ISO Publishes Standard for Methanol Fuel

The International Organization for Standardization has launched the first edition of ISO 6583:2024 – a new standard for methanol as a marine fuel.

The document was prepared in cooperation with shipowners, ship operators, national standards bodies, classification societies, fuel testing services, engine and fuel cell designers, marine fuel suppliers, methanol producers, governmental organizations and other technical organizations to meet the requirements for methanol supplied as marine fuel on a world-wide basis for consumption on board ships.

The document specifies three categories of methanol: marine methanol grade A (MMA), marine methanol grade B (MMB) and marine methanol grade C (MMC).

Chevron’s Monique Vermeire, convenor of working group that developed the standard, said: “While methanol is being globally traded based on the International Methanol Producers and Consumers Association (IMPCA) reference specifications, there was no international standard specifically for methanol used as marine fuel. ISO 6583:2024 addresses this gap by setting the requirements and limits for three methanol grades for marine: MMA, MMB and MMC. We used the IMPCA specifications as a starting point, with some properties less critical for marine and other fuel related aspects not covered.”

Grade MMC allows for wider tolerances in certain characteristics compared to MMB, while MMA includes additional requirements for lubricity and cleanliness.