Lube-Tech


PUBLISHED BY LUBE: THE EUROPEAN LUBRICANTS INDUSTRY MAGAZINE


No.124 page 1


Why Base Number (BN) alone is not the answer when formulating cylinder oils for 0.5% sulphur fuels


The decision by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to reduce the global fuel sulphur cap to 0.5% from 1st January 2020 is anticipated to have significant health and environmental benefits. However, with it come many challenges throughout the supply chain, including the need for higher-performance cylinder oils.


Harriet Brice, Technology Manager and Ian Bown, Technical Manager, Lubrizol


Introduction With over 90% of the world’s trade being carried by sea, the importance of maritime transport cannot be overstated. The main type of marine fuel used for ships is heavy fuel oil (HFO), which is derived as a residue from crude oil distillation. As crude oil contains sulphur, following combustion in the engine, harmful sulphur oxides (SOx) emissions are emitted into the atmosphere.


The ongoing drive to reduce SOx emissions from ships is intended to reduce air pollution and create a cleaner environment, particularly for populations living close to ports and coasts. It is known that SOx can lead to acid rain which is harmful to forests, crops and aquatic species as well as increasing acidification in oceans around the world.


Likewise it is known that SOx is harmful to human health causing lung disease and respiratory symptoms. A study submitted by Finland to the IMO’s Marine


34 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.153 OCTOBER 2019


Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in 2016, estimated that delaying a reduction in the SOx limit for ships from 2020 to 2025 would contribute to more than 570,000 additional premature deaths worldwide. Therefore, the decision to reduce the global fuel sulphur cap from 3.5% w/w (weight by weight) to 0.5% w/w from the start of 2020 is well founded and continues the IMO’s progressive tightening of sulphur limits.


The introduction of a fuel sulphur cap below 3.5% is not new. While the reduction from 3.5% to 0.5% will apply globally to ships operating outside of designated emission control areas (ECAs), there is already an even stricter 0.10% sulphur limit in effect in emission control areas, having been reduced from 1.00% in January 2015 and covering: the Baltic Sea area; the North Sea area; the North American area (designated coastal areas off the United States and Canada); and the United States Caribbean Sea area (around Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands).


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