Section 1 General

1.1.1 This document provides requirements for machinery using methanol as a fuel. The aim of the requirements is to provide a level of safety in respect of the ship’s occupants and a level of dependability in respect of the ship’s essential services, such as propulsion and electrical power that is commensurate with conventional oil-fuelled propulsion and auxiliary machinery.

1.1.2 These requirements are in addition to the applicable requirements of the Rules and Regulations for the Classification of Ships, (hereinafter referred to as the Rules for Ships) as well as other LR Rules where applicable, and all relevant Statutory Conventions.

1.1.3 The Rules do not repeat the general requirements for fire safety as stated in statutory conventions. These Rules do however include fire safety requirements additional to those stated in the statutory conventions specific to the use of methanol as fuel.

1.1.4 Additional requirements may be imposed by the National Administration with which the ship is registered and/or by the Administration within whose territorial jurisdiction the ship is intended to operate.

1.1.5 Any proposed deviations from the requirements of these Rules will be specially considered as part of the risk-based studies required by Ch 1, 3 Risk-based studies.

1.1.6 Periodic survey regulations for methanol-fuelled ships are located in the relevant requirements of the Rules for Ships,Pt 1, Ch 3, 24 Fuel installations using gases or other low-flashpoint fuels

1.2.1 Ships complying with the requirements of these Rules will be eligible for assignment of the LFPF(GF, ML) machinery notation:

LFPF(GF, ML) Assigned to ships other than liquefied gas carriers and tankers, where the main propelling and/or auxiliary machinery is designed to operate on methanol fuel. The notation also indicates that the methanol-fuelled machinery has been constructed, arranged, installed and tested in accordance with LR’s Rules and Regulations.

1.3.1 In the context of these Rules, the following definitions apply:

1.3.2  Area means a defined location. An area can be on open deck. An area can be open, semi-enclosed or enclosed. An area can be a space below deck. An area can be hazardous or non-hazardous.

1.3.3  Dependability is as defined in IEC 60050(191): Quality vocabulary — Part 3: Availability, reliability and maintainability terms — Section 3.2: Glossary of international terms. It is the collective term used to describe the availability performance and its influencing factors: reliability performance, maintainability performance and maintenance support performance and relates to essential services as agreed with Lloyd’s Register. Note: Dependability is used only for general descriptions in non-quantitative terms.

1.3.4  Dual-fuel engine means an engine that uses fuel covered by these Rules (with pilot fuel) and fuel oil. fuel oils may include distillate and residual fuels.

1.3.5  Enclosed space is any space within which, in the absence of artificial ventilation, the ventilation will be limited and any explosive atmosphere will not be dispersed naturally. In practical terms, this is a space bounded either on all sides, or all but one side, by bulkheads and decks, irrespective of openings, such that the required ventilation rate to prevent the accumulation of pockets of stagnant air cannot be achieved by natural ventilation alone, see Ch 1, 1.3 Definitions 1.3.24.

1.3.6  Explosive gas atmosphere is a mixture with air, under atmospheric conditions, of flammable substances in the form of gas or vapour that, after ignition, permits self-sustaining flame propagation.

1.3.7  Fuel, unless otherwise stated refers to methanol fuel as a liquid, vapour or both.

1.3.8  Fuel storage hold space is an enclosed or semi-enclosed area in which an independent methanol fuel storage tank is located.

1.3.9  Hazardous area as defined in the IEC 60079 series, means an area (see Ch 1, 1.3 Definitions 1.3.2) in which an explosive gas atmosphere is or may be expected to be present, in quantities such as to require special precautions for the construction, installation and use of apparatus. Hazardous areas are classified into zones based upon the frequency of the occurrence and duration of an explosive gas atmosphere, as follows:

1. Zone 0 is an area in which an explosive gas atmosphere is present continuously, for long periods or frequently;

2. Zone 1 is an area in which an explosive gas atmosphere is likely to occur in normal operation occasionally; and

3. Zone 2 is an area in which an explosive gas atmosphere is not likely to occur in normal operation but, if it does occur, will persist for a short period only.

1.3.10  Independent tank means a fuel-containment envelope, which is not contiguous with, or part of, the hull structure. An independent tank is built and installed so as to eliminate whenever possible (or in any event to minimise) its stressing as a result of stressing or motion of the adjacent hull structure.

1.3.11  Integral tank means a fuel-containment envelope which forms part of the ship’s hull and which may be stressed in the same manner and by the same loads which stress the contiguous hull structure and which is normally essential to the structural completeness of the ship’s hull.

1.3.12  Master fuel valve is a remotely activated and system activated valve in the fuel supply line to the consumers which is located outside the machinery space of category A and is immediately downstream of the methanol supply equipment.

1.3.13  Consumers refers to methanol-fuelled machinery which includes:

1. dual-fuelled engines capable of burning fuel oil or methanol fuel - using pilot oil ignition – alone or as a combination of both;

2. single-fuelled engines capable of burning only methanol alone;

3. dual-fuel burner systems for boilers capable of burning fuel oil or methanol fuel alone or as a combination of both.

1.3.14  Non-hazardous area means an area (see Ch 1, 1.3 Definitions 1.3.2) in which an explosive gas atmosphere is not expected to be present in quantities sufficient to require special precautions for the construction, installation and use of apparatus.

1.3.15  Reasonably foreseeable abnormal condition is an event, incident or failure that:

• has happened and could happen again; and
• is planned for (e.g. emergency actions cover such a situation, maintenance is undertaken to prevent it, etc.).

1.3.16  Risk is the combination of the likelihood of an event and its consequence. Likelihood may be expressed as a probability or a frequency.

1.3.17  Risk assessment is the evaluation of likelihood and consequence, together with a judgement on the significance of the result, see IEC/ISO 31010: Risk management, risk assessment techniques.

1.3.18  Rules for Ships means Rules and Regulations for the Classification of Ships.

1.3.19  Semi-enclosed space is a space limited by decks and/or bulkheads in such a manner that the natural conditions of ventilation in the spaces are noticeably different from those obtained on open deck. In practical terms, this is a space which is open on two opposing sides, but where the natural ventilation conditions within the space are restricted by structures such as decks, bulkheads or windbreaks in a manner such that they are significantly different from those obtained on an open deck, and where dispersion of vapour may be impeded.

1.3.20  Service profile for the purposes of these Rules is the machinery power/speed operational envelope indicating all the intended operational points applicable to the use of methanol as fuel and any short-term high power operation.

1.3.21  Single fuel engine means an engine that uses only methanol as fuel.

1.3.22  Single failure is where loss of intended function occurs through one fault or action.

1.3.23  Source of release is a point or location from which a flammable vapour or liquid is potentially released, for example a valve or detachable pipe joint, or a compressor or pump seal in the fuel supply system.

1.3.24  Space means an enclosed or semi-enclosed area, room or location. Typically spaces are below deck. See also Ch 1, 1.3 Definitions 1.3.2.

1.3.25  Tank master isolation valve is a remotely operated valve on the outlet from a fuel storage tank which is located as close as possible to the tank outlet location.