New propulsion sytems for ships

[brian eiland]

[quote=mydauphin;152660These big engines run on fuel oil#4 and higher.

Their fuel is like tar, requires pre-warning to be fully liquid. But it is dirt cheap. So my guess they want to mix tar and emulsifier to make it easier to pump and cleaner to burn.[/QUOTE]
Is this same 'crude' that Venezuela speaks of having a HUGE reserve of?

[Kiteship]

Originally Posted by Guillermo

NOx emission limits are set for diesel engines over 130 kW, which range from 9.8 to 17 g/kWh depending on the engine maximum operating speed, as shown:
n < 130 rpm: 17.0 g/kWh
130 rpm ≤ n < 2000 rpm: 45 x n^-0.2 g/kWh
n ≥ 2000 rpm: 9.8 g/kWh

On the problems of controlling NOx emmissions from ships, read the clarifying:
http://www.dnv.com/publications/clas...inedmarpol.asp

I wonder whether a ship which produces, say, 20 g/kWh, but uses a sailing or kite rig 20% of the time at sea... Could there be a cogent case to consider such an engine to produce an "equivalent" of 16 g/kWh, and thus be in compliance?

Without actually building such a vessel, I wonder who I might speak to, in order to try this test scenario?

Dave

[Guillermo]

Originally Posted by Kiteship

I wonder whether a ship which produces, say, 20 g/kWh, but uses a sailing or kite rig 20% of the time at sea... Could there be a cogent case to consider such an engine to produce an "equivalent" of 16 g/kWh, and thus be in compliance?

That's an excellent question. People from SkySails seem to have been doing some movements about that posssibility, but I have not enough info. Even being competitors, perhaps you and Stephan Wrage could talk and join forces before the IMO to that end. Just a personal idea with no support at all....

[charmc]

Originally Posted by mydauphin

Their fuel is like tar, requires pre-warning to be fully liquid. But it is dirt cheap. So my guess they want to mix tar and emulsifier to make it easier to pump and cleaner to burn.

#4 and #6 fuel oil are very high viscosity. #6 is the one that needs to be heated to more than 350 deg F or so before it will even flow. "Orimulsion" was promoted by some power companies and Venezula as a cleaner burning fuel for power plants, because the water content (steam) in the emulsion would reduce NOX. Trouble is, there is much more particulate and heavy metal pollution from that fuel. It's actually the sludge left in the tanks after the crude has all been pumped out and refined. #6 is pretty bad, but "Orimulsion" is really nasty stuff. Venezuela wanted to get it approved because that would enable them to make money on material they formerly had to pay to have removed from the big bulk storage tanks at refineries. Power companies wanted it because it was very, very cheap.

[Steve B]

Just out of interest, and hopefully not diverting too much from the subject, is the rate of NOx emission really related to the inverse fifth root of the engine's operating revs, or was 45 x n^-0.2 found to be a convenient equation that fitted the required figures for slower or faster running engines?

[mydauphin]

Originally Posted by brian eiland

Is this same 'crude' that Venezuela speaks of having a HUGE reserve of?

YEah, there stuff is like tar. If the US boycotts him, he has problem since his oil is refined here. Unfortunately it would increase the overall price of oil and we dont seem to have a stomach to fight against the oil extortionist.

[brian eiland]

Originally Posted by charmc

...... Venezuela wanted to get it approved because that would enable them to make money on material they formerly had to pay to have removed from the big bulk storage tanks at refineries. Power companies wanted it because it was very, very cheap.

It was my understanding that this 'crude' was uneconomical to consider in the world's energy markets until recently when oil prices reached over 60/barrel. At that point it was Venezuela's contention that this 'stuff' was a viable energy source, and considering that they have such a hugh amount of it that they should be 'reclassified' as possessing the world's largest crude oil reserves....even beyond Saudi.

Isn't this Venezuela crude even more processable than oil sands and shale?...on an energy density basis?

