Who Do You Trust? From White Paper to Peer Review

A recent Haldor Topsoe white paper discusses the use of ammonia as a green alternative to diesel to power marine vessels. Excerpts from the press release describing the white paper’s contents appear below.

But first, what is a white paper? And what is a preprint? And while we’re at it, what is the difference between a preprint and a peer reviewed journal article?

And why should we care?

I Googled these questions and found the following information. Excerpts appear below, along with source URLs, in case you are interested.

In a word, we care about the differences between white papers, preprints, and peer reviewed articles, because it helps us determine how trustworthy the information is.

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Purdue University Online Writing Lab
What is a White Paper?
Originally, the term white paper was used as shorthand to refer to an official government report, indicating that the document is authoritative and informative in nature. Writers typically use this genre when they argue a specific position or propose a solution to a problem, addressing the audience outside of their organization. Today, white papers have become popular marketing tools for corporations especially on the Internet since many potential customers search for information on the Web. Corporations use white papers to sell information or new products as solutions that would serve their customers' needs.
The Purpose of a White Paper
Typically, the purpose of a white paper is to advocate that a certain position is the best way to go or that a certain solution is best for a particular problem. When it is used for commercial purposes, it could influence the decision-making processes of current and prospective customers.
source: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/subject_specific_writing/professional_technical_writing/white_papers/index.html
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What is a preprint? And how does it differ from a peer reviewed article?
Academic practices
Publication of manuscripts in a peer-reviewed journal often takes weeks, months or even years from the time of initial submission, owing to the time required by editors and reviewers to evaluate and critique manuscripts, and the time required by authors to address critiques. The need to quickly circulate current results within a scholarly community has led researchers to distribute documents known as preprints, which are manuscripts that have yet to undergo peer review. The immediate distribution of preprints allows authors to receive early feedback from their peers, which may be helpful in revising and preparing articles for submission.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preprint
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Here is the text of the Haldor Topsoe press release. Follow the hyperlink to download the full text of the white paper.

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    Alfa Laval, Hafnia, Haldor Topsoe, Vestas, and Siemens Gamesa issued a report “Ammonfuel – an industrial view of ammonia as a marine fuel” providing a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the applicability, scalability, cost, and sustainability of ammonia as a marine fuel.
    The report describes ammonia as an attractive and low risk choice of marine fuel both in the transition phase towards a more sustainable shipping industry and as a long-term solution.
    The report is based on partners’ industrial expertise and input from a list of competent industrial players.

The Ammonfuel report covers all aspects of the process of turning ammonia into marine fuel, including conventional and future green ammonia production, experience regarding safety with ammonia from other areas, the logistics of providing ammonia where it is needed, and the application on board the ship.

It focuses on cost, availability, safety, technical readiness, emissions, and the elimination of risks related to future environmental regulations and requirements.

Based on industrial expertise, the report concludes that ammonia is an attractive and low risk marine fuel, applicable both in the transition phase towards a more sustainable shipping and as a long-term solution.

Get the highlights from the report - or download the full report
source:
https://blog.topsoe.com/topsoe-and-partners-issue-a-report-ammonfuel-an-industrial-view-of-ammonia-as-marine-fuel?utm_medium=email&_hsmi=92575321&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8mS-mGyrJEL9JjqFxEudYnEX0kMxqFj5VdkEh3wS8fI4v1SM3NkBB_icbUA1NbGqCKEI81LEXylYDrsUcZrrep78N0tw&utm_content=92575321&utm_source=hs_email
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TIP: Google® ammonia marine fuel to add context to the Haldor Topsoe white paper.

