Current research outlook on solar-assisted new energy ships: representative applications and fuel & GHG emission benefits

Abstract

Shipping industries, one of the efficient modes of freight transport for global trade, are now being forced to demonstrate environmental commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions progressively. Stakeholders in the maritime community have proposed various countermeasures and action plans, including applying new energy resources for the future development of ship powers. This paper introduces a comprehensive review to categorize the pathways and highlight the core technological concepts, technical issues, current applications, implementation barriers, and future outlooks regarding integrating new energy resources into ship power systems, including single solar-powered and hybrid new energy resources. Eco-friendly energy sources were promising energy savings and GHG emission benefits. Still, integrating new energy source generation systems would significantly depend on several critical factors. Because ships require a large surface area for installing PV panels, the utilization of solar-assisted power generation on large-scale boats is currently uncommon. The energy generated by the PV generating system is mostly utilized for lighting and electricity. Integrating new energy source generating systems with current ship power systems is a viable approach for enhancing energy efficiency will likely be the focus of future ship-based energy system research. Furthermore, due to the variety of applications, the ship type, power system structure, and navigation area should be considered while selecting a suitable new energy source.