Los Angeles, CA - Transient plasma ignition, a breakthrough emissions-reducing and fuel-enhancing technology, successfully completed its first engine test onboard a full bore two stroke slow speed marine diesel engine on May 16, 2014.
Transient Plasma (TP) is unlike any other emissions reducing technology currently available on the market. Ships around the world have embraced costly engine and after treatment technologies as well as alternative fuels to meet regulatory requirements for ever stringent emissions levels. None of these technologies actually looks at the science behind combustion. How does combustion happen, and how can it be improved? These are the questions the researchers at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering have been answering thanks to the generous contribution made by the TCC Group and TCC Institute for Emission Reduction in Marine Diesel Engines (TIER-MDE).
In understanding the combustion process, on a molecular level, USC Viterbi researchers have discovered that ignition, triggered by TP, breaks down the bonds in air and fuel molecules sooner and with greater ease than the high pressures needed and created by diesel engines. This means that ignition happens faster and combustion is more complete, minimizing the amount of remaining unburned hydrocarbons, with the beneficial results of reduced fuel consumption and emissions.
Lab tests have shown that TP can ignite marine diesel oil at atmospheric pressures, thereby revolutionizing diesel engine designs, which have remained fundamentally unchanged since their inception in 1894.
This first sea trial demonstrated that the prototype TP electrode was of robust design, withstanding a range of engine operating conditions, with no impacts to the engine or auxiliary ship systems. Additionally, application of the TP electrode required no modifications to the engine structure, greatly reducing implementation costs. The next set of tests, scheduled for the fall of 2014, will focus on generating sufficient plasma to enhance engine efficiency and capture marked decreases and reduce, reverse and recover emissions.
About the TCC Institute for Emission Reduction in Marine Diesel Engines (TIER-MDE)
TIER-MDE is dedicated to the goal of significantly conserving fuel, enhancing engine efficiency and reducing emissions harmful to health and the environment by radically changing the operation of marine diesel engines for the better.
About TCC Group
The unprecedented research effort was galvanized by the TCC Group Chairman Mr. Kenneth Koo in May 2010 after witnessing the impasse of the Copenhagen World Climate Summit in 2009 and the International Maritime Organization's incremental mandate in 2010. Mr. Koo felt a call to act after witnessing engine makers' hesitancy to rethink the fundamentals of marine diesel efficiency. TCC Group owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk carriers and oil tankers.
About the USC Viterbi School of Engineering

Engineering Studies began at the University of Southern California in 1905. Nearly a century later, the Viterbi School of Engineering received a naming gift in 2004 from alumnus Andrew J. Viterbi, inventor of the Viterbi algorithm now key to cell phone technology and numerous data applications. Consistently ranked among the top graduate programs in the world, the school enrolls more than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students, taught by 174 tenured and tenure-track faculty, with 60 endowed chairs and professorships.http://viterbi.usc.edu
About Amergent Techs, LLC
Amergent Techs, LLC (Amergent Techs or AT) engaged by the TCC Group, is a leading provider of high quality products and services to assist companies meet their program goals. AT has expertise in many industries including: Maritime, Transportation, Energy, and Environmental Sciences. The AT team can provide personnel or solutions to the most unique challenges.
Contact
Megan Hazle (USC Viterbi) - 213-821-1887 or hazle@usc.edu
Galia Kaplan (Amergent Technologies) - 562-537-3810 or gkaplan@amergenttechs.com
