Alfa Laval PureSOx Platform Offers Dual-compliance

The Alfa Laval PureSOx platform is expanding to provide not only 0.1%S compliance for Emission Control Areas (ECAs), but also 0.5%S compliance with the coming global sulphur cap. With the option of a dual-compliance system as well, customers can choose the best scrubber solution to match their sailing profile.

The Alfa Laval PureSOx platform is already the most proven and customer-adapted exhaust gas cleaning solution on the market. Regardless whether the MEPC implements the 0.5%S global cap in 2020 or 2025, the platform is now expanding to address an even greater range of customer needs.
 
With broader fuel sulphur regulations on the horizon, the platform is now expanding to address an even greater range of customer needs.
 
The current PureSOx version for 0.1%S compliance, now designated PureSOx ECA, is joined by a PureSOx Global version for complying with a 0.5%S global cap, as well as a PureSOx Flex version offering compliance at both levels. All versions offer open-loop, closed-loop or hybrid arrangements, in addition to the choice of U-design or inline I-design scrubbers. The full range of PureSOx possibilities is being presented at Alfa Laval’s stand at SMM in Hamburg (Hall A1, Stand A1.226).
 
PureSOx Global – ready for the global sulphur cap
Whenever the global sulphur cap arrives, ship owners and operators will be able to rely on a scrubber option based on proven technology – but in a smaller form optimized for open seas. That solution is PureSOx Global.
 
“Sailing profiles involving limited time in more restrictive areas allow customers to choose a simpler system with significantly reduced installation work, CAPEX and OPEX,” says René Diks, Manager Marketing & Sales, Exhaust Gas Cleaning. “A VLCC sailing only from the Persian Gulf to India, for example, would be well served by PureSOx Global in an open-loop arrangement.”
 
PureSOx Flex – for cost-effective flexibility
For vessels with more varied operating profiles, the ideal choice will be PureSOx Flex. Offering an easy switch between 0.5%S and 0.1%S compliance modes, PureSOx Flex provides high flexibility and optimized OPEX wherever the vessel sails. This is especially true when configured as a hybrid solution, in which both open-loop and closed-loop modes are available.
 
“A hybrid PureSOx Flex is the perfect fit for vessels on transoceanic routes, sailing in and out of ECAs at either end or perhaps along ECA coasts,” says Diks. “Take for instance a container vessel sailing from Shanghai past Singapore to the Suez Canal, then through the Mediterranean Sea to Rotterdam. The vessel will pass through both 0.5%S and 0.1%S areas, visiting many different ports with their own stringent regulations. PureSOx Flex in a hybrid arrangement can adapt to all those requirements, operating 100% of the time in the most economical way for the situation.”
 
PureSOx ECA – the original SOx solution
The original PureSOx, now designated PureSOx ECA, will continue to meet the needs of vessels that spend all or nearly all of their time in ECAs. These vessels face not only the most stringent emission and discharge regulations, but also technical restrictions such as low-alkalinity water.
 
“PureSOx ECA in a closed-loop arrangement is the clear choice for vessels on the Great Lakes, for example, or for any company whose strategy demands the greenest profile,” says Diks. “PureSOx ECA maximizes fuel savings and can naturally be combined with PureSOx options that go beyond regulations, such as zero discharge or plume removal. Those features make it future-proof if more stringent port regulations should appear.”
 
Prepared for any compliance scenario
While a decision to implement or postpone the 0.5%S global cap may or may not be taken during the MEPC70 meeting in October, the expansion of the PureSOx platform means Alfa Laval is fully prepared to begin guiding customers towards global compliance. This mirrors the approach taken with the original PureSOx, which was launched well in advance of today’s ECA legislation. PureSOx was in use with two-stroke and four-stroke engines on DFDS and Spliethoff vessels many years before ECA limits took effect in 2015.
 
“All the years of working with PureSOx have created a reliable technology, now operating in over 70 proven systems and ready for global requirements,” says Diks. “For owners or operators of a big fleet, now is the time to start investigating options and to consider gaining experience with a first scrubber installation. Alfa Laval’s stand at SMM is an excellent place to begin.”