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Shipping Carbon Emissions and Decarbonization Paths: Advances and Challenges
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Shipping Carbon Emissions and Decarbonization Paths: Advances and Challenges

A special issue of Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (ISSN 2077-1312). This special issue belongs to the section "Ocean Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 June 2026 | Viewed by 1220

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Zhen Tian

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Merchant Marine College, Shanghai Maritime University, Shanghai, China
Interests: onboard CCUS; LNG cold energy utilization; TMS for ship power batteries

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The shipping industry emits an average of 1 billion tons of carbon annually, accounting for 3% of global anthropogenic carbon emissions. After the Paris Agreement set the temperature control target, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) led the establishment of a global system of rules for reducing shipping emissions. At the regional level, policies such as the EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime have also come into effect, translating policy texts into actual financial burdens for enterprises. Against this backdrop, the shipping industry needs to overcome the decarbonization bottleneck through technological innovation and achieve a balance between environmental responsibility and industry sustainable development.

This Special Issue aims to respond to the requirements of global climate governance, implement the IMO's net-zero framework and regional emission-reduction policies, and contribute to achieving the shipping industry's net-zero emissions target by 2050. Based on multi-scenario carbon-emission modeling and predictions, it provides a scientific basis for selecting decarbonization technologies, formulating policies, and planning infrastructure, thereby enhancing the accuracy of transformation decisions. For integrating insights from engineering, environmental science, economics, and policy, the Special Issue will provide a comprehensive overview of feasible decarbonization strategies for the global shipping industry.

The focus areas include, but are not limited to: prediction of shipping carbon emissions, modeling maritime GHG reduction measures, substitution of zero-carbon fuels, improvement of ship energy efficiency, green energy utilization, carbon capture and storage, as well as carbon footprint accounting and certification, and intelligent operation and maintenance of low-carbon shipping.

Prof. Dr. Zhen Tian
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • shipping carbon emissions and carbon footprint
  • ship energy efficiency optimization
  • low-carbon fuel substitution
  • maritime energy and novel power system
  • waste energy recovery
  • carbon capture system
  • intelligent operation and maintenance
  • modeling shipping GHG emissions

