FUEL OIL TREATMENT
Problems of Burning Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO):
1. Water in Fuel: Water in fuel creates issues such as a decrease in heat transfer rate, loss in efficiency
and wear of cylinder liner surface etc. Water can mix with fuel oil in different ways such as
change of temperature leading to condensation, leaking steam pipe inside the fuel oil tank,
improper storage of fuel oil (open sounding pipe) etc.
2. Sludge formation: A ship needs to carry heavy fuel oil in abundance to ensure a continuous supply of
fuel to engines and boilers during the long voyage. The heavy fuel oil is stored in the ship’s
bunker tanks. Storage of such a large quantity of fuel leads to sludge formation which involves a
thick layer on the bottom surface of the tanks. The sludge also sticks on the heat transfer surface
of the steam pipes.
3. Pumpability: Many times, if the heating system of the bunker tanks fails or face a problem, it
becomes difficult for the ship’s staff to pump the heavy fuel oil from bunker to settling tank due
to the high viscosity of the oil. If the heavy fuel oil is of inferior quality, it will choke the filter
frequently, increasing the workload of the ship staff onboard ship.
4. Mixing of different grades: Two different grades of heavy oils when mixed together in ship’s storage
tanks can lead to stability problems. The number of bunker tanks on ships is limited, and when
receiving fuel of different grades, it is a challenge for ship’s officer to store different grades of oils
in separate tanks.
5. Combustion: The combustion of heavy fuel oil remains an issue with the ship operator as the oil need
to be heated to bring the viscosity below 20cst for achieving proper atomization. If there is an
issue in the heating and pumping system, the atomisation will be affected, leading to carbon
deposits on the piston and liner surfaces.
6. Abrasion: The heavy fuel oil contains deposits such as vanadium, sulphur, nickel, sodium, silicon etc.
which are difficult to remove and have an abrasive effect on the liner and piston surfaces.
7. Corrosion: Elements such as vanadium and sulphur, which are present in the heavy fuel oil, leads to
high temperature and low-temperature corrosion respectively.
• Vanadium when it comes in contact with sodium and sulphur during the combustion, forms
a eutectic compound with a low melting point of 530°C.This molten compound is highly
corrosive and attacks the oxide layers on the steel liner and piston (which is used to protect
the steel surface), leading to corrosion.
• Sulphur is also present in the heavy grade fuel. When sulphur combines with oxygen to form
sulphur dioxide or sulphur trioxide, it further reacts with moisture (which can be due to low
load operation) to form vapours of sulphuric acid. When the metal temperature is below the
dew point of acid, the vapours condense on the surface and cause low-temperature
corrosion.
8. Lube oil contamination: During the operation, the heavy fuel oil can always enter the lubrication
system and contaminate the lubricating oil. It can be due to leakage through the stuffing box,
leaking fuel pumps, or unburned HFO that remains on the cylinder walls and washes down into
the sump.
To have an overview of the Basic Fuel Oil Treatment Process, watch this video:
Marine Fuel Oil Purifier: Working Principle of Centrifugal Separator
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HI_dsnKRtg
Treatment Methods of Marine Heavy Fuel Oil Used Onboard Ship:
It is impossible to use the heavy fuel oil directly from the bunker tank without treating it. There
are different methods used on a ship to treat the fuel before using it for combustion. Some of the most
used methods are:
1. Heating & Draining: The fuel delivered to the ship is stored in the bunker tank where it is heated by
supplying steam to the coils installed in the bunker tanks. Heating is an essential process, which
makes it an integral part of fuel oil treatment.
• The average temperature maintained for heavy fuel oil bunker tanks is around 40ºC. After
transferring it to a settling tank, the fuel is further heated to ensure it is at an appropriate
temperature to enter the separators.
• Once the fuel is transferred to the service tank from the separator, the oil temperature is
>80ºC. The main intention is to ensure the smooth pumpability of the fuel oil at different
processes and to separate the maximum quantity of water from fuel by draining the settling
and service tanks and using purifiers.