[charmc]

Brian,

It's not a question so much of energy content, but processing costs to extract useable products from the extra heavy crude. Heavier crude has more potential energy per unit of volume, but the percentage of useable products able to be produced from a unit of heavy crude is less than for light crude, as well as being more costly. I'm not a geologist or petroleum engineer, certainly no expert. It does appear for now, however, that the Venezuelan extra heavy crude is less costly to extract than crude from sand or shale, and causes less damage to the environment. As increasing world demand for petroleum products keeps crude prices high, there will be more money poured into R & D for better extraction processes, which should increase the pool of useable energy sources.

Interestingly, despite Hugo Chavez's posturing, Venezuela needs the US market as much as we need their crude, since nearly all US refineries are equipped to process heavy crude, while Venezuela's can handle only light crude (about 20% of their production). China wants Venezuelan crude, but the transport cost is huge, and refining capacity is still to be built.

[Guillermo]

Originally Posted by charmc

Interestingly, despite Hugo Chavez's posturing, Venezuela needs the US market as much as we need their crude, since nearly all US refineries are equipped to process heavy crude, while Venezuela's can handle only light crude (about 20% of their production). China wants Venezuelan crude, but the transport cost is huge, and refining capacity is still to be built.

Well, China's on the run. Chavez has already ordered 35 tankers and products vessels, to be built in the next 4-5 years period of time, to carry crude to China and bring from there refined products. He already abandoned the IMF, because he needs it no more. China is now his bank, the same way it's happening in Angola and several other petroleum producer countries.

[charmc]

Originally Posted by Guillermo

Well, China's on the run. Chavez has already ordered 35 tankers and products vessels, to be built in the next 4-5 years period of time, to carry crude to China and bring from there refined products. He already abandoned the IMF, because he needs it no more. China is now his bank, the same way it's happening in Angola and several other petroleum producer countries.

You're right, Guillermo. I should have made it clear that I was talking just about the immediate future. I think China will be willing to pay more to insure supplies of raw materials. Many changes coming down the road, as the economies of China and India begin to rev up.

[mydauphin]

Lets go plant a flag in North Pole before Russia gets it... Oh they said they got it... How about area around Florida - Gulf of Mexico... Oh Cuba is getting that... How about Iraq, we are spending huge sums of money there... OH IRAQ needs money so there selling to others.... And the rest of the oil producing world just love to see us struggle. Oh Well...

We are left with CANADA, and Mexico. Mexico is not our friend, just that buddy that is out to get whatever it can from us. That is why OIL Prices will double in price in the next couple of years... We all need sails.

[tom kane]

No we don`t need sails.New Zealand is opening up massive oil reserves in our southern oceans,we will sell you some oil at a reasonable price.You will have to promise that you won`t object to our Neuclear Power plants when we want to build them,when the oil runs out.

[Guillermo]

It's not going to be very easy, and you will even have to pay for your own oil!:

"Peter Brown: Will the Minister clarify the situation from the general public’s point of view: is he confident there will be an oil and gas find of any significance and, of course, with the prospect of recovery; if there is, will New Zealanders be expected to pay full world—global—prices for their fuel, or is there likely to be some sort of favourable discount regime, as apparently there is in some other oil-rich nations?
Hon HARRY DUYNHOVEN: In those countries that have major State-owned oil exploration companies that take the risks of the billions of dollars of expenditure required to produce a field like the Great South Basin themselves—such as the Brazils of the world, and so on—those countries obviously produce the oil for themselves and therefore are not subject to the international market regime. Because of our prospectivity we in New Zealand choose not to take the risk of the huge expenditure, and although there is a very strong likelihood of a very good discovery in the Great South Basin, there is also the absolute certainty of enormous costs. We will clip the ticket on the way by, but we will pay international market prices for any oil that is discovered."

