Enhance, Enable, Simplify

Between a rock,
and a hard place –
Catalytic Fines in fuel
Whitepaper
For many years, we have heard that
Catalytic Fines are responsible for
many of the wear issues that often
occur in engines. The question is,
does it really have to be like this?

There must be a better way to

identify and control the wear in
our engines and reduce the costs
incurred by these tiny catalytic
fines particles.
An alarming trend
3

Whilst low Sulphur fuels (0.5% Sulphur) are a step in the right direction to
combat environmental challenges, one of the side effects is the increasing
amount of cat fines present in these fuels.

ExxonMobil’s analysis of more than 400,000 oil

samples reveal a startling picture. The analysis Off spec residuals 2015 2014 2013
demonstrated a growing issue with cat fines with 43
per cent of vessels shown to have an issue in this area Viscosity @ 50°C 59% 44% 44%
and to be at risk of catastrophic engine failure as a
result (ExxonMobil, 2017). The Fuel Oil Bunkering and
Density @ 15°C 16% 29% 35%
Advisory Service have also found significant problems
with cat fines in bunker fuels, with levels ranging from
75mg/kg to 139mg/kg in samples taken at Fujairah Water 7% 6% 6%
bunkering port.

In addition, earlier this year Viswa labs had to issue Sulphur 3% 5% 5%

a warning for ARA regions after identifying high
concentration of cat fines in bunker fuel lab analysis. Al + Si 5% 4% 3%
These trends are alarming and if the quality of
fuel during bunkering and onboard use is not pro- Table 1 increase in off spec catalyric fines fuel in the last three years
actively monitored, this can lead to significant main
and auxiliary engine damage and repair costs. Rather What are Catalytic Fines and why do we find them
than one-off cases, these incidents are a clear signal in fuel?
to put in place a strict condition monitoring plan on Not naturally present in fuel, catalytic fines are tiny
board ships. contaminant particles that are created by the catalytic
cracking refinery process. Made from aluminum
Our risky low Sulphur fuel future and silica, which are used as catalysts in the refinery
Whilst low Sulphur fuels (0.5% Sulphur) are a step process, some of these particles are carried over into
in the right direction to combat environmental the residual oil via the slurry oil from the process.
challenges, one of the side effects is the increasing
amount of cat fines present in these fuels. Catalytic Ranging from 1 to 75 microns (0,001 mm to 0,075 mm),
fines are a byproduct of oil processing that allows for about the diameter of a human hair, despite their small
higher yield of distillates mined from feedstock. These size catalytic fines can cause considerable wear.
cat fines get carried over into the final product which Rock solid, catalytic fines are actually almost as hard as
is used on board ships and has the potential for large diamonds.
scale damage to propulsion and power generation
diesel engines and in the worst cases, loss of power. The Mohs hardness scale which measures the hardness
of material, rates materials from 1 to 10, where 1 is soft
The introduction of the Emission Control Areas has led and 10 is very hard. A diamond scores 10 on the Mohs
to an increase in the use of low Sulphur fuels. Currently scale while catalytic fines are not far behind, typically
there has been a rise in the number of off spec fuel rated between 7 and 9. As your engine is constructed
cases found to have a higher than permissible limit of from materials with a hardness of 4 to 5 it is no surprise
cat fines. (Seatrade Maritime, 2015) catalytic fines cause so much engine wear.
The effects of
4

Catalytic Fines
The most serious damage caused by catalytic fines typically
occurs at the worst time, in bad weather. In your bunker, settling
and service fuel tanks, the catalytic fines tend to settle at the
bottom of the tank over time.

The size and density of the catalytic fines make There are two main ways the catalytic fines damage the
them difficult to separate in your purifier. From ISO engine. The wear from catalytic fines that contributes
specification 8217:2010 the maximum amount of to 86% of the damages in the engine will always be
catalytic fines in fuel was reduced to a maximum of there, more or less, depending on how efficient your
60 ppm. Engine manufacturers specify that they want purifier is. However, the most serious damage caused
the fuel to contain no less than 10 to 15 ppm of catalytic by catalytic fines typically occurs at the worst time, in
fines as the fuel enters the engine. This means that the bad weather. In your bunker, settling and service fuel
separation efficiency needs to be between 75 to 85%. tanks, the catalytic fines tend to settle at the bottom of
If the purifier is not kept clean and at sub optimum the tank over time. This is in itself not a big problem
temperatures it can have problems achieving the and better to have the catalytic fines in the tank than in
required separation efficiency, releasing a fuel in the engine.
excess of the 10-15 ppm.

Engine parts Type of damage

Fuel Pump Seizure and wear

Seizure, wear and nozzle

Fuel Injection Valve
hole defects

Blow-by, excessive wear,

Piston Ring
breakage and scuffing

Blow-by, excessive wear,

Cylinder Liner
crack, scuffing
Figure 1 Broken piston rings

Piston Rod, Scuffing, excessive wear,

The effect of catalytic fines can be seen from a study Gland Packing excessive leakage
where 165 cylinders and piston rings were analyzed and
86% of the damage could be directly related back to the T/C Nozzle, Damage to exhaust gas
catalytic fines. (Rolsted, Rojgaard, Ole, & Mats, 2013) Turbine Blade passage

The damage caused by catalytic fines is almost Stem seat damage,

exclusively seen in two stroke engines. Four stroke Exhaust Valve blow-by through valve
engines have a better tolerance and the splash type seat
lubrication is better at washing away the catalytic fines. Table 2 Damage caused by catalytic fines in engines
However, it does become a problem when these 5

catalytic fines find their way into the engine. In rough

weather, it is possible for the sedimented catalytic fines
in the fuel tanks to be mixed around by the rocking of
the vessel. If this happens potentially very high levels
of catalytic fines can find their way into the engine.

