Fuel Line
Reliable engine protection as fuels change
Fuel oil today is more complex than ever. The challenges created by very-low-sulphur and ultra-low-sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO/ULSFO) remain, even long after the regulatory shift of 2020. Biofuel blends – which will soon be a practical necessity to meet CII targets – only add to the difficulties.
Cat fines are an ever-present threat in residual oil, even when biofuels are mixed in. Add that biofuel blends can be unstable and cause incompatibilities between fuels. Or the fact that they degrade faster and have sensitive cold flow properties.
Whatever the fuel blend, it’s critical to prepare it in an optimal way for the engine. Alfa Laval has the full range of equipment and the knowledge to make it work together. The Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line handles all fuels and biofuels defined in the ISO8217:2024 standard, along with their many complexities.
The Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line
The Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line covers separation, feed synchronization, filtration, temperature control, fuel conditioning and more. Each equipment solution has its own duty. But together they form a single, flexible process that responds to changes and challenges in real time – strengthened by Alfa Laval knowledge and service.
Adaptiveness is readiness – and using less
Fuel oil composition is constantly changing. Each bunker, each blend can be different, even when the specifications are the same. Likewise, your engine’s needs vary with your sailing speed. For complete and efficient engine protection, your fuel line must adapt to the challenges and demands.
As a complete process solution, the Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line:
- Reduces oil losses and sludge production for all fuel and biofuel blends
- Synchronizes the fuel feed to actual engine consumption
- Enhances cat fine removal by optimizing separation conditions
- Saves energy by minimizing return flow and re-separation of cleaned fuel
- Delivers correct fuel parameters – even during changeover between blends
Our blue book explains
The Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line turns individual equipment solutions into an even stronger whole. Our blue book explains the parts and how they work together.
Marine biofuels add to the challenge
Marine biofuels like HVO and FAME are an opportunity for reducing CO2 footprint and meeting CII targets. Without major equipment modifications, they can be used in marine diesel engines under current IMO and EU guidelines. Yet while similar to fossil fuel oils, biofuels also differ in significant ways. Alfa Laval can help you ensure safe and smooth engine performance, thanks to biofuel-ready equipment and deep insights into biofuel operation – gained through onboard experience in support of our customers.
The escalating battle against cat fines
For at least half a century, shipowners and operators have been fighting off cat fines. The threat from these highly damaging particles has grown in recent years, which means engines today need more sophisticated defence.
The cat fine problem – origins and risks
Catalytic cracking lets refiners extract more from crude oil, but shipowners and operators are left to clean up the mess. If the cat fines left in marine fuel oil get into the engine, they have a devastating and costly effect – which may include catastrophic damage.
Why “better” fuels have been worse for the engine
The shift to VLSFO/ULSFO was driven by global regulation with emissions in focus. While better from an emissions perspective, these fuels have hardly been better for engine operations. Cat fines have increased – and mixing in biofuels won’t resolve the issues.
Integrating cat fine defence
Effective fuel line equipment is critical in protecting the engine from cat fines, but even more is required. From the design of the fuel line as an integrated process to factors such as maintenance, monitoring and service, knowledge plays a vital role in engine protection.
Defeating cat fines with onboard fuel cleaning
The quality of marine fuel oil is far from consistent. It can vary significantly within the limits, which makes professional fuel management vital. Listen to three well-known marine industry experts as they give their views on avoiding excessive costs and mitigating the risk of serious breakdowns.
Use slow steaming to boost cat fine protection
Operating at reduced speed is a more common strategy than ever. It reduces fuel consumption and emissions, but it can also be a significant advantage in the fight against cat fines. By matching fuel line operations to the engine’s actual fuel consumption, flow synchronization optimizes engine protection – removing more cat fines and saving energy in the process.
Listen to the fuel line experts
Get face-to-face with the experts behind the Alfa Laval Adaptive Fuel Line and more. In these informative videos, they share their thoughts on meeting today’s and tomorrow’s fuel and application challenges.
