Analysis of the Best Fuel Mix for Shipping during the Zero Carbon Transition

Greenhouse effect carbon emission control has seriously affected world shipping, and the choice of alternative energy sources has become a challenging task. To meet this task, a variety of technologies and energy developments are essential for reducing carbon emissions associated with shipping. The search for the best maritime fuel has been a lengthy process, and at this stage, the global shipping industry is primarily facing a number of alternative energy sources with only limited carbon reduction capacity and high infrastructure investment. This study conducts a questionnaire survey of the world\'s major container, bulk, and tanker operators from the perspective of the industry, using technological, economic, environmental, societal, and fuel scalability factors to construct an analytical model of the impact of energy choices and the optimal fuel mix during the zero-carbon transitional period. FAHP and FTOPSIS were used to explore the objective opinions of container, bulk, and tanker operators regarding their energy mix during the zero-carbon transition period. The study results show that "fuel legality" is the key influencing factor and that "synthetic fuel" and "solar cells" are the most suitable possibilities as a carbon reduction combination of an alternative fuel and renewable auxiliary energy respectively at this stage of maritime transportation.