OREANDA-NEWS. Panasonic Environmental Systems & Engineering Co., Ltd., a Panasonic group company, announced that it has developed an on-board ballast water management system using an in-line electrolysis method to disinfect ballast water.

In the newly developed ballast water management system, called "ATPS-BLUE sys", an electrolysis unit is placed in the main ballast water pipe. The unit generates hypochlorous acid to disinfect the microorganisms in ballast water that may have been taken on board when taking in ballast water. The ATPS-BLUE sys also employs the company's original "stirring device" that enhances the efficacy of the sterilization, so that microorganisms in ballast water will be treated to fully conform to the discharge-standards by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) without using filters.

The ATPS-BLUE sys is a filter-less system, making backwashing and changing of the filter cloth unnecessary. As it is also scalable according to the volume of the ballast water to be treated as well as the ship's internal layout, the system helps utilize the limited space on board.

Ballast water, which is used to maintain balance and stability when the ship is empty of cargo, has been identified as a key factor responsible for bringing invasive species of microorganisms such as plankton and bacteria into non-indigenous environments, causing a major threat to marine ecosystems. All ships in international voyages are required to manage their ballast water and sediments in accordance with the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention) which the IMO adopted in February 2004. They are required to reduce the concentration of aquatic organisms in ballast water to below certain levels (D-2 Standard) before discharge in order to prevent trans-boundary movement of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens that unmanaged ballast water discharge may cause.

For the ATPS-BLUE sys, Panasonic has submitted an application to the IMO for G9 Basic Approval (G9BA) in September 2013 and has started testing for G9 Final Approval (G9FA) and land-based test according to G8 Guidelines*4. After obtaining G9FA and approval from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Panasonic is aiming to release the products of "ATPS-BLUE sys" for sale in the fiscal year starting in April 2015 through Exeno Yamamizu Corporation headquartered in Tokyo.