Understand the ALCAP advantage
ALCAP™ technology revolutionized fuel oil separators, making separation an adaptive process. Whereas traditional separators needed manual adjustment for every fuel type, ALCAP separators adjust automatically to provide uninterrupted operation. Learn how their ALCAP function maximizes separation efficiency, fuel economy and engine protection.
Our products
S and P Flex separators
The Alfa Laval S and P Flex range of separators is ideal for all fuel oils and lubricating oils. The separators have now been optimized to correctly treat biofuels as well. Maximize protection and efficiency by creating a modular separator system specific to your application. The advanced S separator, which is the world’s best-selling separator for fuel and lube oil, uses ALCAP™ technology to adjust continuously to the fuel’s properties for optimal performance with minimal losses.
FlowSync
Alfa Laval FlowSync is an automatic separator feed pump control system for use in your vessel's fuel processing system. It synchronizes the fuel flow to the separators based on the engine’s actual fuel consumption – giving you greater engine protection, lower cat fine levels and reduced energy costs. FlowSync is unique in its communication with the separator, allowing for smooth discharging and back-pressure control processes.
FCM 1.5 fuel supply system – oil and biofuel
The Alfa Laval FCM 1.5 fuel supply system can be fully configured, both through accurate selection and sizing of the installed equipment and through detailed process design. It efficiently feeds the engines with fuel that is perfectly matched to the required conditions. It can automatically handle multiple fuels using a dedicated set of parameters, and it can safely perform the changeover between fuels without any limitation on the engine load.
AlfaNovaM heater
The Alfa Laval AlfaNovaM heater is a heat exchanger made of 100% stainless steel, bonded without any copper or nickel. With this unique construction, the compactly designed heater is a perfect choice – not only for fuel and lubricating oils but also for biofuels.
ALP three-screw feed pump
Alfa Laval ALP three-screw pumps have been developed for the lowest operating cost and highest reliability, with specific focus on the marine industry. ALP pumps are the obvious choice for handling of fuel and lubricating oils, as well as biofuels.
Moatti filters
The Alfa Laval Moatti range of automatic backflushing filters provides unique features to optimize engine uptime at the lowest cost of ownership. Installed in thousands of marine vessels worldwide, the filters are used with all marine residual and distillate fuel oils, as well as biofuels, providing complete protection for all sizes of marine engines.
Viscochief III
Alfa Laval Viscochief III provides updated process control functions to those fuel supply systems designed before the introduction of the marine fuels currently in use. Viscochief III allows full process automation and extended remote monitoring and control. By upgrading the existing fuel supply system on board with Viscochief III, the conditions of any fuel at the engine battery limit will be automatically and safely secured.
Contact us to discuss
We’re always ready to talk about your needs, whether it comes to specific Alfa Laval fuel line solutions or wider strategies for meeting fuel challenges. Let us know what’s on your mind and we’ll get in touch.
Here for 100 years and beyond
When you choose Alfa Laval, you choose a long-term partner to support you – throughout your vessel’s lifetime and further. We’ve been active in the marine industry for over 100 years, and our unwavering service continues. Join us in looking ahead at the future of marine partnership.
Services
Alfa Laval Marine Service
Worldwide and 24/7, Alfa Laval Marine Service is your path to greater uptime, optimized performance and true peace of mind. Our network is always on call, and our service offering brings reliability, efficiency and compliance throughout your equipment's lifetime.
Fuel line training
In meeting regulations and working safely and efficiently with new fuels, knowledge is just as important as equipment. To see that you have it, Alfa Laval offers both standardized open courses and customized trainings. Among them is our highly appreciated Fuel Management Course.
Collaborations fuelling our future
| Collaboration is our key to accelerating the journey towards a carbon-free future. We partner with prominent marine players to expand our sustainable portfolio and provide decarbonization solutions to our customers. Through collaborative research and joint development, we build new solutions and technologies that optimize ship operations and transform the marine energy landscape. | |||