Solar Hybrid Power System for Marine Diesel Engine: UMT Vessel Experience

Solar Hybrid Power System for Marine Diesel Engine: UMT Vessel Experience

Oladokun Sulaiman Olanrewaju
Copyright: © 2014 |Pages: 8
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-4317-8.ch001
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Abstract

Like all modes of transportation that use fossil fuels, ships produce carbon dioxide emissions that significantly contribute to global climate change and ocean acidification. Additionally, ships release other pollutants that also contribute to the problem and exacerbate climate change. Considering the large volume of ships on the high seas, ship emissions pose a significant threat to human health. The ocean is exposed to vast amounts of sunrays and has a great potential to be explored by the maritime sector and green power industry. Solar energy hybrid assisted power to support auxiliary power for the instruments on board the vessel is explored in a UMT vessel. The vessel that is used in this case study is Discovery XI, which is a 16.50 meter diving boat owned by University Malaysia Terengganu. The study explores the feasibility of using solar energy as a supporting power for marine vessel auxiliaries. The reduction of fuel usage after installing the solar PV system on the boat is determined, as well as an economic analysis. The power requirement for the vessel’s electrical system is estimated. The fuel and money saved is also estimated for comparison purposes of the vessel using the solar PV system and the vessel without the PV system. Economic analyses are performed, the Annual Average Cost (AAC) between a vessel using solar PV system and a vessel without solar PV system is estimated, and the period of the return of investment for the vessel with solar PV system is also estimated. The use of a photovoltaic solar system to assist the boat power requirement will benefit the environment through Green House Gas (GHG) reduction, and the use of solar as a supporting alternative energy could cut the cost of boat operation through fuel savings.
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Methodology

The methodology is divided into three parts. The first part is data collection by fieldwork, the second is Numerical modelling for power requirement and the third is economic analysis.

Data Collection and Field

This fieldwork involved a solar experimental setup on board of Discovery IX. The solar PV panels were deployed from 9.00 a.m. until 5.00 p.m. and the experiments ran for two days. The experiments were broken into three parts. The first experiment was to find the power output from the solar panels with the equivalence solar radiation intensity without the disturbance of load from the boat electrical system. The second experiment was to find the fuel consumption of the generator and experiment three was to find the capabilities of the solar panels to support the boat electrical load.

Secondary data collected from the diving boat, Discovery IX were the plans and electrical distribution drawing and data on auxiliary power consumption. Data on solar radiation intensity was collected from the Renewable Energy Research Center, data on the specification of solar panel and other data and facts required including the current market price of the fuel and solar panels was obtained from the Internet.

Experiment Procedures

  • Experiment 1

    • 1.

      Two solar panels are placed on the top roof of the boat.

    • 2.

      The solar panels are tightly tied to avoid the solar panels falling down.

    • 3.

      The battery is connected to the charge controller.

    • 4.

      The solar panels are connected to the charge controller.

    • 5.

      Solar panel voltage and current output is recorded.

    • 6.

      These steps are repeated for every 15 minutes.

  • Experiment 2

    • 1.

      Two empty batteries are put in the battery bank.

    • 2.

      The batteries are connected to the generator.

    • 3.

      Three litres of fuel is filled into the empty generator.

    • 4.

      The generator is turned on and the time is recorded.

    • 5.

      The time when the generator turns off is recorded.

  • Experiment 3

    • 1.

      Two solar panels are placed on the roof of the boat.

    • 2.

      The solar panels are tightly tied to avoid the solar panels falling down.

    • 3.

      The battery is connected to the charge controller.

    • 4.

      The solar panels are connected to the charge controller.

    • 5.

      All on board electric and electrical devices are turned on.

    • 6.

      Battery voltage, solar panel voltage and current output is recorded every 15 minutes.

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