2. Purifiers: For removal of water and sludge from the heavy grade oil, fuel oil purifiers are used.
Depending upon the owner’s choice, either conventional or modern purifiers (computer
driven fuel cleaning systems) can be installed on a ship. The oil flow remains continuous even
during the sludge discharge process. Purification of heavy fuel oil is considered to be the most
critical treatment process and is carried out on all commercial ships.
3. Filtration: Heating and purification process is used to separate water from the fuel. However, the
solid impurities such as fine metal particles which can cause abrasion wear in the fuel system
must also be removed. A fine filter is placed in the fuel oil supply line, which blocks the fine
metal particles. These are full-flow units and the substance used inside the filters is usually
natural, or synthetic fibrous woollen felt material.
4. Chemical treatment: Just like the automotive industry where fuel additives are popular, the maritime
industry also uses chemicals in fuels for different jobs; However, this process is not much
popular. The main types of residual fuel additives for marine heavy fuel oil are:
• pre-combustion additives such as demulsifiers, dispersants
• combustion improvers
• ash modifiers
Basic Fuel Oil Treatment System of Marine Vessel
Fuel oils require treatment before passing to the engine. This will involve: (1) storage and
heating to allow separation of water present, (2) coarse and fine filtering to remove solid particles and
also (3) centrifuging.
Fuels supplied to a ship must be treated on board before use in order to remove solid as well as
liquid contaminants. The solid contaminants in the fuel are mainly rust, sand, dust and refinery catalysts.
Liquid contaminants are mainly fresh or salt water. The settling tank is the first step in fuel treatment
process. Water and sediments can be separated by gravity and drained off at the bottom of the tank.
Effective cleaning of residual fuels can only be ensured by centrifuges: a clarifier to separate particles
and/or a purifier to separate water. In order to remove any solid particles not separated by centrifuging,
fine filters are placed directly after the centrifuge, or in the supply line to the engine.
(1) FUEL TRANSFER
Fuel oil is transferred from storage tanks to settling tanks via a fuel oil transfer pump and its
associated suction strainer. A transfer pump normally is installed to move fuel oil from storage tanks to
settling tanks. One positive displacement transfer pump, protected by suction strainers and a pressure
relief valve, and a pump bypass line, is normally fitted. The transfer pump flow rate depends on engine
fuel consumption rate and service and settling tank size.
Proper arrangement of system valves adds distribution flexibility to the transfer system. These
valves normally permit fuel oil from any storage tank to be pumped to either settling tank, to either
service tank, to the remainder of the fuel oil storage tanks or, in some systems, overboard to a barge or
other storage facility via the bunkering manifold.
(2) Settling tanks to Service tanks.
The transfer of fuel oil from the settling tank to the service tank is normally carried out by using
the onboard HFO purifiers. Some ships have the facility to use oil in the engines and boilers directly from
the settling tank, thus by-passing the fuel oil purifiers. This by-pass system is for emergency use only and
should be strictly avoided, where practicable, at all other times. Serious engine damage may occur if this
by-pass system is used for any length of time.
(3) Centrifugal Separation (Purifiers)
All ships designed to operate on heavy fuel oils will have centrifugal separators (purifiers) as
part of the engine room equipment. It should always be remembered that purifiers have their limitations
and we cannot expect a ship’s fuel oil treatment processing plant to render every fuel oil fit for use.
However effective design and maintenance will almost certainly provide adequate protection against the
potentially harmful effects of the vast majority of fuel oils delivered. Water and sediment levels in the
fuel can be effectively controlled in well maintained and correctly operated purifiers. On the flip side,
poorly maintained and operated purifiers will fail to improve fuel oils to an acceptable quality and result
in undue wear or damage to the engine.
