A framework for risk assessment of ammonia storage and bunkering at ports

Abstract

Ammonia stands out as a promising option for maritime fuel, offering the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, its adoption comes with inherent risks, including: toxicity, flammability, corrosiveness, and odor. As the maritime industry is in the initial stages of the exploration of using ammonia as fuel, it is imperative to acknowledge and address these risks. This work focuses on the acknowledging port authority and terminal operators, whose responsibilities are a safe and efficient facilities construction and inter terminal fuel transportations. This profound risk assessment should be conducted in advance to identify risks alongside with potential consequences. In this article, we provide a risk assessment framework consisting of qualitative and quantitative assessment tools. This framework can facilitate the responsible integration of ammonia as a maritime fuel at the port level. In particular, it can provide the port authorities with meaningful guidance for the prevention and risk mitigation strategies for ammonia storage and bunkering to the vessels. This work aligns with the concept of physical internet nodes, as it illustrates how an emerging application such as alternative fuel is embedded and integrated into a connected multi-machine system like inter-terminal logistics