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U.S. firm EnSolve Biosystems Inc. has announced that it has completed a "successful" sea trial of its EnScrub SOx Scrubber Water Treatment System onboard a vessel operating in the Baltic Region.

The EnScrub system was installed in April 2016. According to EnSolve, DNV certification testing that was conducted in August revealed that during closed-loop operation, the EnScrub system was successful in legally discharging 97 percent of the SOx scrubber water entering the system. The remaining 3 percent (sludge) was sent to a decanter for further dewatering.

"Because of the successful sea trial, our scrubber client achieved DNV certification for their EGC System as well as the EnScrub system for this vessel," commented Jason Caplan, EnSolve's CEO.

According to IMO's landmark ruling last month, the maximum sulphur content of marine fuel will be limited to 0.5 percent by January 2020. Alternatively, shipowners will be able to install SOx scrubbers to remove sulphur from the exhaust.

"The incorporation of an EnScrub device into a SOx scrubber system provides our shipping customers a complete pollution abatement system that addresses regulated contaminants in the engine emissions as well as the scrubber water," Caplan remarked.

Caplan added that EnSolve is currently in discussions with several scrubber companies for the possible inclusion of its EnScrub technology in their scrubber product lines. EnScrub models are now available for closed-loop, open-loop or hybrid applications.