Canada’s Westport wants to develop methanol fuel supply systems for vessels

Westport Fuel Systems (Westport) will explore the use of methanol as fuel in high-pressure direct injection fuel systems designed for marine applications.

PHOTO: A stack of methanol drums. Getty Images

This project will serve as a proof-of-concept to understand the feasibility of using methanol in a high-pressure direct injection fuel system on ships, the company said.

A high-pressure direct injection fuel system allows for more precise injection of fuel directly into the combustion chamber. This type of fuel system is theoretically expected to improve fuel efficiency and reduce particulate emissions by precisely controlling fuel delivery into the combustion chamber.

“Our fuel system is expected to provide similar torque, power, and efficiency to diesel, while also potentially reducing NOx emissions utilizing easily accessible and lower cost methanol as the fuel,” Westport said in a statement.

The project is expected to start in the next couple of months and is expected to last for nine months.

“Using renewable or carbon neutral methanol derived from green or blue hydrogen, Westport is confident this alternative fuel approach offers an economical and efficient pathway to decarbonize the sector without compromising performance,” the company said.

Need for pilot fuel

While methanol has zero-emission potential as a fuel, methanol-powered combustion engines will still need a small amount of pilot fuel like diesel for ignition. This is because it burns slower than fossil marine fuels due to its low cetane number.

Classification society DNV estimates that methanol combustion engines could use around 5% MGO as pilot fuel.

It is possible to replace diesel with biofuel or synthetic alternatives such as synthetic marine diesel oil (MDO) or dimethyl ether (DME), or even combine it with carbon capture technologies for ships. But the timeline for the widespread availability of these fuels and technologies is still uncertain.

This could keep methanol-powered vessels dependent on some fossil fuels for the foreseeable future.

By Konica Bhatt

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