Power profile for segment rigid sail

Abstract

Rigid sails have the potential to lower fuel consumption on powered ships by using the wind as a supplementary source of propulsive power. The amount of propulsive power that can be provided by each sail is dependent on a number of variables, which include the sail type, sail area and number of sails deployed. Since each type and size of rigid sail has its own performance characteristics, it is difficult to estimate the propulsive power that could be provided by a particular rigid sail and to make comparisons between different rigid sails. To overcome this problem, a rigid sail power profile is proposed. This power profile will outline key performance characteristics and allow comparisons to be made between different types of rigid sails.

Wind Assisted Ship PropulsionTechnologies – Can they Help in Emissions Reduction?

“…From the results, it can be seen that Flettner rotor and soft sail technologies have the most potential. [12] Methodology (power profi le) is developed by which key performance values can be calculated and displayed in a standardized format by using a virtual wind tunnel.…”

“…In paper [12] power profi le for a rigid sail is proposed which could assist with modeling potential fuel savings and emission reductions. Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis was conducted for rigid sail technology by [13].…”

Analysis of drag, airflow and surface pressure characteristics of a segment rigid sail

“…These key performance characteristics could be used along with other features to compile a rigid sail power profile. This would allow the specifications for sails of differing designs to be compared (Atkinson 2016a(Atkinson , 2016b(Atkinson , 2016c.…”

“…The advantage of this configuration is that both sails could utilise wind coming from astern and approximately 30°either side given that airflow was not obstructed for example by the wheelhouse, accommodation block or superstructure, and so on. Furthermore, by locating the sails near the sides of the vessel, this may assist in solving the problem of the sails and associated equipment interfering with cargo operations or the ability of the ship to carry cargo (Atkinson 2016a(Atkinson , 2016b(Atkinson , 2016c. This configuration may be best suited to smaller tankers and cargo ships of around 2500 DWT where the deck space available for installing sails is limited.…”

“…This might be suitable for ships that have large uncluttered areas of deck space available such as pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) vessels. An array configuration would provide flexibility in terms of installation options and operating profiles (Atkinson 2016a(Atkinson , 2016b(Atkinson , 2016c especially when the AoA of each sail could be set individually. The primary disadvantage of this configuration is that it inherits to some extent the relative disadvantages of the previous two configurations.…”