Kobe Steel, Kawasaki Kisen to conduct long-term operational tests on a binary cycle power generation system installed on an actual ship

TOKYO, February 1, 2019 ― Kobe Steel, Ltd. announces that it will conduct joint research with Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (also called "K" LINE) on a binary cycle power generation system currently under development. The binary cycle power generation system was installed on the coal carrier Corona Youthful. Owned by "K" LINE, the 91,000-metric-ton carrier was inaugurated today.

The two companies will conduct joint research on the Corona Youthful, an actual ship, over the next three years to verify the durability and performance of the equipment under real operating conditions.

The binary cycle power generation system mounted on the ship can generate a maximum of 100 kW of electricity from the exhaust heat of the main ship engines. In the past, the exhaust heat was largely discarded. By effectively utilizing the exhaust heat to generate electricity to serve as auxiliary power for the ship, the system contributes to reducing carbon dioxide and fuel for the generator engines.

In 2011, Kobe Steel developed a binary cycle power generation system called Microbinary and began marketing this equipment for use on land. Kobe Steel has a proven record of delivering many units for use as heat sources in the fields of factory waste heat and terrestrial heat. Based on this knowledge, Kobe Steel began developing a binary cycle power generation system for ships in 2014 focusing on the waste heat from ships. After completing sea trials of a prototype in 2016, Kobe Steel has been continuing development of the binary cycle power generation system for ships and plans to commercialize it in the future.

The system has received approval from Japan's ship classification society Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (also known as ClassNK), Lloyd's Register of Shipping in the UK, and Norway's DNV GL.

Kobe Steel aims to expand its binary technology globally while contributing to reducing the environmental burden.