Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships

Díaz-Cuenca, D.; Villalba-Herreros, A.; Leo, T.; d’Amore-Domenech, R. (2025). Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 13(7), 1313.https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse13071313

@article{Diaz-Cuenca-2025-3923,
author = {Díaz-Cuenca, D and Villalba-Herreros, A and Leo, T and d’Amore-Domenech, R},
title = {Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships},
journal = {Journal of Marine Science and Engineering},
year = {2025},
month = {jul},
publisher = {MDPI},
volume = {13},
number = {7},
pages = {1313},
doi = {10.3390/jmse13071313},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1313},
keywords = {Hydrogen, Biogenic Gases, Wastes and Byproducts, Agriculture: Residues, Methane (Natural Gas), Marine Gas Oil (MGO), Methanol, Biodiesel (FAME), Catalysis, Biochemical, Electrochemical, Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) and Air Emissions, Techno-Economic Analysis (TEA), Ocean-going Vessels},
}

TY - JOUR
TI - Alternative Fuels in the Maritime Industry: Emissions Evaluation of Bulk Carrier Ships
AU - Díaz-Cuenca, D
AU - Villalba-Herreros, A
AU - Leo, T
AU - d’Amore-Domenech, R
T2 - Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
AB - The maritime industry remains a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In this article, a systematic study has been performed on the alternative fuel emissions of large cargo ships under different route scenarios and propulsion systems. For this purpose, a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) are evaluated, including total equivalent CO2 emissions (CO2eq), CO2eq emissions per unit of transport mass and CO2eq emissions per unit of transport mass per distance. The emissions analysis demonstrates that Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) paired with Marine Gas Oil (MGO) emerges as the most viable short-term solution in comparison with the conventional fuel oil propulsion. Synthetic methanol (eMeOH) paired with synthetic diesel (eDiesel) is identified as the most promising long-term fuel combination. When comparing the European Union (EU) emission calculation system (FuelEU) with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) emission metrics, a discrepancy in emissions reduction outcomes has been observed. The IMO approach appears to favor methanol (MeOH) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) over conventional fuel oil. This is attributed to the fact that the IMO metrics do not consider unburned methane emissions (methane slip) and emissions in the production of fuels (Well-to-Tank).
DA - 2025/07//
PY - 2025
PB - MDPI
VL - 13
IS - 7
SP - 1313
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1313
DO - 10.3390/jmse13071313
LA - English
KW - Hydrogen
KW - Biogenic Gases
KW - Wastes and Byproducts
KW - Agriculture: Residues
KW - Methane (Natural Gas)
KW - Marine Gas Oil (MGO)
KW - Methanol
KW - Biodiesel (FAME)
KW - Catalysis
KW - Biochemical
KW - Electrochemical
KW - Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) and Air Emissions
KW - Techno-Economic Analysis (TEA)
KW - Ocean-going Vessels
ER -