Here are a couple of results from this search …

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New Research Shows Benefits of Ammonia as Marine Fuel
Credit: C-Job
By The Maritime Executive 06-11-2019 08:37:03
Ammonia can be safely and effectively applied as a marine fuel to reduce harmful emissions in the maritime industry, according to new research by C-Job Naval Architects in the Netherlands.
The research uses a new concept design, an ammonia carrier fueled by its own cargo, to study the concept of using ammonia as a marine fuel and achieve a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in shipping.   
Niels de Vries, Lead Naval Architect at C-Job Naval Architects and research lead, says: “Reviewing all ammonia power generation options, the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) is clearly the most efficient. However, it does have practical challenges as the power density and load response capability are not on an acceptable level yet. Therefore, in the short term applying the internal combustion engine is the way to go.”
Key research findings include:
•     A stepwise implantation could accelerate the application of ammonia as a marine fuel with in the first stage ammonia with marine diesel in an (Compression Ignition) Internal Combustion Engine (ICE). The second stage is an ICE using ammonia hydrogen mixtures followed by the third and final stage an SOFC using ammonia.
•     Reviewing all remaining options (ICE, Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC), Alkaline Fuel Cell (AFC) and SOFC) the SOFC is clearly the most efficient with a system efficiency of 53.9 percent. However, the SOFC does have practical challenges as the power density and load response capability are not at an acceptable level yet. Furthermore, despite the higher efficiency of the SOFC the total cost of ownership is still higher than the ICE based on these guidelines and estimations. The (two-stroke, low speed) internal combustion engine is second in efficiency with a system efficiency of 49.4 percent and therefore more efficient than the PEMFC and the AFC with a system efficiency of 44.5 percent and 44.8 percent respectively. Furthermore, the ICE is less expensive, more robust and has acceptable power density and load response capability. In the future further development of fuel cell technology might change the outcome of this evaluation. Based on the comparison the ICE is currently selected as best option for this project.
•     Comparing the ammonia ICE option with the conventional fossil fuelled ICE option the technical performance is similar on power density, load response, part load performance, coping with marine environment and system efficiency. However, the conventional option has significantly more harmful emissions (with NOx assumed to be similar). Studying the cost based on equal range the ammonia powered option is clearly more expensive, about 3.2 times the expenses of the conventional option. This follows from a basic cost scenario of 850 euro per ton ammonia and 500 euro per ton low sulfur 0.5 percent HFO. Looking into future scenarios the ammonia powered option can be in similar cost range as the conventional option. This is the case when using 400 euro per ton ammonia, based on low electricity cost, combined with either a 500 euro per ton HFO with 100 euro per ton CO2 taxation or 811 euro per ton HFO without CO2 taxation.
•     To safely handle ammonia (and hydrogen) as a fuel, spaces containing fuel lines should be equipped with ammonia (and hydrogen) detection combined with ventilation. Furthermore, in case of leakages remote operated shut-off valves should be installed to isolate the leakage and limit its impact. In line with this mitigation, redundancy in the fuel supply line should be arranged to ensure sufficient fuel supply for continuous operation in case part of the fuel supply is shut-off. In addition, in case of a blackout the main remote operated isolation valves should be installed with a fail close so when there is a loss of power the valves close automatically. As ammonia exposure to humans and the environment should be limited as much as possible, fuel lines should be routed with a sufficient distance from the shell, for example B/5 from the side. Where possible, fuel lines should be located in separate unmanned spaces. Where impossible, for example in the engine room, double-walled piping with pressure transmitters should be applied.
•     The ammonia fuel treatment room and similar to other fuel systems, the engine room, should be equipped with fire detection and a fire fighting system. Furthermore, to monitor the conditions of the fuel, pressure transmitters, temperature transmitters and flow detectors should be added. In addition, to cope with overpressure a pressure relieve system should be installed.
•     The main ship design consequences of the mitigations are on the arrangement due to the required separate spaces for the redundant fuel supply lines covering fuel trunks and fuel treatment rooms. Furthermore, the ventilation of the spaces containing fuel supply lines also require space for the intake and exhaust of air. The requirement of routing with sufficient distance from the side also impacts the effective use of available space of the vessel. All these factors increase the cost, especially the redundancy requirement. Therefore, implementation of 2 x 50 percent system capacity instead of 2 x 100 percent is considered to be important to limit these additional costs. The system design indicating the consequences on the arrangement is available separately upon request or can be found in the appendix of the link below.
