
Several ships in Singapore and Rotterdam have recently reported issues after using cashew nutshell marine biofuel.
Reported operational problems included fuel sludging, injector failure, filter clogging, system deposits and corrosion of turbocharger nozzle rings. CTI-Maritec carried out extended gas chromatography mass spectrometry testing for very low sulphur fuel oil samples from the vessels. The results showed the fuel was blended with Cashew Nutshell Liquid (CNSL) from undeclared source materials or production processes.
CNSL, a non-FAME biofuel, is a naturally occurring byproduct of the cashew nut industry and acts as a low-cost alternative renewable fuel. Continue reading “Cashew nutshell marine biofuel warning sent out”