Zero Pollution Solutions for Age Old Problems A Return to Seawater - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Zero Pollution Solutions for Age Old Problems A Return to Seawater Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearings NAMEPA Conference Compliance, Cost, and Competency in America Posidonia, June 5, 2014

Overview • Oil discharges from ships § Propeller shaft seals are not perfect • US EPA – Vessel General Permit § The oil to seawater interface • Seawater lubricated shaft lines • The problem with oil-based EAL’s and air seals • Ship owner benefits § Reduced operating costs 2

Oil discharges from commercial ships … a serious problem • Approximately 96% of commercial ships use oil lubricated metal propeller shaft bearings. 1 • Total worldwide use of lubricants from operational leaks and discharges estimated to be about 130 million to 244 million litres annually. Equivalent to 137 Exxon Valdez oil spills. 2 1 Data related to Propulsion systems, IHS Fairplay database 2 Etkin, Dagmar Schmidt. Environmental Research Consulting “Worldwide Analysis of In-Port Vessel Operational Lubricant ,” Arctic and Marine Oilspill Program Technical Seminar of Environment Canada, 8 June 2010, Halifax, Canada 3

Oil Lubricated Propeller Shafts Shaft and Pod Seals are not perfect • Pollution risk § Seal must leak to lubricate its sealing lip § Oil pollution from leaking shaft or pod seal • Rope and fishing line damage seals § Repair cost for seal damage is significant § Escalating detection and enforcement • MARPOL Annex I / Satellite tracking • Criminal fines / jail terms • US EPA Vessel General Permit • Polar Code § Increased expectation of corporate responsibility • Damage to corporate brand and image 4

Operational Oil Leakage • Wartsila, a leading seal manufacturer estimates … “Oil consumption from the seal is controlled to the minimum acceptable to maintain an acceptable life, but by design it is essential to have oil at the mating surfaces.” “Oil consumption is always lost direct to the sea so contaminating the environment.” Source: Higgenbottom, Adrian. Wartsila Propulsion (Bearings & Seals) UK, “Coastguard Non-Polluting Sterntube Sealing System,” presented at the RINA International Conference for the Design and Operation of Container Ships, 23-24 April 2003, London, UK , pp 53-60. 5

Operational Oil Leakage Kobelco Eagle Marine Engineering, a leading seal manufacturer states … “In stern tube bearings, the radial movement of the shaft is considerably larger than that of bearings for general industrial application. In addition, external disturbances such as rough seas and vibration are considerable. It is impractically impossible to seal the stern tube oil perfectly. Therefore, one of the serious environmental issues in medium and large commercial vessels is stern tube oil leakage.” Sada, Hiroyuki, Seiji Yamajo, David W. Hawkins and Tsuyoshi Kawazoe. Kobelco Eagle Marine Engineering Co. Ltd., Japan, “An Environmentally Compatible Lubricant for Stern Tube Shafting and Bearing Systems,” presented at the 11th Shafting Symposium of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, Sept. 12-12 2006, Williamsburg, VA, U.S.A., pp 1. 6

Operational Oil Leakage Environmental Research Consulting study “Total annual inputs of lubricating oil worldwide from stern tube leakage and other operational discharges into port waters is estimated to be between 37 million to nearly 61 million litres. If the same rates of discharge occur at sea as they do in port, the estimated worldwide annual inputs of lubricants to marine waters both in ports and harbours and at sea might be estimated to be about four times the port estimate. This assumes that each vessel spends, on average, three days at sea for every day in port. Total worldwide use of lubricants from operational leaks and discharges would then be about 130 million to 244 million litres annually. Etkin, Dagmar Schmidt. Environmental Research Consulting “Worldwide Analysis of In-Port Vessel Operational Lubricant ,” Arctic and Marine Oilspill Program Technical Seminar of Environment Canada , 8 June 2010, Halifax, Canada 7

Accidental Oil Leakage • Typical causes of increased oil leakage from stern tube seal damage: § Fishing nets or rope caught in the propeller § Propeller shaft misalignment or bent shafts § Aged or worn lip seals § Propeller contact with ice or ocean floor 8

Accidental Oil Leakage Lloyd’s Register reports: “aft stern seal and forward stern seal represent 43% and 24% of failures respectively.” 3 Rope and fishing line damage aft seals. 3 Smith, Andrew, Lloyd’s Register Global Technology Leader-Engineering Systems ., 9 “Shaft Alignment Problems Analyzed,” Marine Engineers Review April 2009, pp. 16

