Shipboard trials begin on SCR NOx emission equipment

Shipboard trials of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) nitrogen oxide (NOx) removal equipment will be conducted on board NYK Line’s new bulk coal carrier Initial Salute by a consortium which includes Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, Oshima Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Akasaka Diesels Limited, and Sakai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.. The carrier was built by Oshima Shipbuilding. This is the world’s first trial of SCR NOx removal equipment after turbo charging on a low-speed marine diesel engine. The new SCR NOx removal equipment will meet the tier III NOx emission control requirement by further reducing emissions while maintaining the superior combustion efficiency that is the main feature of a low-speed marine diesel engine. Catalyst poisoning will be reduced to a minimum level by suppressing the sulfur in diesel fuel to approximately 0.1 percent.  The IMO-adopted MARPOL Convention is the main international convention covering the prevention of the pollution of the marine environment by shipping. In line with MARPOL Annex VI (Regulations for the Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships) that came into effect on May 19, 2005, NOx emission controls (tier I controls) for diesel engines installed on vessels were implemented in Japan. Later the convention was revised and a new NOx emission level (tier II controls) came into force on July 1, 2010. Tier III was adopted in 2008, targeting vessels to be constructed from 2016 and limited to emission control areas, to seek the reduction of NOx emissions by about 80 percent from that of the first tier. (June 23, 2011)