The centrifugal separator is used to separate two liquids, for example oil and water, or a liquid
and solids as in contaminated oil. Separation is speeded up by the use of a centrifuge and can be
arranged as a continuous process. Where a centrifuge is arranged to separate two liquids, it is known as
a 'purifier'. Where a centrifuge is arranged to separate impurities and small amounts of water from oil it
is known as a 'clarifier'.
The separation of impurities and water from fuel oil is essential for good combustion. The
removal of contaminating impurities from lubricating oil will reduce engine wear and possible
breakdowns. The centrifuging of all but the most pure clean oils is therefore an absolute necessity.
(4) Filtration
A filtration system is always used in shipboard fuel treating and conditioning systems. The
higher ash, solids, and catalyst particle content found more frequently in heavy fuels make such an
installation a necessity. A properly designed filtration system will effectively control solids that can
damage high pressure pumps, injection systems, and the cylinder bores of diesel engines. Under normal
operating conditions, properly designed and operated filtration systems can provide effective protection
with 2,000–3,000 hour intervals between filter element replacements.
As heavy fuel oils may contain sediment, dirt, ash and catalyst particles, the separator system,
preferably operating in series, can provide a sizeable initial reduction in these solids, but not always
enough to prevent an increase in engine wear rates. The remainder of the small solids, as well as a small
percentage of large particles, can be effectively stopped by a fine mesh, replaceable element, depth type,
filtration system. The filter housing should be equipped with a bottom water drain and an air vent and a
differential pressure gauge to indicate the pressure drop across the filter so that an accurate
determination of filter element replacement requirements can be made. These filters are normally self-
cleaning by using a back flushing principle, see the picture of fuel oil filters below.
In addition to solids, trace quantities of free water carried over from the separators are removed
by these filters. Whereas removing trace water may seem unimportant, shipboard experience has shown
that its elimination can increase injection pump life by as much as 100%. The filter water sumps should
be drained daily to prevent water from rising above the sump level and ‘wetting’ the filter element.
(5) Fuel Oil Homogenisers
Fuel sludge may constitute up to 1% of fuel used on board. The sludge disposal is normally done
either via burning on board (incinerator) or transfer ashore. The whole process is waste of energy and
money. Finding ways of reducing sludge thus could be desirable.
A homogenizer assists the process of fuel homogenizing and thereby a reduction is sludge level. It
also helps with the supply of more uniform fuel to combustion systems. The main job of a homogenizer
is to create a uniform structure of all solid and non-solid materials present in heavy fuel oil. A
homogenizer also breaks down large water elements into small homogenous structure, resulting in an
emulsion consisting of water molecules spread evenly throughout the whole fuel.
A homogenizer mainly works by agitating and milling of the fuel. Agitation can be done by using a
mechanical arrangement which pumps the liquid through an orifice plate. Agitation can also be done by
an acoustic medium which uses ultrasonic frequency to agitate a surface over which the liquid is pumped.
A conventional homogenizer is like a milling machine which churns the liquid as it passes through
it. The design consists of fixed stator housing with a rotor which is generally driven by a motor. The
mating surface of stator and rotor has specially designed channels. Both rotor and stator are conical in
shape and have a specific clearance between them through which the fuel is passed.
Moreover, the design is made in such a way that the liquid accelerates as it moves through the
channel, making the dissolved components uniform in nature. It should be noted that although the unit
looks like a pump, it doesn’t have a pumping unit. A separate pump needs to be installed to pump the
fuel through the system.
The operation of a homogeniser has the following advantageous effects:
1. Reduction in sludge production. This causes an increased amount of burnable fuel, thereby
fuel saving and fuel cost. Also, this reduces the cost of disposing of the sludge.
2. Influence on purifier efficiency.
3. Less wear and tear of engine components.
In case, a homogeniser is used for some water emulsification into fuel, it could positively impact
exhaust pollutants as well. Both NOx and smoke reduction can be achieved if the system is used for
water-fuel emulsification.
