Emissions from main propulsion engine on container ship at sea

Abstract

Emission measurements were made for major gases and PM 2.5 mass for a post PanaMax Class container vessel operating on heavy fuel oil at sea. Additional measurements were made for PM composition, elemental and organic carbon, select hydrocarbons, including PAHs, carbonyls, and n-alkanes. The testing followed the International Standard Organization protocols for emission measurements and operating test cycle. Results showed the weighted emission factor for NO x and PM 2.5 were 19.77 ± 0.28 and 2.40 ± 0.05 g/kWh, respectively. The study provided a rare opportunity to repeat measurements made three years earlier on the same vessel. Emission factors of CO 2 and NO x closely matched the earlier values, suggesting a low deterioration factor. Results showed the black carbon emission factor was 0.007 ± 0.001 g/kWh, an important metric for determining the radiative forcing contribution of marine engines. Copyright 2010 by the American Geophysical Union.