(Rules for) evaluating crankcase gas safety in CNG/LNG marine engines

Challenge

CNG and LNG are becoming significant alternatives to traditional transportation fuels because of their advantages in terms of emissions and fuel cost. For CNG and LNG marine engines, engine makers and ship builders experience a (knowledge) gap in the rules for evaluating (mitigating measures for) the hazards involved with the presence of fuel gas in the crankcase. This lack of explicit rules entails a risk of under- or overrating the safety requirements, thus impacting the position of CNG/LNG as a marine fuel.

Solution

Establishing a recommendation to IACS/IMO for a common guideline on the evaluation of the safety of crankcase and venting equipment in CNG/LNG dual-fuel and mono-gas marine engines, in cooperation with a broad range of stakeholders.

Benefits

Consistent and adequate guidelines will help the shipbuilding industry to properly address safety aspects relating to crankcase gas in CNG/LNG engines. Additionally, it will prevent arbitrary requirements from different classification bodies and thus improve the business case for gas as a safe and affordable marine fuel.

Value

A clear and non-arbitrary set of rules will prevent the shipbuilding industry from under- or over-engineering safety measures, avoiding safety risks and unnecessary expenditures. As the engines under consideration can be very large, the potential impact on costs or safety risks is considerable.