Estimation of exhaust emissions of inland shipping - a case study on German waterways

Traffic is a significant contributor to anthropogenic air pollution. Although inland shipping constitutes only a small part of the total traffic and transports cargo very energy-efficient, inland vessels emit not negligible amounts of pollutants like nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. In order to quantify the contribution of inland transportation to the air pollution as well as to develop necessary strategies to mitigate current emissions, exact knowledge about vessel-born emission rates along waterways are required.

A mechanistic model has been developed to simulate fuel demand and emission rates of inland vessels with high temporal and spatial resolution. It links ship positions reported in the signals of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) with representative emission factors of inland vessel engines. The resistance, propulsion and brake power are calculated for each point of a vessel’s trajectory. Emission rates for quasi steady-state estimations of the brake power will be obtained via power-related emission factors. The integral of a large number of these point values ​​provides a quantification of inland shipping emissions along a waterway, e.g., in section-related emission rates.

This new model was applied on relevant German inland waterways. We present current exhaust emission rates and an example for a simulation to evaluate the mitigation potential of a modernized fleet.