Fuel Polishing & Transfer Systems

this year, Algae-X International came out with acomes on. The actual trigger of the alarm can be
totally new line of Fuel Polishing & Transfer Systemsread on the display, and after correcting the problem
designed and built there in Fort Myers, Florida facilities.at hand, the system can be put back into action
By listening to its customers, boat builders and yachtpushing the reset button. On the one had these
owners alike, Algae-X found out what they wantedalarms serve as system protection for the pump, on
to have as an on board fuel optimization package.the other hand they prevent leaks when plumbing or
The design is modular, so the right system can bea filter is blocked.
chosen for each yacht. Fuel stability in general hasAn Algae-X designed water sensor (Watect water
not improved in recent years while engines havealarm) is used on the separator that prevents
become much more fuel sensitive. The introductioncorrosion of the electrical contacts on the bowl
of ultra low sulfur fuel and the increasing use of bio-because of the contact of water with electrical
fuels have negatively impacted fuel stability andcurrent in regular filter alarms.
caused a dramatic increase in filter plugging andThe SPF-50 comes ready to be connected to a
injection system failures.remote monitoring system or the yacht control
The new and innovative SMART FPS systemssystem. Two standard “normally open” contacts
eliminate & prevent these problems. They eliminateare provided for a summary alarm and leak detection.
microbial contamination; keep your tanks clean andA remote shutdown connection also exists. The built
your fuel in pristine “clear & bright” condition atin system timer can be read-out to determine filter
all times. Traditional fuel treatment focuses onlife and system running time. Because the controller
keeping the day tanks clean, but leaves fuel in theuses a non-volatile memory, the settings and
bulk tank untreated. With an average 150 runningmemory will not be lost in case of a power failure.
hours for yachts and today’s fuel quality, thatThe Smart FPS system is connected to the SPF- 50
constituted an area of opportunity for Algae-X. Withcontroller with a variable length cable using fool-proof
their focus on “optimal fuel quality at all times”,marine grade polarized plugs. If the system be-
they target all tanks on board in order to optimize allcomes disconnected from the controller, the system
fuel and not let fuel degradation advance un-will go into fail-safe shut- down mode.
checked in your bulk tanks. Avoiding the well knownWhen reconnected, the system starts up again after
fuel related engine performance head aches in criticalpushing the reset button. It is important to install the
situations as storms, close maneuvering, potentiallysystem such that the suction line is hooked up to the
lower fuel quality at supply points or just being out atabsolute lowest point of each fuel tank. The re- turn
sea gives you a com- fort level that really should bewill then be on the high side of the tank, as far away
so elementary and basic.from the suction line as possible. The fuel needs to
The Smart FPS (“Fuel Polishing System”) isflow back low in the tank as to create a nice flow
available in a number of different configurations, fromacross the tank bottom, taking with it any water and
300 (DX), 600 (SX), 1.000 (MX), 2.000 (LX) up tosediment that might be there. By running the system
6.000 (XL) liters per hour. The smallest system,on every tank once every 2 weeks, recalculating the
Smart FPS-DX runs on 12-24 VDC, the rest onfuel one time, all tanks can be kept free of water,
110-230 VAC. The systems come with either a Racorsediment and micro- organism. The system is installed
or a Separ filter/separator, a gear pump and ofcompletely separate from any existing fuel lines so
course with the well known magnetic Fuelthat it can work in parallel to the tanks, basically as a
Conditioner. From the Smart FPS/MX on up ankidney dialysis system in a hospital setting.
optional water block fine filter is available. TheThis makes the system redundant and allows for full
systems use cast iron heavy duty positiveyacht operation even with- out the FPS system
displacement gear pumps, with thermal overloadrunning. If you are unsure about the quality of newly
protection on the electric motors for a long systempurchased “fresh” fuel, it is best to run the
life. The plumbing on the systems is mainly all stainlesssystem right then and there to treat all new fuel on
steel with 37 degree JIC fit- tings, to make for aboard. As fuel provided through the system is dry,
leak- free operation. The system is mounted on asediment and micro-organism free, using the system
strong powder coated back plate with drip tray.to transfer fuel and fill up the day tanks is highly
All 110-230 VAC systems are fully automated withrecommended. Thereby you can save on one fuel
the SPF-50 Smart Filtration Controller, consisting of atransfer pump. To enable an automated operation
sturdy NEMA approved en- closure measuring 25x 28with multiple tanks, Algae-X is also offering
x15 cm. A clear front cover protects the controls andautomated manifolds with solenoid valves. These can
alarms and can be closed with a clip. The Siemensthen be con- trolled on the bridge, but also have a
Logo inside can be programmed to have the sys-manual override, just in case.
tem run on set times. The status and alarm lights areAdditional options are for instance water in fuel
big enough to read them out across the enginemeters (measuring real time ppm’s free as
room, or using a remote camera± green means thewell as dissolved water in your fuel), digital flow
system is on stand/by, orange that the pump ismeters and digital vacuum meters for the primary
running and red indicates that a system alarm hasfilters as well as touch screen displays and control
occurred. There are built in alarms for high vacuum onsoftware to run on the bridge of the yacht. By
the filter- separator, high pressure on the watercombining fully automated control and remote
block fine filter, thermal overload, high water level inmonitoring with fuel decontamination, water &
the separator and the leak detector in the drip tray.sediment removal, the SMART-FPS revolutionizes the
When any of these alarms occur, the alarm sound isworld of fuel polishing and transfer systems.
heard, the system shuts down and the red light