ABSTRACT
Severe depletion of fossil fuels has imposed strict restrictions on usage of marine propulsion machinery and monitoring of noxious emissions to the environment. International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the governing agency, as on 1 January 2020 had issued a notice to all marine vessels to restrict sulfur content in exhaust emissions, thus advocating the use of low-sulfur marine diesels or installation of high-efficient cleansing scrubbers. In addition, the Maritime Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has committed to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2050 and have chalked a comprehensive plan towards implementation of monitoring ship emissions and performance using Internet of Things (IoT) technology. The impetus towards prevention of greenhouse gas emissions has led to multidimensional implementation of renewable energy sources, viz., solar and wind for power generation onboard marine platforms. These renewable sources not only aid in restriction of greenhouse emissions but also drastically cut down the noise generated by the rotational machinery fitted onboard these platforms. Salient features of photovoltaics, especially floating solar farms, intelligent buoys, solar-powered civil and military marine vessels, and their overall governance and improvement in overall efficiency by IoT technology implemented at present and those being envisaged in future are elucidated.
