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Eurocontrol Technics Group Inc., a Canadian technology company specializing in the acquisition, development and commercialization of authentication, verification, certification and energy security technologies, has announced, through its wholly owned subsidiary Xenemetrix, the introduction of its new Petro-Marine XRF system, a monitoring system for marine vessels.

Petro-Marine XRF is an onboard X-Ray Florescence analysis system for detecting sulphur in diesel fuel to provide compliance with new international regulations for sulphur oxides in diesel fuel.

The monitoring and control of sulphur oxides under the IMOs MARPOL Annex VI convention is divided between those areas inside Emission Control Areas (ECAs) and those outside these zones. Failure to comply to emission legislation can lead to heavy penalties.

In addition to the ability to measure sulphur oxides in diesel fuel, the Petro-Marine XRF system is designed to also monitor:

* Wear metals in oils - The concentrations of wear metals in engine lubricating oil can be directly related to the engine components and can indicate component wear. An engine maintenance program using the Petro-Marine XRF system routinely measures concentrations of wear metals in oils in order to avoid unexpected engine failure and ensure a high degree of safety. In addition, monitoring the content of calcium, zinc and phosphorus reveals information pertaining to a diluted additive or improper choice of oil during engine maintenance.

* Cat Fines in fuel - Cat fines are compounds of silicon and aluminium that are required as catalysts in the refining process, however these particles can cause severe cylinder wall damage when present in large concentrations and can cause engine failure. The Petro-Marine XRF system allows ship owners to confirm the presence and magnitude of Cat Fines in the fuel within seconds during the fuel purchase process, thereby avoiding potential engine failure.

* Sea water contamination - Sea water contamination in marine fuels is detected through analyzing the content of sodium, chlorine, magnesium and potassium.

*Fraudulent mixing of bunker fuels - Routine analysis can detect fraudulent mixing of used lubrication oil in bunker fuels.

The Petro-Marine XRF system is equipped with GPRS/WiFi/Satellite Data Transfer and GPS, which provides the ability to immediately upload location-based data to the shipping company for reporting and monitoring.

According to Eurocontrol Technics, the target market for the Petro-Marine XRF system is merchant ships - of which there are approximately 55,000 currently in service worldwide. This figure includes bulk carriers, dry cargo vessels, multi-purpose vessels, container vessels, tankers, liquid petroleum gas, liquid natural gas and most cruise ships. The company estimates an available market of approximately US$1.6 billion.