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 2233 KB  
Article
An AIS-Based Bottom–Up Framework for Evaluating Decarbonization Pathways in Maritime Corridors Considering Onboard Carbon Capture Technology: A Case Study of the Shanghai–Los Angeles/Long Beach Green Shipping Corridor
by Dan Wang, Zhihuan Wang, Yan Xu, Xiangming Zeng and Chunchang Zhang
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2026, 14(10), 929; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse14100929 (registering DOI) - 18 May 2026
Viewed by 113
Abstract
Green shipping corridors have become a key strategic initiative for advancing maritime decarbonization. This study develops an AIS-based bottom–up framework for estimating carbon emissions and compliance costs in green shipping corridors. The framework combines corridor fleet identification, AIS-based energy consumption and emission estimation, [...] Read more.
Green shipping corridors have become a key strategic initiative for advancing maritime decarbonization. This study develops an AIS-based bottom–up framework for estimating carbon emissions and compliance costs in green shipping corridors. The framework combines corridor fleet identification, AIS-based energy consumption and emission estimation, and compliance-cost modeling under the IMO CII and GFI requirements. On this basis, eight alternative energy options—HFO, fossil LNG, bio-LNG, e-LNG, bio-methanol, e-methanol, green ammonia, and biofuel B100—together with carbon capture technology, are incorporated into the analysis and applied to the Shanghai–Los Angeles/Long Beach green shipping corridor. The results show that before 2035, the emission reduction requirements of CII can cover the basic compliance requirements of GFI. Without carbon capture, the combined use of fossil LNG and bio-LNG appears to be a relatively favorable transition pathway. When carbon capture is considered, LNG with carbon capture and HFO with carbon capture emerge as two relatively advantageous transition pathways. During 2025–2035, it is recommended that ships first adopt fossil LNG, then gradually introduce limited amounts of bio-LNG, and subsequently integrate carbon capture once the technology becomes mature. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Shipping Carbon Emissions and Decarbonization Paths: Advances and Challenges)
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31 pages, 2184 KB  
Article
Resilient Optimal Dispatch of Ship-Integrated Energy System and Air Lubrication Using an Enhanced Traffic Jam Optimizer
by Wanjun Han, Jinlong Cui, Xinyu Wang and Xiaotao Chen
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2026, 14(9), 779; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse14090779 - 24 Apr 2026
Viewed by 192
Abstract
With increasingly stringent greenhouse gas emission regulations in the shipping industry, there is an urgent need for an efficient energy management strategy for new energy ship power systems. However, existing dispatch models often overlook the dynamic energy-saving potential of active drag reduction technologies [...] Read more.
With increasingly stringent greenhouse gas emission regulations in the shipping industry, there is an urgent need for an efficient energy management strategy for new energy ship power systems. However, existing dispatch models often overlook the dynamic energy-saving potential of active drag reduction technologies and lack effective optimization algorithms capable of handling high-dimensional, multi-constrained problems. To address these problems, this paper proposes a novel integrated dispatch framework for hybrid energy ship power systems that incorporates air lubrication systems. First, a unified multi-energy dispatch model is established, coupling the dynamic operation of air lubrication systems with electrical, thermal, and propulsion energy flows. Second, an Improved Traffic Jam Optimizer algorithm is proposed, which enhances global exploration and local exploitation through a nonlinear parameter adaptation mechanism, differential mutation strategy, and dynamic hybrid search architecture. Convergence analysis based on Markov chain theory is provided to guarantee algorithmic reliability. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm outperforms existing methods in terms of convergence speed, solution accuracy, and stability. Furthermore, integrating air lubrication systems into the ship power system reduces total operating costs and greenhouse gas emissions by up to 20.569% and 6.310%, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Shipping Carbon Emissions and Decarbonization Paths: Advances and Challenges)
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27 pages, 5398 KB  
Article
Numerical Investigation of Micro-Scale Mass Transfer in Stretched and Compressed Kelvin-Cell Packings for Shipboard Carbon Capture
by Bohao Wu, Nan Wu, Yongqi Li, Ying Bi, Daan Cui, Haoheng Liu, Chao Chang and Yulong Ji
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2026, 14(7), 595; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse14070595 - 24 Mar 2026
Viewed by 440
Abstract
For shipboard CCUS facilities, the integration of chemical absorption columns is constrained by a limited vertical envelope, which motivates packings with axially stretched or compressed Kelvin cells to support compact layout and flow control. This study employs computational fluid dynamics to investigate microscale [...] Read more.
For shipboard CCUS facilities, the integration of chemical absorption columns is constrained by a limited vertical envelope, which motivates packings with axially stretched or compressed Kelvin cells to support compact layout and flow control. This study employs computational fluid dynamics to investigate microscale flow and mass transfer characteristics in Kelvin cells. A comparison among the regular Kelvin cell (RKC), the vertically elongated Kelvin cell (VEKC), and the vertically compressed Kelvin cell (VCKC) indicates that axial stretching and compression modify internal flow distributions and gas–liquid mass transfer during CO2 absorption. The liquid distribution transitions from a film along the struts with localized accumulation at the nodes in RKC to a continuous columnar stream in VEKC, and then to a stable hollow cylindrical liquid film promoted by lateral redistribution in VCKC. VCKC promotes a stable and expanded liquid film, whereas VEKC tends to induce columnar flow. Reducing the cell size and porosity improves mass transfer efficiency, and the liquid load governs mass transfer flux. These findings provide theoretical guidance for the design and optimization of compact packings for process intensification in shipboard carbon-capture applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Shipping Carbon Emissions and Decarbonization Paths: Advances and Challenges)
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