Ammonia as a liquid for the future of aviation
Wärtsilä has just launched its medium-speed, 4-stroke, Wärtsilä 25 engine, intended to be the first Wärtsilä engine to run on ammonia fuel. From 2023 a technology upgrade will be commercially available to allow the engine to run on alternative fuels like ammonia, with a fully-compliant NOx abatement system already available when running on fossil-based fuels. At the recent Australia conference, MAN ES reported that their two-stroke ammonia engine will be commercially available in 2024, with testing to commence next year.
The latest episode of Maritime Ammonia Insights webinar centred around collaboration, leadership & Singapore: three critical elements in the maritime ammonia transition. Sofia Furstenberg Stott was joined by Peter H. Kirkeby (MAN Energy Solutions) and Yi Han Ng (Maritime and Port Authority Singapore), who discussed timelines for engine development, the benefits of a consortia approach, and the all-important safety & technical progress of maritime ammonia technologies.
US-based Mainspring Energy has announced successful testing of pure ammonia fuel in its Linear Generator technology. Running on pure (anhydrous) ammonia, the overall system efficiency was 1% higher than conventional gas fuels, and Mainspring indicates that “off-the-shelf” technology available for current gas turbine models can yield NOx emissions that “meet any permitting standard”. Mainspring aims for its product to displace diesel-powered backup generators in a variety of applications.
As part of a new round of funding announcements, the US Department of Energy will contribute nearly $10 million to three significant ammonia energy initiatives: