Abstract:

Environmental regulations are increasingly attempting to decarbonize short-sea navigation, encouraging the substitution of alternative power systems for traditional power systems. The literature offers the electrification of ships as a road to zero-emission shipping. Batteries could ensure full compliance with the tightening pollution standards among the different options. However, appropriate batteries for short-sea navigation need to be investigated since each battery technology has its own environmental impacts and characteristics such as energy density, number of battery cycles, cost, fast charging ability, and safety. This research compares the conventional power system with a diesel engine and the alternative power system with a selected battery to identify convenient technology for zero-emission shipping according to the environmental and economic criteria. The Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) and the Life-Cycle Cost Assessment (LCCA) are performed to analyze the environmental and economic performance of different powering options. The analysis included ro-ro passenger ships from the Croatian short-sea navigation, highlighting the electrification by a Lithium-ion battery as the most appropriate alternative according to environmental and economic indicators.