According to ship engine mechanics, manufacturers and marine retailers – for ships and boats of any size, fuel contamination is the number one cause of marine engine failure. This is part four in our seven-part series on cleaner diesel.

If you’ve missed them, go back and have a look at our earlier posts in the diesel fuel cleanliness series looking at how cleaner diesel fuel can help maintain engine performance in the agriculture, mining and aviation industries. In this post, we’re looking at why fuel quality makes such a difference in the ports and marine industry.

• Unlike cars – marine vessels (particularly non-commercial vessels such as leisure boats) aren’t used as often. Fuel can often sit in tanks for longer and the longer diesel fuel sits in your tank, the more time for bacteria, fungus and other microbial contaminants to breed and multiply.
• Water – water and diesel fuel do not mix and in the unique ecosystem that these two mixed liquids create, microorganisms flourish. Due to natural proximity of marine vehicles and water, there’s an increased chance of water entering the fuel supply.
• Corrosive marine environment – the shipping, marine and port industries are fighting a constant battle against corrosion. A corrosive environment is challenging for maintaining optimum fuel storage and handling as it is the ideal environment for diesel fuel contaminants.

Fuel contamination issues are nothing new in the marine and port environment, but by all accounts, they are getting worse. Typical contaminants such as water, algae, bacteria, fungus, debris and dust particles as well as other microbial agents enter the fuel supply chain every time fuel is transferred – from the refinery to fuel tanker ships to holding tanks, road tankers and fuel stations.

The effects of these contaminants can include:

• Reduced engine power and performance
• Blocking of fuel lines and injectors,
• Excessive wear and failure of engines and system components,
• Pitting corrosion and plate failure.

The end result is increased downtime for unscheduled maintenance, along with the additional costs associated with repairing fuel injection hoses and nozzles. When this maintenance work needs to be carried out on the water, costs can blow out very quickly and in the commercial shipping and fishing industries, delays can carry financial penalties. The good news is that fuel contamination is largely preventable.

The best way to remove these contaminants is by filtering diesel using a high quality after-market filter before fuel enters the tank, or using Final Filtered Diesel^® fuel. 

When it comes to diesel fuel cleanliness, Bulk Fuel Australia is leading the pack. Our high quality single-pass filter units supply filtered diesel to ships and other marine vehicles directly via our fleet of specialist on-site refuelling vehicles, designed to access sites with limited space, such as ports and marinas.  For clean, final filtered fuel for the marine and port industries, contact us for a quote today.