Marine Fuels
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Basics
- This page aims to lay out information and ongoing research on fuels in the context of Maritime Operations
Small Craft
Current Standards
- Gasoline (Although typically Ethanol Free Gasoline due to the water contamination issue)
- Standard Road Diesel
Future Options
- Propane (Some OTS Options exist for this, in particular small outboard engines for things like small (inflatable) boats “john boats” and whatnot)
- Butanol / Butanol Blends (Same Prospects as Ethanol or Methanol for On-Road Fuels, but none of the Hydroscopic issues)
- Biodiesel (For Transesterification Biodiesel need to look into Fuel Lubricity issues for existing engines, also especially with tanks below the waterline etc Fuel Gelling may be an issue
- DME and OMEx
Larger Craft
Current Standards
- Heavy Fuel Oil (aka Bunker Oil / Sixth Oil / #6 Fuel Oil etc)
- Currently being phased out due to environmental, but also maintenance aspect (it’s a pita to work with/handle; essentially tar)
- Marine Diesel Oil (The new standard, although LNG may take it’s place)
Future Options
- LNG (Some new Cruise Ships and such are switching to this)
- Ammonia (In the form of Anhydrous Ammonia , complex to wprk with, but given Over the Water Transfer Operations are already quite involved and regulated, it is considered a viable fuel option (however not the case for average users in small craft etc)
- DME / OMEx / Bio-Diesel
Internal Links
- Marine DEF (It is a bit of a different composition to road Diesel Exhaust Fluid )
External Links
- A 2024 Paper Titled “ Potential of ammonia as a renewable fuel for maritime engines: a short bibliometric and bibliographic review”
- A Study from 2022 in the journal “The International Journal of Hydrogen Energy” Titled “Environmental and economic evaluation of ammonia as a fuel for short-sea shipping: A case study”