What You Need to Know about Marine Fuels Today
The presentation will address the following key points: What is good fuel quality?; Two main reasons for the deteriorating fuel oil quality; ISO 8217:2017 and the way forward; Fuel testing and accuracy of test methods (ISO 4259); Bunker claims; and PSC inspections and legislation
Residual fuels offer shipping a low-cost fuel and provide refiners with a market for a by-product of crude oil processing. Still, there are different opinions of what constitutes a good fuel quality basis the commercial, statutory and technical dimension. Historically, the controlling parameters for refiners or blenders have been viscosity and density, till sulphur content became the very important consideration. ISO 8217 is a purchase specification as it defines the required properties of fuels at the time and place of custody transfer. Given the variability between test results, even from identical samples tested in the same laboratory, the well-established ISO 4259 should be used for the interpretation of whether the fuel has, or has not, met a particular specification requirement. Being on specification does not necessarily mean good fuel and likewise, off specification does not necessarily mean poor fuel. In terms of quality, there are in general two ways to build up a claim; fuel is off specification and/or it is not fit for its intended use. Finally, in terms of sulphur compliance, several ECA countries are already working with remote sensing and quick scanning devices.
Date and location for our meeting are:
Date : Thursday, 7th December
Time : 7.00 pm
Location : The auditorium of Maran and Alpha Tankers
354 Syngrou Ave. (building before the Onassion Hospital) Kallithea, Athens
After the meeting hors d’oeuvres, wine, soft drinks, etc. will be served.
Participation is FREE for professional and student members, 5 euros for non-member students and 10 euros for non-member professionals. Participation fees will be paid at the entrance prior to the start of the meeting.
We look forward to seeing you on December 7 to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Very truly yours,
for the SNAME Greek Section
John Kokarakis Dimitris Kostaras
Chairman Secretary / Treasurer
PS: Our next technical meeting will take place on January 25th, 2018 during which four students from the School of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens will present their diploma theses completed during 2017. The Greek Section will award the best of these theses with a prize accompanied by a certificate. Please mark your calendar and do not miss this first meeting of 2018, during which we will cut our Vassilopita.
