Maritime Innovation

The maritime industry is looking for ways to innovate and cut costs through the use of alternative fuels, optimization tools, and efficiency technologies.

The U.S. government has committed to restoring America’s maritime dominance, which will require the resources and expertise of numerous federal agencies working in concert. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its National Laboratory system have important roles to play in this work, especially on research, development, and demonstration of maritime energy technologies.

This page features links to relevant maritime work across the DOE and its National Laboratories in several technological focus areas, including: low-carbon liquid and gaseous fuels; hybridization and all-electric drive trains; energy efficiency and optimization; and exhaust treatment and carbon capture.

What is the Maritime Industry?

The maritime industry is the international network of ships and ports that makes the global economy possible. The ships responsible for this mass movement of goods are some of the largest machines on earth, powered and propelled by some of the largest engines.

The maritime shipping industry also includes numerous types of smaller vessels, such as ferries, tugs, and trawlers that navigate coastal and inland waterways. Vessels interface with land transportation modes like trucks and rail at seaports and harbors, thereby allowing cargo to reach destinations further inland.

In the U.S., there are approximately 40,000 commercial vessels and 360 commercial seaports handling every type of cargo, from people to phosphorus. There are an additional 10.5 million motorized recreational boats.

Energy innovation in shipping is challenging due to the wide spectrum in vessel types and sizes, the large amounts of energy they use, and the inherently global nature of maritime transport that necessitates working across geographies.

Why is Maritime Innovation Important?

About 12% of the U.S. population lives near seaports, many of whom reside in port-impacted communities that exhibit higher rates of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, dangerous soil and water quality, and poorer health outcomes exacerbated by pollution from shipping. Ports and ships need vast amounts of energy for cargo-handling equipment, ground transport, electricity generation, and propulsion. Vessels account for approximately 3% of annual global emissions. Additionally, maritime transport activities produce criteria pollutants, accounting for 9% of sulfur oxides (SOx) and 18% of nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions annually.

Opportunities for innovation include low-emission liquid and gaseous fuels; hybridization and all-electric drive trains; energy efficiency and optimization; and exhaust treatment and carbon capture.

How is DOE Advancing Maritime Innovation?

There are many technologies, tools, and fuels that can increase energy efficiency, lower costs, and improve the security of the maritime industry. Some are commercially available, while others are still nascent and in need of additional research and development.

DOE works across this entire spectrum, often in partnership with other agencies like the U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration (MARAD), U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Navy.

Maritime Activities

Below are examples of some of the maritime activity areas that DOE is supporting. For active funding opportunities, please visit grants.gov or consult the EPA’s Ports Initiative Funding Opportunities for Ports and Near-Port Communities.

These activities fall under the following categories (use the pivot table below to find specific activities in each category):

Next Generation Maritime Liquid and Gaseous Fuels

Next generation fuels, such as LNG, methanol, ethanol, and ammonia can complement current marine fuels. More detail on transportation biofuels can be found on the DOE Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) transportation biofuels webpage.

Hybridization and All-Electric

Additional fuel engine propulsion systems being considered by the maritime industry are based on an electrified (instead of mechanical) powertrain. Electric-based powertrains may be a way to help future-proof vessels as new technologies become available over a ship’s 30-year or more operating life. Moreover, integrating marine engines with hybrid technology could also offset fuel consumption.

Energy Efficiency and Optimization

Energy efficiency is concerned with getting the most out of energy inputs (i.e., fuel) by reducing losses in conversion. The conversion of a fuel’s chemical energy to mechanical energy for propulsion involves numerous energy losses along the way, which present opportunities for improvement. Some of the major energy efficiency improvements that can be made to vessel machinery are through waste heat recovery, optimizing designs of vessel equipment and auxiliary machinery, and shipboard power management systems.

Exhaust Treatment and Carbon Capture

Existing emissions treatment strategies will require renewed R&D attention to address new challenges introduced by the advent of novel fuel and propulsion technologies.

Maritime Relevant Offices at DOE

International Collaborations

Other Federal Agencies and Offices Engaged in Maritime Innovation