•     As an ammonia carrier is used for the ammonia fuel system the main issue of ammonia fuel storage is not addressed as it was covered by existing regulations. Therefore, it is recommended to further investigate ammonia fuel storage so it can be applied on other ship types as well.
Ammonia has so far been a little-considered future fuel for shipping, but it's proponents say it's one that does not suffer from the “which comes first, the chicken or the egg” dilemma that has plagued the adoption of LNG as bunker fuel.
For LNG, the dilemma has been that shipowners have been reluctant to make the switch to LNG as bunker fuel in the absence of ports around the world able to supply it. Yet, the development of the required infrastructure is dependent on such demand. As ammonia is already produced and transported in large quantities around the world, bunker supplies could be readily accommodated, though of course it will have to be expanded once the first ammonia powered vessels are realized, says de Vries.
“Nowadays the main consumer of ammonia is the fertilizer industry,” he says. “This industry is supplied by ships which carry ammonia in bulk loads of up to 60,000 dwt. The industry's existing infrastructure could be used to realize bunker locations for ships in the future, and current production offers the possibility of a smooth transition. There are ports available already that could supply the first ships.”
C-Job has felt for a number of years that ammonia could be a viable and promising option for a clean and sustainable fuel. C-Job joined the Ammonia Energy Association last year to intensify collaboration with other industries to realize its ambition. Together with Proton Ventures and Enviu, C-Job established a consortium in 2017 to further investigate ammonia as marine fuel. With the completion of the theoretical research, the consortium project which will now move towards lab testing, pilot and evaluation.
source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/new-research-shows-benefits-of-ammonia-as-marine-fuel
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Marine Sector Turns to Ammonia to Decarbonize Shipping
Ammonia produced with renewables is rising above hydrogen and synthetic diesel as the best route to decarbonization.
Jason Deign May 21, 2020
The shipping industry is charting a new route toward cutting fossil fuel use in ocean-going vessels: ammonia.
To date, no ammonia-fueled ships have been built, but that’s not stopping companies including Equinor, Man Energy Solutions and Wärtsilä from rushing to help bring ammonia-fueled ships to market.
Moves to adapt engines and ship designs to ammonia fuel are driven by a 2018 International Maritime Organization (IMO) commitment to cut international shipping’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent by 2050, compared to 2008 levels.
Moving away from fossil fuels in shipping will require different approaches according to the type of vessel involved, experts say. Commuter ferries such as those in operation in Washington state are already moving toward battery power.
Elsewhere, compressed or liquefied green hydrogen could be an option for ships that are able to refuel regularly. But for vessels that spend days or weeks at sea, such as tankers, super trawlers or cargo ships, the size of the fuel tanks needed for hydrogen would be prohibitive.
Another possibility is for the industry to rely on synthetic diesel or other carbon fuels produced using renewable energy. In this instance, though, the problem is cost.
Synthetic diesel would cost approximately twice as much as green hydrogen in terms of energy on a megajoule-per-megajoule basis, said Niels de Vries, lead naval architect at C-Job Naval Architects of the Netherlands.
Green ammonia's manageable drawbacks
Green ammonia, which requires less storage volume than hydrogen and is cheaper to make than synthetic carbon fuels, seems like a handy compromise. But as a fuel, it is still far from ideal.
Although more energy-dense than hydrogen, ammonia still occupies significantly more space than diesel for the same amount of propulsion. New vessel designs might be able to accommodate this, but retrofitted ships could end up losing a fair amount of space in the hold.
Ammonia is toxic, it could emit polluting nitrogen oxides throughout the fuel cycle and, as produced today, it's still far from carbon-neutral. Nevertheless, proponents claim that none of these drawbacks is fatal to its prospects.
Man Energy Solutions is expecting to have a two-stroke ammonia engine ready to deliver by early 2024, Kirkeby said. By the following year, the company aims to offer retrofit conversions to allow existing two-stroke engines to use ammonia.
Meanwhile, Wärtsilä is working on four-stroke engine designs, hoping to reach the stage of field tests as soon as 2022. And the Finnish marine-to-energy giant is developing ammonia storage and supply systems to install ammonia fuel cells on Eidesvik Offshore’s supply vessel Viking Energy by 2023, part of the EU project ShipFC.
After its conversion, Viking Energy is expected to become the first carbon-free ammonia-powered vessel in the world. Equinor will use it for supply operations on the Norwegian continental shelf to help cut its supply-chain emissions.
Viking Energy is likely a sign of things to come in the shipping industry, but experts acknowledge there are many challenges ahead, not least overhauling a global supply chain.
source: https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/marine-sector-looks-to-ammonia-to-decarbonize-shipping
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Jean Steinhardt served as Librarian, Aramco Services, Engineering Division, for 13 years. He now heads Jean Steinhardt Consulting LLC, producing the same high quality research that he performed for Aramco.

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