Final Report Summary - RECOICE (DEVELOPMENT OF A LOW COST, LOW POWER CONSUMPTION SYSTEM FOR MANUFACTURING LIQUID ICE FOR FISHING) Executive Summary:The results of the RECOICE project can be considered as breakthrough in several innovation aspects and technological development fields.The most important project result is a 6kW power Stirling-engine that was designed, manufactured and validated by an international Consortium, consisting of technological expert and end-user SME partners and also specialised RTD players, active in the field of engineering, prototype and product development.The other main result of the project is a custom built, special slurry ice making machine combined with a disinfector unit that can produce clean and fresh liquid cooling material directly from seawater to preserve the quality of the catch on the sea for a longer period than other, conventional ice making devices. The slurry ice is protecting the scales and skin of the caught fish, making the catch a much more valuable product on the market.The full RECOICE prototype is now completely manufactured, readily delivered for validation and available for the installation into suitable fishing ships. In parallel to dissemination activities, the SME partners of the Consortium are now making the preparations for the post-project commercial exploitation phase.Project Context and Objectives:The main project context of RECOICE was to produce disinfected liquid slurry ice without the use of additional power from fishing boats. RECOICE is now based on a heat recovery system that provides the heat necessary to drive a Stirling-engine. Since heat can be captured from the exhaust pipe of the boat’s existing diesel engine, it will not negatively impact fuel consumption. According to the end-user SME partner (VERL) of the project, operating an on-board liquid ice making system ensures better quality and more cost-effective products, therefore the RECOICE project developed a system that uses waste energy arising from the manoeuvring of the fishing vessel. By recovering energy from the exhaust pipe by a heat exchanger, the Stirling-engine generates power that can be used to run the cooling unit of the system.The first main objective of the project was to create a validated Stirling prototype suitable for small- and medium sized fishing boats consisting of an environmentally-friendly ice-generator system. The system can now use waste energy from a fishing vessel’s diesel engine (exhaust gas) through a validated Stirling-engine and a customized heat exchanger to produce sufficient ice for days of fishing without the need for external energy source. The second objective of RECOICE was to construct a water circulating prototype that can disinfect seawater and produce a special liquid slurry ice that can preserve the quality of sea catch for a more prolonged time than other, conventional ice machines (e.g.: scraped ice or ice cubes).The fully integrated prototype was successfully developed, tested and RECOICE can now be marketed and installed into a fishing boat to be operated in a real environment.Project Results:The main and most important result of the project is a validated, 6kW Stirling-engine, that can be applied into several low-temperature and low-pressure applications for exploiting waste-heat, for example on a fishing ship, where a great amount of heat energy is wasted without regeneration. In the low temperature and pressure level, probably the RECOICE Stirling-engine is the largest in the world by means of power, which is a breakthrough within the current market of Stirling-engines.The other important findings of the project is the know-how that was generated through the testing of the Stirling-engine. As by the special request a of the key Stirling developer SME partner, a scientific data collector was developed and installed into the certain parts of the Stirling-engine, making it possible to continuously monitor and control the processes inside the body of the Stirling-engine. The findings of this data collection are very unique development results inside the RECOICE project.The third main results of the project is the developed slurry ice making machine combined with a disinfector unit, that can produce clean and fresh liquid cooling material directly from seawater to preserve the quality of the catch on the sea for a longer period than other, conventional ice making devices. The slurry ice is protecting the scales and skin of the caught fish, making the catch a much more valuable product on the market. This is a standalone innovation result of RECOICE.Potential Impact:The Europe 2020 Strategy aims to achieve sustainable development, which includes the efficiency enhancing too. In line with these requirements, there is a continuous drive towards low energy, environmentally friendly solutions, which can provide a reduced carbon footprint.The European Commission, the CFP (Common Fishery Policy) and the GFCM (General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean) all indicated management scenarios and relevant multiannual plans, actions towards sustainable fishing methods. The European fishery industry is controlled by the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), which was created to manage fish stocks for the European Union as a whole. The aim of the CFP is to promote: • Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture in a• Healthy marine environment, which can support• Economically viable industry providing employment and opportunities for coastal communities.Important action areas of the CFP are:• Establishing rules to ensure Europe's fisheries are sustainable and do not damage the marine environment• Monitoring the size of the European fishing fleet and preventing it from expanding further• Providing funding and technical support for initiatives that make the industry more sustainableThe developed RECOICE solution is a sustainable system and supports these long-held aspirations. Responsibly developed and practiced aquaculture can generate lasting benefits for global food security and economic growth.The RECOICE will provide a solution for fishing vessels, generating the ice maker power from waste heat, scavenged from the engine exhaust pipe.RECOICE, the on-board liquid ice making system will • use waste energy to operate without additional power source• recover energy from the exhaust pipe by a heat exchanger, a Stirling-engine which will generate the necessary power to run the cooling unit of the system• be affordable.The advantages are:• improved quality of fish• saved fuel• changed fishing cycle benefits• it is not necessary to carry big load of ice from the port• ice prepared permanently has a constant quality and melting ice can be easily replaced• liquid or slurry ice can be prepared, ensuring conservation of the catch without damage• an average vessel could save up to 5 500 euros on diesel oil a year using RECOICE• savings on diesel oil imply reduction of environmental impact, CO2 emissionsFurthermore, the project will contribute favourably to EU Food Safety Policies, especially those pertaining to production and marketing of fishery products. These products must have been caught, handled, packed, prepared, processed, frozen, defrosted or stored in accordance with the requirements set out in annexes to the Directives.This project also contributed positively to energy efficiency policies and to strategies for rational use of energy, in that the system will be run off the heat of the vessel’s engine, unlike traditional onboard ice-making machines, which are run off fuel.The RECOICE project was successfully concluded in June 2016. Project partners of the consortium met at the end of June in Gorizia, Italy to evaluate the prepared prototype and to discuss further steps of future market entry.The main decision of the Exploitation Board was to set up a Joint Venture in the near future to support the market entry of RECOICE after the Stirling development as well as the fine tuning of the complete system is finished. The leader of the JV will be Bjorn Holtland, having vast experience in the fishing industry. The first meeting of the partners is planned to be held at the end of 2016.SME partners of the consortium discussed the exploitation options, however it is recognized, that further fine-tuning is needed (especially on the Stirling-engine) before actual market entry. During the next 2-3 years, while the technological fine-tuning takes place, partners are planning to attend some international fairs where they can promote the solution using the video and other promotional materials and thus can build valuable relations with relevant industry stakeholders and potential customers.The summary of dissemination actions can be found in D10.3 and D10.6. For the complete list of actions, please see the “Dissemination actions” list on the Participant Portal.Mainly conferences were visited (some examples: Holland Fisheries Event visited by VELR and COOLTECH, NAV Conference visited by NAP and ITS, WRIC Oceans conference by ATEKNEA-h). The conference visits were supported by printed materials such as posters and leaflets. Plenty of written materials were composed: articles published online and in local papers, press releases, newsletters. Furthermore, some TV and radio interviews were also given by ITS. The project website also served effective platform for dissemination.Furthermore a project video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aygXpFGAzj8) was prepared by the Coordination of ITS. The RECOICE promotional video was prepared on the Final Meeting in Gorizia where the live prototype demonstration event was held. The aim of the video is to show the results of the project. List of Websites:Public website address: www.recoice.eu Contact details:Coordinator: recoice@ateknea.comLeader of the future JV: bjorn@holtland.comStirling contact: info@its-energy.netCooling unit contact: info@cooltech-online.de