The consequences are described in detail in a 2010

incident report by Det Norske Veritas (DNV). In this
case a two-stroke engine was worn down in less than
100 hours with very dire consequences as a result. All
units, even the newly exchanged ones, were worn out
and needed to be overhauled and replaced. (Det Norske
Veritas, 2010)
Figure 2 Excessive wear and scuffing of piston head and rings

Purifier and filters run

at approximately 50%
efficiency

Viswa Lab commenting on purifier efficiency states. 100

“Purifiers are fitted on every ship. Unless they are

90
monitored and adjusted their efficiency can vary
from 20% to 60%+%. If the purifier efficiency is not
80
known, there is a high risk of admitting fuels with
impurities and cat-fines into the engine and risking 70
costly damage. “ (Viswa Lab, 2015)
60
CIMAC guidelines for filter treatment of residual
fuels (2015) highlights test conditions whereby 50
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
particles consisting of sand dusts are used.
Approximately 50% of those dust particles with
6 micron 10 micron 25 micron 34 micron 48 micron
the size of the smallest gap between the wires are
Figure 3 Fuel filter efficiency vs Particle size
removed by the filter i.e. one out of two particles
would still pass through the filter. This testing method demonstrates that particles up
to 30 microns can slip through a 10 micron “absolute”
As shown, the 10 micron absolute mesh retains only mesh. Thus, the smallest gap between the wires is not
some 70% of particles with a size of 15 micron and a quality criterion on its own, but at least it gives an
only about 50 % of particles with a size of 10 micron. indication of the 50 % efficiency of a mesh.
Minimising the risk
6

Until recently there has been no good way of analyzing the

catalytic fines on board the vessel, tests for catalytic fines have
always been done in the lab.

0ppm 20ppm 50ppm 100ppm 200ppm

Figure 4 NOTE: The ISO 8217:2012 limit for acceptable levels of Cat Fines in HFO is 60 ppm

Vessels interested in the fuel they are using, usually Onboard Testing - It is now possible to analyze catalytic
collect representative fuel samples during bunkering fines on board the vessel. Wilhelmsen’s new Unitor
and then send them off for laboratory analysis. Catalytic Fines Test Kit can within a few minutes
However, the test results often only become available analyze the catalytic fines content of your fuel.
once a ship has set sail and is far out to sea, by which
time significant engine damage may already be in Checking fuel quality and filtration system efficiency –
progress. This easy to use test kit allows you to identify the cat
fines content to as low as 20 ppm, you can not only use
Until recently there has been no good way of analyzing this kit to test bunker fuel but also you are able to check
the catalytic fines on board the vessel, tests for catalytic filtration system efficiency before and after purifier and
fines have always been done in the lab. in line auto filters.

Ask yourself a few simple questions. Would you like to

be able to understand when a situation with catalytic
fines risk of becoming dangerous, especially in rough
sea? Would you like to be in control of your catalytic fine
wear?

If the answer is yes to any of the above questions you

should start using the Unitor Catalytic Fines Test Kit.
Enabling you to easily analyze the catalytic fines, before
and after they enter the purifier, corrective actions to
Unitor Catalytic Fines Test Kit improve efficiency can be taken when they’re needed.
Corrective actions –
7

run your onboard

purifiers in series

Settling Tank
Service Tank

1 Firstly, ensure that the correct gravity disc is installed and that the purifier is clean and
in good condition
Flow rate line for Purifier 1 and
Purifier 2
2 To treat a high catalytic fines fuel, both separators need to be operated as purifiers in
parallel configuration

Figure 5 Running a purifier with gravity disc in series with a clarifier after the purifier

Using the Unitor Catalytic Fines Test Kit to identify With modern purifiers, without the gravity disc, the
high levels of catalytic fines there are then a few actions separation is automatically adjusted to perform at
that can be taken to more efficiently remove catalytic its optimum. Due to the purifier always operating at an
fines from the fuel. 20 years ago, purifiers fitted with optimum, it becomes more important to reduce
a gravity disc were common. Choosing the correct the throughput of the purifiers. This is best done by
gravity disc was not easy and in many cases, it resulted running the purifiers in parallel operation.
in the interphase level too close to the center of the
disc, resulting in poor separation. Due to this, the For more information on our Catalytic fines test kit,
recommendation with the gravity disk purifiers was to please visit
operate them in series with a clarifier, after the purifier.

Download the Wilhelmsen Augmented Reality App today to experience the importance of catalytic fines testing.
Available for download on App store and Google Play Store. Search for “Wilhelmsen AR” in the App stores.
Wilhelmsen AR

References
Det Norske Veritas. (2010). Casualty Information: Engine worn out in less than 100 hours by catalytic fines. Oslo: Det Norske Veritas.
Rolsted, H., Rojgaard, C., Ole, J., & Mats, E. (2013). Onboard Fuel Oil Cleaning, the ever neglected process How to restrain increasing Cat-fine damages in two stroke
Marine Engines. CIMAC Paper No.:51, 13.
Seatrade Maritime. (2015, 12 18). Global Fuel Quality Review. Retrieved from Seatrade Maritime News: http://www.seatrade-maritime.com/news/americas/global-fuel-
quality-review.html
Viswa Lab. (2015). Why determine purifier efficiency. Retrieved from Purifier Efficiency Determination: http://viswalab.net/viswalab/viswalab2015/PED.html
Viswa lab. (2017) High cat fine sis ARA area http://mfame.guru/high-catfines-ara-area/
DETC Service, Wolfgang Gensch (2017) https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/impact-cat-fines-wolfganggensch
CIMAC (2015), Filter treatment of residual fuel oils
Wilh. Wilhelmsen Holding ASA
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