Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
HEFEI, June 29 (Xinhua) — The world’s first demonstration ship running on clean ammonia fuel, the Anhui, has successfully completed its maiden voyage in Hefei, east China’s Anhui Province, marking a major step forward in the development of green shipping.
Ammonia, a key raw material for the chemical industry, has a high energy density. Being a carbon-free substance, it produces only water and nitrogen when completely burned. This makes it a very promising fuel for decarbonizing shipping.
In recent years, several shipping companies in Japan, Norway and other countries have been actively investing in developing ammonia-fueled ships. A 2021 report by the International Energy Agency estimated that up to 45 percent of global marine fuel demand would be met by ammonia by 2050 to achieve a “net zero scenario.” However, ammonia fuel also faces challenges such as difficulty in ignition and combustion instability.
The ammonia-powered vessel Anhui was jointly developed by the Institute of Energy of Hefei National Comprehensive Science Center and its subsidiary Shenzhen Haixu New Energy Co., Ltd. It is equipped with a 200 kW high-speed gas combustion generator, two 100 kW electric motors and a twin-screw propulsion system. Its full deadweight is 50 tons and its rated speed is 10 knots.
Wu Dianwu of the aforementioned institute said that the research team has overcome several key technological difficulties. These include plasma ignition of pure ammonia fuel, stable combustion, efficient catalytic cracking of ammonia gas to produce hydrogen, and efficient combustion and combustion control of hydrogen-ammonia fuel mixture in internal combustion engines. In addition, the team has also developed a pure ammonia fuel burner and various catalytic cracking devices for ammonia gas.
During the maiden voyage, it was possible to achieve stable and complete combustion of pure ammonia fuel, almost zero carbon dioxide emissions and effective control of nitrogen oxides. This confirms the potential for widespread use of hydrogen-ammonia fuel in marine and land transport, industrial boilers and fuel cells, Wu Dianwu noted.
Wang Junli, secretary general of the China Society of Shipbuilding, said the vessel’s successful voyage marked a milestone in building a clean, low-carbon energy system for waterborne transport. With pure ammonia engines reaching megawatt-class power, there will be broad prospects for their deployment. This is of particular significance in the context of China’s efforts to achieve “dual carbon goals” of peaking carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. -0-