Solutions for Reducing the Environmental Impact of Marine Energy Systems

Dear Colleagues,

We are inviting submissions to a Special Issue of Journal of Marine Science and Engineering on the subject area “Solutions for Reducing the Environmental Impact of Marine Energy Systems”. With the increasing global environmental awareness and the imposed IMO emission regulations and initiatives, the development and application of specific solutions for reduction of the environmental impact of marine energy systems is one of the most crucial issues facing the maritime industry today.

IMO, having acknowledged the serious detrimental repercussions of marine energy systems on the global pollution issue, has undertaken specific actions for mitigating the negative effects of the existing and future fleet of transport vessels on the environment. Specifically, IMO has issued strict fuel sulfur limits inside and outside ECAs for controlling SOx and PM emissions, which will be effective from 1 January 2020 (2020 Global Sulphur Cap). Compliance of vessels with these limits will possibly require conventional low-sulfur multi-fuel on board storage and distribution, use of alternative sulfur-free fuels, or use of exhaust after-treatment systems such as scrubbers. In addition, IMO has already issued specific limits inside and outside ECAs for NOx emissions. Conformation of vessels with these NOx limitations may require the implementation of various internal (i.e., inside marine engines) or external (i.e., exhaust after-treatment) measures. IMO has also shown considerable concern regarding the contribution of shipping on GHG emissions and, for this reason, has undertaken specific initiatives not only to monitor and record GHG emissions (IMO DCS) but also to significantly reduce GHG emissions from existing and future vessels. According to IMO, CO₂ emission reduction strategy is a two-fold process: On the one hand, IMO, having acknowledged the interrelation between CO₂ emissions and vessel energy efficiency, has issued energy efficiency indices and campaigns (i.e., EEDI and SEEMP/EEOI) which are related to the CO₂ emissions per transport work of existing vessels and new buildings. On the other hand, IMO has decided that shipping-emitted CO₂ emissions should be reduced by at least 40% by 2030 with respect to reference year 2008, and also that shipping-generated CO₂ emissions be reduced by at least 50% by 2050. Besides legislated pollutant emissions, awareness and action are required for the mitigation of shipping non-regulated gaseous emissions, such as PAH, CO, HC, CH₄ (methane slip), aldehydes, and ketones, among others. Another important environmental issue of marine energy systems is ballast water treatment, which is crucial for the protection of the maritime environment from hazardous species and for which IMO has launched specific guidelines.

Prof. Dr. Elias Yfantis
Assist. Prof. Dr. Theodoros Zannis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.