Diesel Engine Cleaning

The goal of recent legislation with regards the operation of ships in international waters is to reduce emissions from vessels. One of the issues most affecting the industry is the visible issue of smoke that can be seen from the stacks.

Marine diesel smoke is generally a result of over fuelling or poorly maintained equipment. Over fuelling occurs when the fuel to air mix ratio is out of balance, generally the air path is restricted so that insufficient air reaches the cylinders to react with the fuel and incomplete combustion of the fuel results in the excess been released through the exhaust as soot particles.

This situation will also result in higher emissions of the other products of combustion, such as CO2 and SO2.

The REVIVE turbocharger product was originally formulated to clean the gas path of road vehicles fitted with turbocharger units. It has been in the market for the last ten years.

REVIVE has been adapted for use in a marine environment and the detergents enhanced to cope with the more extreme fouling seen in large reciprocating engines, especially that seen in the air charge coolers and scavenge channels.

The implementation of REVIVE on board a vessel can be enhanced by lining the dosing to the emissions monitoring system i.e. a wash is initiated once an increase in emissions is detected.

In cleaning the gas path and maintaining clear airways, the engine is operated at close to its design point, not withstanding losses associated with mechanical wear.