As part of the ongoing Blue Star Delos Renewable Energy Innovation Project, Eco Marine Power (EMP) stated that the Aquarius Management & Automation System (MAS) installed on Blue Star Delos has been updated with new fuel oil consumption (FOC) and emissions monitoring software.
This updated software combined with the Aquarius MAS hardware allows for fuel consumption data from all flow meters on the ship to be displayed and logged in real-time. In addition CO2, NOx and SOx emissions are calculated based on the fuel type being used. Data is logged every minute and via a connection to a dedicated GPS unit, the ships location and speed is displayed and logged. A trip-meter is also available so that fuel consumption can be monitored for a specific time period or voyage.
On Delos the fuel consumption and emissions monitoring software is part of an overall solution which also monitors the power output and status of the marine solar power system (including batteries) that was installed on the ship in 2014. Blue Star Delos is a high speed Ro-Ro/Passenger ship owned and operated by Blue Star Ferries - part of the Attica Group. Delos operates daily from Piraeus, Greece, and is an important transportation link to a number of Greek islands in the Aegean Sea.
Regarding this latest development, Mr. Myron Vergis, Director, Electrical & Electronic Department for the Attica Group said, “This is another important step forwards in our project with Eco Marine Power and we are pleased that Blue Star Ferries is once again a pioneer in bringing innovative solutions to the shipping sector”.
Greg Atkinson, Chief Technology Officer at Eco Marine Power, said “We are very appreciative of the co-operation and support we have received from Blue Star Ferries during the project on Delos. The company continues to demonstrate its commitment to embracing technologies that help make shipping more sustainable”.
The fuel and emissions monitoring software was co-developed in co-operation with KEI System Ltd., of Osaka, Japan. The updated software features will also be made available via a new hardware & software package - Aquarius MAS Compact. This solution is almost identical in terms of hardware and software to the Aquarius MAS but does not include the functions or interfaces to manage a marine solar power system.
However these functions and interfaces can included later via a hardware and software upgrade.