Development of hybrid electron accelerator system for the treatment of marine diesel exhaust gases

The mobile particle accelerator unit for ship exhaust gas treatment by Fraunhofer, 05.07.2019.
Photo: Riga Technical University

ARIES PoC stands for Proof of Concept under the «Accelerator Research and Innovation for European Science and Society» project

The proof to be made here is connected with the development of a hybrid electron accelerator system for the treatment of marine diesel exhaust gases.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has recently enforced stricter global regulations for emissions of sulphur oxides (SOx) from ships as from 1 January 2020, also known as IMO Global Sulphur Cap 2020. There is also a separate regulation for nitrogen oxides (NOx). The latest limits have been in force since 1 January 2016 for emission control areas (ECA) and will expand from 1 January 2021.

To solve this crucial environmental problem project consortium members altogether use an innovative particle accelerator technology for the ship engine exhaust gas treatment to meet the new environmental regulations.

Objectives:

• To conceptually proof the electron-beam accelerator application for the effective treatment of marine diesel exhaust gases;
• To proof its technical feasibility within the simulated ship environment;
• To demonstrate that the technology in question is capable to remove at the sufficient level SOx a NOx;
• To provide realistic financial calculation on the cost of this technology to the ship-owner;
• To engage and inform all relevant stakeholders during the project.

The project is time- and resource-demanding. The consortium members have already patented some of the crucial design elements and technologies used in the proposed exhaust gas cleaning system, which is continuing its development.

Project data have been further analysed in the  Master's thesis «Impact on the Maritime Industry from an Introduction of a Hybrid Exhaust Gas Cleaning Technology» developed by Aivis Abele student of Western Norway University of Applied Sciences.

Discussions about this idea started in 2017 with the project kick-off meeting in Warsaw at INCT in October 2018, which was followed by a number of technical, coordination and management meetings. An experiment was carried in June 2019 at Riga Shipyard on tug boat “ORKANS” to prove the concept in a real environment. The data was collected and has been analyzed to continue the development of this system and make it commercially available.

Participants:

• Riga Technical University, Center of High Energy Physics and Accelerator Technologies – RTU (Riga, Latvia);
• Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology – INCT (Warsaw, Poland);
• The European Organization for Nuclear Research – CERN (Geneva, Switzerland);
• Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology – FEP (Dresden, Germany);
• Remontowa Marine Design – Remontowa (Gdansk, Poland);
• Milgravja Tehnoloģiskais Parks - Riga Shipyard – RKB (Riga, Latvia);
• BIOPOLINEX Sp. z o.o. (Lublin, Poland).

There has also been valuable input from the advisors of the project:

• Italian Coast Guard – ITCG (Genova, Italy);
• American Bureau of Shipping – ABS (Houston, USA).

H2020 programme: Integrating Activity

Implementation stage: finalizing

Execution of the project:

• A meeting at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland in August 2017;
• A meeting at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland in December 2017;
• A meeting hosted by Italian Coast Guard in Genova, Italy in March 2018;
• A meeting at RTU in Riga, Latvia in May 2018;
• On-site visit at Riga Shipyard in Riga, Latvia in Spetember 2018;
• Project kick-off meeting at INCT in Warsaw, Poland in October 2018;
• A meeting with the International Association of Classification Societies in Brussels, Belgium;
• A meeting with ABS in London, United Kingdom;
• A series of meetings with ship-owners (Grimaldi, MSC);
• Several meetings with EC DG MOVE in Brussels, Belgium;
• On-site visit at Remontowa shipyard in Gdansk, Poland;
• On-site visit at ebeam Technologies in Flamatt, Switzerland;
• Virtual meetings;
• A test of the technological system at Riga Shipyard in June 2019;
• Regular progress reports delivered to ARIES community and project coordinators;
• The final meeting and report.

More information on the project

Total project expenses: 546 790 EUR

Project implementation period: October 2018- October 2020 (24 months)

The project team of RTU:
Prof. Toms Torims