Improvement of Environmental and Energy Efficiency of Marine Engines by Utilizing the Ecological Recirculation of Gas Heat in an Absorption Chiller

Abstract

Technical regulation is carried out based on the real possibility of ensuring the required level of environmental friendliness of harmful emissions. Requirements for the environmental safety of ships are developed by the International Marine Organization (IMO). The requirements of IMO standards, applications, and protocols of the MARPOL 73/78 convention regulate technical, organizational, and legal environmental protection issues at sea. Their implementation often leads to a reduction of the economic and energy performance of marine diesel engines. However, the main difficulties in ensuring the environmental safety of internal combustion engines are associated with the selectivity of the components of the exhaust gases system. The innovative scheme of Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) system with using the heat of recirculation gas by absorption chiller (ACh) for cooling the air at the intake of main ship engine is proposed. The effect of using the heat of recirculation gas for cooling engine intake air is analyzed considering the changing climatic conditions on the vessel’s route line. The results of calculations have shown reducing the emissions of harmful substances (NOX by 26 to 39%; SOX by 9 to 14%) when the engine is running with recirculation of gas.