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SAFER, SMARTER, GREENER

TECHNICAL UPDATE 11-2014 / OCTOBER

STRICTER SULFUR REQUIREMENTS

FOR ECA’S ENTERING INTO FORCE

1 JANUARY 2015

On 1 January 2015 will the sulfur requirements in EmissionControl Areas (ECA) be stricter again. At that time will ves-

sels operating in ECA’s be required to comply to a sulfurcontent of just 0,10 per cent.

The SOx requirements apply to all fuel oils as defined inMARPOL Annex VI Reg.2.9.

Currently there are four (4) designated ECA’s which includes;the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, the North American ECA,which extends up to 200 nm from the coasts of the conti-nental United States & Canada & the US Carribean Sea.

Compliance with the new ECA requirements can be ob-tained by either using ECA compliant fuel at all times, or

to switch to low sulfur fuel when entering an ECA. Whenswitching to ECA compliant fuel oil, it is required to have a“written procedure showing how the fuel oil change overis to be done” according to MARPOL Annex VI Reg.14.6.The detailed change over procedure should be readableavailable and the ship’s crew shall be familiar with it.Further it is required that the change-over process is fullycompleted before entering the ECA. A logbook for regis-tering the fuel oil change-over has to be kept on board asprescribed by the Administration.

As already mentioned in different newsletters issued by

DNVGL earlier, imposes the fuel oil change over potentialchallenges as specified in ISO 8217, such as low viscosity,lubricity, flashpoint, ignition and combustion quality. Amajor challenge is the low viscosity of the fuel oils whichmight cause leakages on the diesel engines, boilers andpumps. Internal leakages in fuel supply and fuel injectionpumps, might result in reduced fuel supply to the engine,which will have consequences for the engine perfor-mance (e.g. starting of engine). Ship owners may considerinstalling fuel pumps and injection nozzles which adapt

to fuel with low viscosity. Too low viscosity oil will lead toincreased wear or seizure of fuel oil pumps.

Because of the explosion risks connected to the use ofhighly volatile fuels on board ships, IMO has bannedthe use of fuels with a flashpoint lower than 60 degreesCelsius. An internal study has shown that most of the lowsulfur fuel oils have a flashpoint lower than 60 degrees.These fuel oils should not be used on board and shall behandled in accordance with instructions from the FlagAdministration and Class Society. Please note that theflashpoint is part of the Bunker Delivery Note.

It might be advisable to install cooler or chiller units inthe fuel or return line to prevent that the fuel oil is heated

above 40 degrees Celsius which will lead to lower viscosityand hence may concur problems with the diesel engines,boilers, pumps etc. as described.

Ship owners should be aware that MARPOL Annex VIReg.4.1 allows the use of alternative compliance measuresprovided that the vessels flag administration certifies thatthese installations are “at least as effective in terms ofemissions reductions as that required”.

DNVGL constantly monitors international development onthe environment for you and may assist in updating your

organization on legislation developments and correspond-ing technical developments, both on the ship design andsystems / equipment needed for you to be prepared forthe future.

CONTACT

claudia.hessen@dnvgl.com

DNV GL - Maritime, Brooktorkai 18, 20457 Hamburg, Germany, Tel: +49 40 36149 0, www.dnvgl.com DNV GL Disclaimer of liability