And there are some extra problems:

"Jeanette Fitzsimons: What environmental impact studies were done, and what size of a bond, if any, have these oil and gas companies been required to post, to cover the possible environmental damage that could result from their activities in a region of highly valuable commercial fisheries and many endangered species, such as southern right whales, beaked whales, Hector’s dolphins, four species of endangered albatrosses, and many other seabirds and mammals?
Hon HARRY DUYNHOVEN: The exploration activity that has been undertaken by the Government to date includes seismic surveying, and we took very strong regard of the advice from the Department of Conservation, particularly with regard to marine mammals. We have adopted the policies—which are internationally up there with the best practice—of having a 20-minute starting cycle of low-intensity seismic work and low-intensity explosions, in order to ensure that any marine mammals in the area of several kilometres around are, if one likes, gently warned. We have also adopted a policy that where any dolphin, whale, or other marine mammal comes within 1 kilometre of seismic vessels, work would stop. However, what I want to tell the member is that whales, dolphins, and other marine mammals are actually curious and are often attracted to seismic vessels, as the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research found in the small amount of seismic work that it has done. We are taking care to look after the environment, taking the best guidelines we can, and of course no project gets approval without meeting environmental requirements set out under the Maritime Transport Act."

(NZ's Parliament, 19th July 2007)

[tom kane]

Jeanette Fitzsimons..? is probably happy New Zealanders have access to Alcohol enriched fuel,sadly motorists will get their litre of fuel which will have less energy value and less milage than the previous fuel,plus all the problems that go with fuel changes.Everyone wants to save the planet but most of our energy saving advice is lacking in facts.The heady days of having two basic reliable fuels available are just about over,like when we had to improvise for our WW2 conservation of energy programs.It is a pity that such an important problem cannot produce unbiased planning.Our energy saving manufacturers and industries will absorbe any energy saving we may achieve.

[brian eiland]

US researchers say they have invented a lightweight paper battery that could serve as an enhanced power storage device for the next generation of consumer electronic devices.

The battery produces electricity in the same way as the conventional lithium-ion batteries that power so many of today's gadgets, but all the components have been incorporated into a lightweight, flexible sheet of paper.

An early prototype of the device, just big enough to be held between thumb and forefinger, kicks out 2.5 volts, enough juice to power a small fan, or illuminate a light, and its inventors say the battery can be easily scaled up to provide enough power to run any number of electronic gadgets.

"You can stack one sheet on top of another to boost the power output," said Robert Linhardt, a biology and chemistry professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, and a project team member.

"We've already experimented with 10 sheets, but there's nothing to stop you using 500, and they can be rolled, bent or folded into any shape or space you like. There are endless design possibilities."

As manufacturers strive to pack more functionality into smaller and smaller devices, the pressure is on to shrink components as much as possible, but in many cases the battery is still the bulkiest part of any electronic device.

The Rensselaer scientists substituted tiny carbon filaments or nanotubes for the electrodes used in a conventional battery and used an ionic liquid solution as an electrolyte - the two components that conduct electricity.

They used the cellulose or paper as a separator - the third essential component of a battery.

"It's a single, integrated device," said Linhardt. "The components are molecularly attached to each other: the carbon nanotube print is embedded in the paper and the electrolyte is soaked into the paper. The end result is a device that looks, feels, and weighs the same as paper."

The device can function in temperatures of 300 degrees Fahrenheit and down to 100 below zero, and was engineered to function as both a battery and a supercapacitor, a device that charges almost instantaneously and is often used for industrial applications.

Beyond laptop computers, cellphones or digital cameras, the paper batteries would be ideal for use in automobiles, aircraft and even boats because of their light weight, the researchers said. The device is 90 percent cellulose.

"The paper could also be molded into different shapes, such as a car door, which would enable important new engineering innovations.

The materials used in the prototype are inexpensive but the team is still working on ways to mass produce the paper battery cheaply. They hope that eventually they can print the paper using a roll-to-roll system similar to how newspapers are printed.

The researchers reported the details of their invention in a paper that appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

A battery that looks like a sheet of paper and can be bent and twisted, trimmed with scissors or molded into any needed shape has been developed by researchers at
Photo: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute