Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships
The maritime industry remains a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In this article, a systematic study has been performed on the alternative fuel emissions of large cargo ships under different route scenarios and propulsion systems. For this purpose, a set of key perfo...
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MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1313 |
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| author | Diego Díaz-Cuenca Antonio Villalba-Herreros Teresa J. Leo Rafael d’Amore-Domenech |
| author_facet | Diego Díaz-Cuenca Antonio Villalba-Herreros Teresa J. Leo Rafael d’Amore-Domenech |
| author_sort | Diego Díaz-Cuenca |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The maritime industry remains a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In this article, a systematic study has been performed on the alternative fuel emissions of large cargo ships under different route scenarios and propulsion systems. For this purpose, a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) are evaluated, including total equivalent CO<sub>2</sub> emissions (CO<sub>2eq</sub>), CO<sub>2eq</sub> emissions per unit of transport mass and CO<sub>2eq</sub> emissions per unit of transport mass per distance. The emissions analysis demonstrates that Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) paired with Marine Gas Oil (MGO) emerges as the most viable short-term solution in comparison with the conventional fuel oil propulsion. Synthetic methanol (eMeOH) paired with synthetic diesel (eDiesel) is identified as the most promising long-term fuel combination. When comparing the European Union (EU) emission calculation system (FuelEU) with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) emission metrics, a discrepancy in emissions reduction outcomes has been observed. The IMO approach appears to favor methanol (MeOH) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) over conventional fuel oil. This is attributed to the fact that the IMO metrics do not consider unburned methane emissions (methane slip) and emissions in the production of fuels (Well-to-Tank). |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e64bf163b96545bda592e2bb2467e817 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2077-1312 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| spelling | doaj-art-e64bf163b96545bda592e2bb2467e8172025-08-20T03:58:26ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122025-07-01137131310.3390/jmse13071313Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier ShipsDiego Díaz-Cuenca0Antonio Villalba-Herreros1Teresa J. Leo2Rafael d’Amore-Domenech3Departamento de Arquitectura, Construcción y Sistemas Oceánicos y Navales, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Navales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Avenida de la Memoria 4, 28040 Madrid, SpainDepartamento de Arquitectura, Construcción y Sistemas Oceánicos y Navales, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Navales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Avenida de la Memoria 4, 28040 Madrid, SpainDepartamento de Arquitectura, Construcción y Sistemas Oceánicos y Navales, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Navales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Avenida de la Memoria 4, 28040 Madrid, SpainDepartamento de Arquitectura, Construcción y Sistemas Oceánicos y Navales, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Navales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Avenida de la Memoria 4, 28040 Madrid, SpainThe maritime industry remains a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In this article, a systematic study has been performed on the alternative fuel emissions of large cargo ships under different route scenarios and propulsion systems. For this purpose, a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) are evaluated, including total equivalent CO<sub>2</sub> emissions (CO<sub>2eq</sub>), CO<sub>2eq</sub> emissions per unit of transport mass and CO<sub>2eq</sub> emissions per unit of transport mass per distance. The emissions analysis demonstrates that Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) paired with Marine Gas Oil (MGO) emerges as the most viable short-term solution in comparison with the conventional fuel oil propulsion. Synthetic methanol (eMeOH) paired with synthetic diesel (eDiesel) is identified as the most promising long-term fuel combination. When comparing the European Union (EU) emission calculation system (FuelEU) with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) emission metrics, a discrepancy in emissions reduction outcomes has been observed. The IMO approach appears to favor methanol (MeOH) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) over conventional fuel oil. This is attributed to the fact that the IMO metrics do not consider unburned methane emissions (methane slip) and emissions in the production of fuels (Well-to-Tank).https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1313LNGmethanolpropulsion systemsFuelEUroute optimizationzero emissions shipping |
| spellingShingle | Diego Díaz-Cuenca Antonio Villalba-Herreros Teresa J. Leo Rafael d’Amore-Domenech Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships Journal of Marine Science and Engineering LNG methanol propulsion systems FuelEU route optimization zero emissions shipping |
| title | Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships |
| title_full | Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships |
| title_fullStr | Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships |
| title_full_unstemmed | Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships |
| title_short | Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships |
| title_sort | alternative fuels in the maritime industry emissions evaluation of bulk carrier ships |
| topic | LNG methanol propulsion systems FuelEU route optimization zero emissions shipping |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1313 |
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