ClassNK Bulletin Examines 2015 Developments

Classification society ClassNK informs it has released a summary of the latest industry developments in its annual Technical Bulletin, which this year covers topics including marine energy usage, research on fatigue strength and R&D project outcomes.

The opening paper explores the possibilities and challenges of tidal power, offshore wind power, and wave power, and outlines tidal power generation systems around the world. A technical report then takes a broad look at the trend of ocean energy development in Japan and ClassNK’s initiatives related to the certification of renewable ocean energy power generation devices.

As the average size of containerships increases, so does the thickness of the steel that is used and it is commonly known that an increase in plate thickness causes a decrease in fatigue strength. This Bulletin presents studies on fatigue strength in welded joints and the thickness effect of fatigue strength in large-scale-welded models as well as a proposal for a simplified high frequency fatigue damage assessment method for a ship’s welded parts.

This year’s edition also includes outcomes from several R&D projects carried out through ClassNK’s Joint R&D for Industry Program including a study on H2/CO2 FPSOs and the use of duplex stainless steel on chemical tankers.