Alfa Laval – a leader in heat transfer, separation, and fluid handling, has reported progress with a carbon capture technology it has been testing for ships. The test of the new system has been completed successfully along with a partner – Japan’s National Maritime Research Institute (NMRI).
The technology is called Alfa Laval PureSOx and involves a full-scale hybrid scrubber system that absorbs CO2 from the auxiliary diesel engines. It could also prove to be one of the cheapest ways of removing GHGs for vessels.
“Alfa Laval PureSOx is a proven solution with a long track record in SOx abatement… For this project, the scope was limited to showing that a scrubber could perform the CO2 capture on board,” said Rene Diks, head of exhaust gas cleaning systems at Alfa Laval company.
Other Carbon Capture Technology Innovations
Other marine companies like TECO 2030 have also approved of the scrubber system technology, calling it “technically and financially viable”. The Norwegian engineering company is also developing carbon capture solutions for the shipping industry.
It represents a cryogenic technology that captures CO2 from the ships and turns it into a liquid while optimizing the space needed for CO2 storage. TECO 2030 also wants to combine its technology for carbon capture and storage (CCS) on ships with an exhaust gas cleaning system for vessels to provide a more versatile solution for ship owners.
Decarbonizing the marine industry is one of Alfa Laval’s long-term missions, according to the company statement. It has been involved with other projects and research along with NMRI Japan. The company is also a strategic corporate partner in the Maersk Mc‑Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping.
CCS on ships can provide a potential bridge for reaching zero emissions at sea before carbon neutral fuels become more widespread. However, according to Alfa Laval more development is needed before CCS can be deployed at sea. But the progress of the carbon removal technology and recent successful testing showed clear potential in the approach.
