Ricardo Completes FASTMOVE Study to Advance Ammonia-Fuelled Marine Engine Development

Ricardo has completed a feasibility study examining the use of ammonia as a marine fuel, delivering combustion system concepts and validated fuel injection data to support the next phase of ammonia engine development under the FASTMOVE project.

The project—Feasibility of Ammonia 4-Stroke Marine Engines in Offshore Vessels (FASTMOVE)—was carried out in partnership with Brunel University of London and the Port of Cromarty Firth. It aims to evaluate ammonia’s potential as a low-carbon marine fuel and support the development of next-generation propulsion technologies for offshore vessels.

Project Supports UK Maritime Decarbonisation

FASTMOVE forms part of UK SHORE, the UK Department for Transport’s programme to accelerate the decarbonisation of the maritime sector.

Since its launch in 2022, UK SHORE has allocated more than £230 million to over 247 projects, leveraging more than £107 million in private investment and supporting around 500 organisations across the UK. The programme is delivered by Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

Ricardo Develops Ammonia Combustion Concepts

As part of the study, Ricardo developed initial combustion concepts for ammonia-fuelled marine engines using its expertise in combustion engineering.

The work included:

• Capturing high-pressure ammonia injection data at 200 bar
• Developing and validating ammonia spray models using computational fluid dynamics (CFD)
• Producing high-pressure dual-fuel (HPDF) combustion models
• Designing a concept combustion system for a future ammonia engine

The project also assessed safety aspects related to ammonia storage, onboard handling and bunkering operations for offshore support vessels.

Three Engine Concepts Evaluated

Researchers developed three high-pressure dual-fuel combustion system concepts, with the most promising design selected for further optimisation.

The next stage focused on refining fuel injection timing, combustion characteristics and emissions performance while evaluating safety requirements against existing regulatory and environmental frameworks.

The study also examined ammonia storage infrastructure at the Port of Cromarty Firth, onboard vessel storage systems and bunkering procedures required to support ammonia-fuelled operations.

Richard Osborne, Ricardo’s Global Technical Expert in Sustainable Engines, said:

“We’re delighted to have led on this project, which will act as a case study to help determine whether ammonia offers a more sustainable solution for the maritime sector.”

He added: “The outcomes will be used to understand the feasibility of developing a single cylinder engine (SCE) to further verify combustion processes. We will also consider potential commercialisation of this technology and the use of ammonia in the future, subject to further studies being undertaken.”