ENTICE: Enhanced Ammonia Cracking to Improve Engine Combustion and Emissions

The ENTICE project will evaluate the feasibility of novel ammonia cracker technology from AFC Energy PLC to radically improve the combustion and emissions of future ammonia fuelled marine engines. Ammonia is now widely considered to be an excellent sustainable future fuel for marine engines provided its relatively slow combustion can be improved. The cracker is designed to indirectly use waste heat from the engine to split or "crack" some of the stored ammonia fuel into hydrogen gas. Hydrogen has very fast burning combustion characteristics that allow an engine to be operated more efficiently and cleanly. The cracked hydrogen gas will therefore be returned to the ammonia engine's intake system to aid the combustion as a supplementary fuel source. The work will involve precision engine testing in a state-of-the-art UK laboratory to measure the full impact of the cracker on engine combustion, performance, fuel consumption and pollutant emissions. The project work will include formal technical assessments of the practicality of the cracker system across existing and future boats and ships of varying sizes and use and portside operations. The assessments will consider the impact of the system on vessel design, performance, safety and cost. Ultimately, the project will help to rapidly accelerate the technology to market, with the next step involving full scale demonstration on an operating vessel followed by commercialisation at global scale from within the UK. In addition to marine applications, the technology can also be used in other applications such as stationary power generators and large off-road machinery.