicles in the United States. By any reasonable measure, the shipping industry is a major global emitter, one of the economic sectors that must be fully decarbonized by mid-century to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Eliminating GHG emissions from marine shipping is an enormous undertaking, but the technological path forward has been reasonably clear for a few years. What has been missing is the requisite will among the shipping industry and regional and international regulators to require and implement the steps that need to be taken.
Greenhouse gas emissions can be eliminated from the marine sector largely by shifting from heavy fuel oil and marine diesel to zero-carbon fuels (ZCF) such as hydrogen and ammonia, as detailed by the Clean Air Task Force, other nongovernmental organizations, academic and government experts, and financial institutions.
Ammonia, made by combining hydrogen with nitrogen captured from ambient air, looks like a particularly promising marine fuel, especially for transoceanic voyages — provided the hydrogen and the nitrogen are sourced from processes that emit little to no greenhouse gas. It can be used in fuel cells or — more conveniently, at least in the near term — in retrofitted or purpose-built versions of the massive two- and four-stroke internal combustion engines that propel container ships, tankers, and bulk carriers around the world.
Ammonia as a fuel?
Ammonia contains no carbon atoms, so no carbon dioxide is produced when it is converted into energy, regardless of whether that conversion happens in a fuel cell or in a reciprocating engine. And, as explained more fully here, production technologies that use carbon capture and storage systems or renewable- or nuclear-derived electricity can make ammonia with little to no associated greenhouse gas emissions. To be clear, ammonia fuel presents real challenges — it’s a toxic substance that requires careful handling, and harmful nitrogen oxide gases can form when ammonia is combusted — but the challenges look to be manageable through a combination of time-tested safety protocols and modern emission control systems.
For more information read our article Ammonia Bunker Supply Chain Study
The emerging evidence of a will to decarbonize the marine sector — among pioneering retail and commodity companies willing to invest in strategies to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from the marine portion of their supply chains, among innovative shipbuilders and engine technology developers and, most recently, among key policymakers — is just a start. But it’s a start we can build on.
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Source: Greenbiz
