Eye on Desgin: Improved Propulsion
Fuel saving and emission reduction are motivating factors in the drive to improve marine propulsor technology and in the renewed interest in special devices that improve propulsion. Together with the industry, MARIN is actively investigating their working principles and the critical design aspects, using modern design and analysis tools. Fuel efficiency and reduction of CO2 emissions are expected to have a strong influence on the design and operation of ships. With the arrival of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) in 2013…
IMarEST President's Lecture Focuses on Failure
Engineering failures in the marine industry certainly cost time and resources to correct and, sadly, sometimes resulting in loss of life. At his President’s Day Lecture, Professor John Carlton FREng, Professor of Marine Engineering, City University London and the 109th President of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), will retrospectively discuss some of the marine failures that he has encountered, with the aim of teasing out the underlying issues that have contributed to their causes. The President’s Lecture will be held Tuesday 11 October at IET London in Savoy Place, London WC2. Tea will be served from 17.30, the President’s Lecture will begin at 18.00 and a Reception will follow at 19.00.
Improved Marine Mammal Transport Vessel Studied
Art Anderson Associates reported that it has completed Phase I of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to evaluate the Stolkraft hull form as an alternative to the Navy’s 11-meter Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) in the transportation of marine mammals. This SBIR topic was issued to address the excessive slamming loads being experienced by Navy Special Clearance Team (NSCT-1) forces on their current 11-meter RIB. In Phase I, Art Anderson Associates reports, tests of an existing Stolkraft showed that it experienced lower vertical accelerations than the U.S. Navy 10-m RIB under similar test conditions. A concept design was also produced based on the NSCT-1 operational requirements established during the Phase I kick-off meeting.
Hyundai, MAN B&W Are At Top of Engine Power
Rising Korean aspirations as to market influence and technological standing could alter the established order in an important segment of the engine business. While MAN B&W announced opening contracts for its new L21/31 design as a marine auxiliary, Hyundai Heavy Industries was preparing to roll-out its first-ever, self-originated engine type targeted at a similar power range. The H21/32 signals the emergence of Hyundai, the world's largest producer of marine diesels, as a designer in its own right. The company's development of the in-house Himsen brand denotes a move towards increased technological self-reliance, given the wholesale dependence up until now on manufacturing licenses from foreign engine firms.
Steerprop CRP Model Tests Confirm Efficiency
Steerprop is now taking one step further, improving the efficiency still by introducing the dual-end CRP propulsor. As a part of the ongoing research and development process of the Steerprop propulsor technology, Steerprop Ltd. recently conducted a series of model tests at Krylov Shipbuilding Research Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Steerprop dual-end contra-rotating propulsor configuration was tested in both the towing tank (open water tests) and in the cavitation tank. "The test series clearly showed the benefits of the dual-ended configuration and thus also proved the claims for high efficiency of Steerprop CRP. The efficiency of the forward propeller was measured to be close to 0.9!" said Hannu Jukola, hydrodynamist at Steerprop Ltd.
