Wärtsilä has introduced a unique product, GasReformer, which uses steam reforming technology to convert associated gas to a quality that can be used as fuel in Wärtsilä’s range of gas fuelled engines. The Wärtsilä GasReformer is yet another example of the company developing highly efficient products and demonstrating integration capabilities which ensure environmentally and economically optimised solutions.

Wärtsilä GasReformer has been awarded the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) 2013 Spotlight on New Technology Award. The award recognizes innovative new products that provide significant impact for offshore exploration and production. The award criteria were that the product must be new, less than two years old, innovative, proven, have broad interest and appeal for the offshore industry, and provide significant benefits beyond existing technologies.

The Wärtsilä GasReformer is an innovative new product that enables gases produced during oil production, which by nature are rich in heavy hydrocarbons, to be converted into a methane rich product for utilization in Wärtsilä dual-fuel engines operating at full performance levels. Traditionally such gases would be flared and wasted. While catalytic conversion of hydrocarbon feeds to hydrogen is a known process dating back to the early 20th century, the Wärtsilä GasReformer represents a totally new application under quite different conditions than that of the traditional process.

“Wärtsilä has considerable experience in the treatment of gaseous fuels for fuel cells, and this patented product is a result of this development work. It is yet another example of the company’s ability to develop solutions that combine both economic and environmental benefits. The uniqueness of the GasReformer is in its ability to convert unwanted heavier fractions from the gas into methane. By turning otherwise waste gas into fuel, the system significantly lowers operating costs while notably enhancing environmental sustainability. In locations where flaring is prohibited, this is especially important,” says Tore Lunde, Director Wärtsilä Oil & Gas Systems.