Potential Energy Savings of Air Lubrication Technology on Merchant Ships

Kim, Young-Rong; Steen, Sverre

doi:10.2139/ssrn.4230155

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…Air lubrication is a technique that has gained significant attention from maritime researchers in recent years due to its ability to effectively decrease friction resistance and ultimately reduce fuel consumption in ships [5,6]. The frictional drag ( D ) can be calculated using where C f is the friction coefficient, is the fluid density, and A is the area of the wetted hull.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computational analysis of air bubble-induced frictional drag reduction on ship hulls

Mohammadpour,

Salehi,

Garaniya

et al. 2024

J Mar Sci Technol

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About 60% of marine vessels’ power is consumed to overcome friction resistance between the hull and water. Air lubrication can effectively reduce this resistance and lower fuel consumption, and consequently emissions. This study aims to analyze the use of a gas-injected liquid lubrication system (GILLS) to reduce friction resistance in a real-world scenario. A 3D computational fluid dynamics model is adopted to analyse how a full-scale ship (the Sea Transport Solutions Designed Catamaran ROPAX ferry) with a length of 44.9 m and a width of 16.5 m is affected by its speed and draught. The computational model is based on a volume of fluid model using the k-ꞷ shear stress transport turbulence model. Results show that at a 1.5 m draught and 20 knots cruising speed, injecting 0.05 kg/s of compressed air into each GILLS unit reduces friction resistance by 10.45%. A hybrid model of natural air suction and force-compressed air shows a friction resistance reduction of 10.41%, which is a promising solution with less required external power. The proposed technique offers improved fuel efficiency and can help to meet environmental regulations without engine modifications.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%