Biodiesel Significantly Reduces Black Carbon Emissions

January 17 ------ Experts from the EU CLEANSHIP project have documented that the use of biodiesel of the type B100 FAME in real sailing can reduce black carbon emissions by up to 81 percent at low engine load and up to 61 percent at high engine load compared to traditional marine gas oil, MGO.

The measurements with 100 percent biofuel were made during a three-day voyage on the vessel Falstria Swan from Uni-Tankers. The collected data has been analyzed and compared with baseline measurements made with conventional diesel on the same vessel.

An advanced, online black carbon sensor from Green Instruments, developed in collaboration with the Danish Technological Institute, has made it possible to monitor emissions in detail and in real time during the ship's normal operation.

Soot particles (black carbon) are among the most harmful emissions from shipping, both for the climate, where they contribute to global warming and ice melting in the Arctic, and for public health through reduced air quality. “We knew that biofuel would provide cleaner combustion, but the size of the reduction – especially at low loads – is a positive surprise. It illustrates that biodiesel can not only reduce net CO₂, but also black carbon, which is of great importance for shipping's overall climate footprint. At the same time, the measurement technology allows us to monitor emissions in much more detail than before,” says Simon Bastrup Spangenberg, consultant and measurement expert in alternative fuels and emission reduction at the Danish Technological Institute.

“The new data on pure biodiesel (B100) under real operation gives us a solid basis when planning investments in green transition – both for us at Uni-Tankers and for the rest of the industry,” says Troels Reppien, Technical Director at Uni-Tankers.

Although biodiesel documents a significant reduction in black carbon, global biofuel production can only cover a small part of the energy needs of the international fleet. Therefore, the Cleanship project continues to analyze data and work on recommendations for how black carbon and other emissions can be effectively reduced in shipping.

The results of the measurement campaign have now been submitted IMO in the form of a white paper. Cleanship is a Danish research project (2024–2026) led by the Danish Technological Institute in collaboration with partners Uni-Tankers A/S, Green Instruments, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping, Danish Shipping Companies and Danish Maritime. The project aims to reduce harmful maritime emissions through testing and demonstration of biofuels, energy-saving technologies and operational optimizations. The project is supported by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency's MUDP program with a grant of 18.2 million DKK

Source: marinelink.com