Cristian Chirita
viadonau Österreichische Wasserstraßen Gesellschaft
Cristian Chirita graduated from the Maritime University of Constanta as an Engineer of Navigation and Maritime Transport. He holds a Master’s degree in Maritime Safety and Security and a Master’s degree in Integrative Urban Development. Until 2022 he worked as a Master Mariner on tankers, transporting just over 2 million tonnes of oil and chemical products. Since 2016, he has been involved in endeavours to make shipping greener, and he is currently employed as a senior expert at viadonau – Österreichische Wasserstraßen-G.m.b.H., where his work focuses on improving the environmental performance of the inland waterway fleet.
SYNERGETICS demonstration on the use of digital tools in finding the optimal greening solution for inland vessels
In the context of the SYNERGETICS project, the greening of a 500kW push boat by retrofit is being investigated. Although the vessel is equipped with low-emission Stage V engines and runs on sustainable HVO100 fuel, further emission reductions are sought through non-fossil fuel technologies. Operational analysis has identified different power demands for the ship’s key tasks during consecutive bunkering events, leading to the exclusion of battery-electric and fuel-cell solutions and resulting in the selection of a methanol-electric propulsion system. The system will be modelled in the virtual Zero Emission Lab, and test cases will be used to evaluate the performance and therefore emissions of the vessel.