DHAHRAN, 22 August 2004 — The United States Patents and Trademark Office has granted a patent to Saudi Aramco for inventing the “Ballast Exchange System for Marine Vessels.”
A Saudi Aramco announcement credited Capt. Tom J. Scott of Vela International as the inventor. It describes the invention as a method for replacing existing ballast water in the ballast tanks of a ship while the ship is underway. The method uses a seawater inlet port in the bow of the ship that admits water when the ship is moving, to produce a pressure that is greater than the pressure of the ballast water that is to be replaced.
The seawater from the inlet port is directed into the bottom of the ballast tanks where it rises to displace the existing water from outlet ports in the top of the ballast tanks.
According to existing environmental regulations all carried ballast water must be chemically treated before being discharged to the sea.
The value of the patent, granted July 27, rests in its potential to be a less-expensive method compared with other technologies and chemical treatment required by the International Marine Organization’s (IMO’s) Ballast Water Management regulations.
The administrator of Saudi Aramco’s Intellectual Assets Management, Dr. Mohammed A. Alansari, was reported as saying that once the IMO approval is granted, the new design will address an environmental issue by using the existing ballast systems with no added energy to operate.