The shipping industry is "eyeing" wind energy in reducing emissions
▲A cargo ship equipped with a wind-driven rotor system.
To meet the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) decarbonization goals by 2050, the shipping industry is deploying low-carbon fuels and innovative technologies on a large scale to decarbonize. In this context, wind-driven ships are once again entering the ocean-going ship market.
Wind-driven ships are popular
Brazilian mining giant Vale has announced that it has signed a cooperation agreement with Omani shipowner Asyad to install a large wind drive system on its largest ore cargo ship to improve the energy efficiency of cargo ships and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the logistics and transportation process.
According to information released by Vale, five cylindrical wind energy rotor systems with a length of 362 meters and a width of 65 meters will be installed on the iron ore transport vessel with a length of 362 meters and a diameter of 5 meters, and the ship will be propelled forward by using offshore wind energy. According to the plan, the ship can use wind power to reduce fuel consumption during the journey, the overall energy system efficiency is expected to increase by about 6%, and each ship can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 3,000 tons per year.
Rodrigo Bmello, Vale's Technical Manager for Shipping, noted that wind-powered systems will play a central role in the decarbonisation of the maritime sector of minerals. The environmental technology pilots that are currently being promoted can provide valuable lessons for the decarbonization of ocean-going vessels in the future.
In fact, in recent years, in addition to Vale, there are also a number of multinational shipping giants around the world that have "eyed" wind-powered ships.
Multinational dry bulk carrier owner Pyxis Ocean recently announced the installation of two 37.5-metre-long rigid "sails" on a 229-metre-long and 32-metre-wide dry cargo vessel, mainly supported by steel and glass composites, to propel the vessel forward when the wind conditions are right. It has been estimated that the wind drive system can save 1.5 tons of fuel per year and reduce CO2 emissions by about 20 tons per year.
According to Gard, a global shipping insurer, wind drive is considered a key component of global ship decarbonization, and sail systems will power carbon-based fuel systems, potentially providing an overall "energy efficiency gain" of 1%-8% for a single ship.
There are many ways to innovate in emission reduction technology
Estimates show that the global shipping industry can produce 1 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. In order to promote the green transformation of the international shipping industry, in July this year, the IMO released the latest greenhouse gas emission reduction strategy for ships, proposing to peak the greenhouse gas emissions of the international shipping industry as soon as possible and consider achieving net zero emissions around 2050. The strategy also includes a number of milestones, including reducing emissions by at least 20% by 2030 from 2008 levels and by at least 70% by 2040.
This also means that there is an urgent need to decarbonize the global shipping industry. In order to achieve the carbon reduction goal as soon as possible, shipping companies have begun to try innovative technologies many times. Vale, for example, says it is testing innovative technologies through its "Eco-Voyage" project, such as installing a real-time data collection system to monitor energy systems and using frequency converters to reduce electricity consumption.
In addition to the use of wind energy, solar-powered ships are also in the shipping industry's field of vision. Carisbrooke, a British shipowner, recently announced a partnership with a photovoltaic company to install photovoltaic modules on the deck of cargo ships to optimize the ship's energy supply system using solar power generation and energy storage systems. Simon Merritt, captain of Carisbrooke, said the company hopes to find more viable decarbonisation solutions through further modifications and upgrades.
Not only that, the shipping industry is also actively exploring other measures to improve energy efficiency and reduce fuel consumption, including the use of smoother coatings to reduce the running resistance of ships, the use of underwater power units to increase power, the use of air lubrication systems, etc.
Proper application may be the icing on the cake
However, from the perspective of the industry, although the emerging carbon reduction technology routes and application methods available on ships are very diverse, the role of the above measures in decarbonizing the whole industry may only be "icing on the cake", and the key to achieving the zero-carbon goal of the shipping industry is still the use of low-carbon and green alternative fuels.
According to Jan Dillerman, president of Cargill Marine Transportation, the wind drive system is a unique technology that can combine traditional internal combustion engines with energy-efficiency technologies to reduce emissions. "However, unless people are willing to shut down all internal combustion engines, the use of wind energy alone will never allow the shipping industry to reach its net-zero emissions target."
Gard also pointed out in the analysis that so far, the experience of installing wind drive equipment on the world's large commercial ships is still quite limited, and the new wind drive equipment has a high level of automation, and the captain and crew need to receive additional training, including training to optimize navigation efficiency and system operation, to ensure a safe and reliable voyage.
Despite this, the shipping industry still has high hopes for wind power and other clean energy drive systems. Jan Dillerman said that compared with traditional fossil fuels, emerging low-carbon fuels such as biomethanol and green ammonia are significantly more expensive and less dense, requiring larger tanks to complete the same voyage. With wind drive systems, emerging low-carbon fuels will gain more market space, and the return on investment may be significantly shortened, which in turn will encourage more shipowners to participate in them and accelerate the decarbonization of the marine industry.