The IMO, U.S. and Canadian governments are reacting with stronger rules and regulations

U.S. EPA New Regulations • 2013 Vessel General Permit (VGP) regulates discharges from commercial vessels in ‘US waters’ effective Dec. 19, 2013 • Section 2.2.9: All vessels must use an EAL “Environmentally acceptable lubricant” in all oil to sea interfaces, unless technically infeasible • EPA recommends that all new build vessel operators endeavor to use seawater-based systems for their stern tube lubrication to eliminate the discharge of oil from these interfaces to the aquatic environment. 11 http://www.epa.gov/npdes/vessels

Polar Code update • Development of a Polar Code for ships operating in polar waters • Rules being developed at IMO • DE57 (March 2013): Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and the United States propose only using biodegradable oil or water for stern tube bearings; seek advice from MEPC • At MEPC65 (May 2013) § Ban on "any discharge into the sea of oil and oily mixtures.“ Update requirements of MARPOL Annex I 12

Can oil pollution discharges below the waterline be prevented? … . YES! There is a proven alternative to avoid this. 13

History • Seawater as a lubricant dates back to earliest days of shaft driven propellers lignum vitae seawater lubricated bearings 14

Still in Use! • Coast Guards and Navies still use seawater lubricated propeller shaft bearings • WHY? § If they used an oil system and the shaft seals are damaged (oil leaks out or seawater leaks in), the ship is stranded!!! § Seawater offers non-catastrophic safety mode § Zero pollution risk in sensitive environments 15

New Materials & Technologies Video 16

Non-metallic Bearings COMPAC elastomeric polymer alloy bearings 17

Piping for Seawater Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearing System NO AFT SEAL! 18

EAL’s – Still considered a pollutant (less harmful than mineral oil) § Oil-based EAL’s are still considered a pollutant under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA ‘90) and US Clean Water Act (if there is a sheen) § Any discharges of oil-based EAL’s still require reporting of the discharge to the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as having clean-up and remediation costs. § Even though biodegradable lubricants may be deemed non-toxic by OECD testing, their presence on the water surface is a threat to seabirds 19

Shaft Air Seals Are they the answer? • A major seal manufacturer states the following related to air seals on their website: However, since it is not possible to rule out circumstances in which there could be a leakage, EALs must be used on this type of seal as well. • Depending on seal manufacturer and EAL, the EAL will need to be replaced either at 2.5 or 5 year drydocking (aggressive nature of the EAL on seals) http://www.simplexturbulo.com/2013/07/12/vessel-general-permit-latest-news/ 20

Typical Piping of Air Seal Air source Air control unit (Control Air) L.O. tank unit Aft seal Float switch Stern tube Needle valve Stern tube L.O. pump unit Cooler Filter Pump Flow meter Slight amount of air is leaked from here. Drain collection unit Air Oil 21

Piping for Seawater Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearing System NO AFT SEAL! 22

New Lloyd’s Register Rules for Water Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearings • New SCM (Screwshaft Conditioning Monitoring) Notation § For water lubricated propeller shaft bearings § Effective Jan. 2013 • If vessel is compliant, no shaft withdrawal until 18 years from newbuild 23

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Seawater Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearings Over 2,000 vessels with seawater lubricated propeller shaft bearings installed 25 25

Proven Technology! Over 600 commercial ships equipped with COMPAC seawater lubricated propeller shaft bearings, including …

Who Uses Seawater Lubricated Propeller Shaft Bearings? Over 600 commercial ships including … US Gypsum Corporation (U.S.A.) – 2 bulk carriers • Carisbrooke Shipping (U.K.) - 4 dry cargo ships and 4 on order • CSL (Canada) - 9 bulk carriers • COSCO (China) - 12 bulk carriers, 3 car carriers, 2 on order • BC Ferries (Canada) - 10 ferries • Staten Island Ferries (U.S.A) - 3 ferries • ConocoPhillips (U.S.A.)- 5 oil tankers • Disney Cruise Lines (U.S.A.) – 4 cruise ships • 27

Long Predictable Bearing Wear Life Disney Magic equipped with COMPAC since 1998 Two ships (83,000 GT) built at Fincantieri (Italy) - 1998/1999 and two more at Meyer Werft (Germany) - 2011/2012. All equipped with COMPAC seawater lubricated propeller shaft bearings.