Project MENENS
How RH Marine is helping realise methanol-based shipping
Methanol, widely seen as a viable fuel for large-scale adoption, can help significantly reduce CO2 emissions in shipping. In the MENENS project, 21 partners, including RH Marine, are creating a framework for using methanol as a safe, cost-effective, sustainable fuel. What makes methanol a particularly interesting alternative is its density, relatively high yield, reasonable production cost, limited flammability, and sustainable production methods, using biomass for example.
“The MENENS project consists of seven work packages related to transitioning to methanol-propelled ships, each with a different focus,” explains Despoina Mitropoulou, Manager Power Systems. “We are participating in and coordinating MENENS Power and Energy systems research and development. We’re in the lead of work package four, focused on realisation of grid design and energy systems, including topics such as simulation, digital twinning, IoT and, connectivity. A fair part of the work is related to coordinating the different lines of research. We make sure to connect with work packages related to ours and facilitate sharing of information and technology. Quite a challenge, due to the level of detail involved in each work package. Work package three, for example, is focused on Model-Based System Engineering, which the marine industry is increasingly adopting. Other packages look at making diesel engines suitable for methanol, performance testing, and safety aspects, including analysing risks and introducing mitigation measures.”
Key challenges related to sustainable power sources are their dynamic behaviour and integrating them into a grid design. RH Marine Power Systems department is investigating ways of making such systems more stable by integrating storage systems and thus maximizing their performance. The team is also investigating methodologies that allow us to see the impact of certain steps and interdependencies between elements when designing a system. This helps to make the systems modular and see the implications of certain changes across a system. Nobody can predict the future, but this approach makes it possible to design-in flexibility and keep platforms as modular as possible.