Out docking hull performance improvement 

Purpose

The success criteria of this project is to identify ways to decrease the roughness of the coating surface and thereby decrease the frictional resistance (drag resistance) and increase fuel efficiency for vessels in the pristine condition (i.e. out of dry-dock).

Outcome of project

The project has successfully identified means to get smoother ship hulls in order to squeeze extra percentages of fuel efficiency out of existing ship hulls. In addition to working with the smoothness of the hull coating, the team has quantified the effect of surface irregularities such as welding seams and the overall hull roughness as dictated by the hull coating.Specific results from the project
  • Leveling assessment instrument
  • Characterization of leveling mechanisms and kinetics of coatings
  • Quantification of hull coating roughness on ship drag for various coating technologies
  • Characterization of water absorption on the impact of coating roughness/ship drag
  • Quantification of weld-seam height and density on drag

Partners

  • HEMPEL
  • Maersk Maritime Technology
  • DTU Chemical Engineering