Alfa Laval offers green GCU
Following its recent acquisition of gas combustion technology, Swedish heat treatment specialist, Alfa Laval, is offering LNG carrier owners an economic alternative to diesel propulsion with its gas combustion unit (GCU).
With rising fuel costs, strict environmental regulations and the lack of qualified seagoing engineers, owners of LNG shipping companies continue to look for ways to lower costs as a measure to ensure long term profitability.
Alfa Laval says its GCU, which regulates the pressure in cargo tanks by burning excess boil-off gas, can reduce costs for LNG carriers using duel-fuel diesel electric (DFDE) engines or low speed diesel (LSD) engines due to its simple design with fewer parts than other GCU’s, easy operations and small footprint.
René Fich Jespersen, general manager, new boiler and global sales support, Alfa Laval, said: “The Alfa Laval GCU is not, by any means, new technology but is by far a simpler and more reliable system than the other gas combustion units out there.”
The unit’s electrical ignition device enables fast start up while eliminating the need for marine diesel oil (MDO) or a distillate marine fuel (DMA) system, reducing operating costs. Its low noise fans, which serve both as combustion air fans and dilution air fans for exhaust gas, and its self-purging burner, also offer reduced installation and maintenance costs.
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