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.

Critical Overview and Challenge of Representative LNG-Fuelled Ships on Potential GHG Emission Reduction

“…Meanwhile, for regulatory aspects, IMO, through MARPOL Annex VI, introduced three mandatory mechanisms, Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP), and Energy Efficiency Operational Indicator (EEOI), as depicted in Fig. 1 29) . EEDI (MEPC.308 (73)) is applied to new ships to measure the energy efficiency of vessels, calculated using a complex formula as the ratio of the ship's potential carbon dioxide emissions to the available carrying capacity to usable weight 30) .…”

Numerical Assessment of the Resistance of a Solar Catamaran in Shallow Water

“…Due to the slower energy conversion of solar panels, solar energy is primarily applied as the main energy source in smaller vessels, while on larger ships it serves as an auxiliary energy source [3]. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that solar-assisted power production on larger vessels can potentially decrease carbon dioxide emissions by up to 12% [4]. Additionally, it has been proven that the use of solar energy meets the greenhouse gas emission requirements for ships according to the recommendations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) [5].…”