Table Of Content
From providing propulsion to generating electricity and supporting various amenities, cruise ship engines are vital to the overall functioning and comfort of these floating wonders of the sea. The choice of engines for cruise ships is a critical decision that takes into consideration factors such as power requirements, fuel efficiency, environmental impact, reliability, and safety. Over the years, there have been significant advancements in cruise ship engine technology, leading to the emergence of more sustainable and innovative options.
Shore-to-Ship Power Supply
Ships that do use this type of power have usually solar panels affixed to their exteriors. While they are not powerful enough to propel the ship on their own, the electricity generated from these panels is used for supplementary purposes, such as interior lights, elevators, and fuel engines. When you hear of a wind-powered ship, an old-fashioned sailing ship might be what comes to mind. Instead, you should think of modern, electricity generating windmills. Because the pistons are fired by a consistent flow of electricity rather than burning fuel, they move at the most efficient speed.
Gas Turbine Engines
Then steam is used to heat fuel and QM2 hotel accommodations, laundry, galleys. This reduces the energy amount that has to be produced by ship's engines. The Promas Lite system (mentioned above) generates cruise ship fuel savings in the range of 5-15% depending on the operation type and the actual performance of the ship's existing propeller. The ship is powered by a total of five Wartsila dual-fuel engines - three 12-cylinder (model 12V50DF, combined output 34,2 MW) plus two 6-cylinder (model 6L50DF, combined output 11,4 MW). Its propulsion system includes two Wartsila fixed-pitch propellers with twin propeller shafts.
Gas turbines
Their location isolates them from catastrophic damage in the engine room (for example, a fire). Cruise ships may have four to six medium-speed (500 rpm) engines producing 8-10MW each. The engines on a cruise ship can be up to 45 feet long, 27 feet high, and weigh up to 275 tons.
All-electric passenger ships
Viking Sky engine blackout was due to low oil pressure - Lloyd's List
Viking Sky engine blackout was due to low oil pressure.
Posted: Sun, 08 Oct 2023 11:33:03 GMT [source]
The use of LNG as a fuel source aligns with the cruise industry’s commitment to environmental stewardship, ensuring a cleaner and more sustainable future for both operators and passengers alike. By prioritizing engine reliability and safety, cruise ship operators can provide passengers with peace of mind and a secure voyage. The environmental impact of cruise ships is a significant concern, and engine selection plays a crucial role in minimizing this impact.
The engines are not exclusively LNG, but "dual fuel" (capable of burring both liquid marine fuel and natural gas). This design is for saving onboard space (reducing fuel storage space required). Usually, ships are powered by four or five generator sets (medium-speed, 500 revolutions per minute), fueled by diesel and creating 8-10 MW energy each.
Importance of Engines for Cruise Ships
Plus, less maintenance is required to due less wear and tear on the engine, reducing the cruise line's overall operational costs. Diesel engines are the most commonly used type of engines in cruise ships due to their efficiency and reliability. These engines operate on the principle of internal combustion, where fuel is injected into compressed air, leading to combustion and the generation of power.
Icon of the Seas Engines Started for the First Time
Battery rooms provide at least 24 hours of power to an even smaller list of emergency equipment. However, the essential systems they supply are so limited, they cannot power many hotel services and are certainly not enough to move the ship. So what happens when things go wrong and the ship is dead in the water? All ships have an emergency generator to maintain vital electrical power.
The size of the ship engine varies from ship to ship, type of stroke it has, and its power output. The ship engine can be as high as a 5 story building, and to accommodate it, the ship engine room has to be designed accordingly. The recovered heat is typically used for a number of services, including fuel heating (if using heavy fuel oil) and the desalination of saltwater into freshwater by an evaporator plant. Fresh water is also produced by reverse osmosis to supplement the evaporator.
Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas, Norwegian Bliss and Celebrity Edge are using thousands of tiny air bubbles underneath the hull to gain more efficiency. The bubbles, pumped out underwater from the bottom of the ship, reduce the surface area of the hull that is in contact with the sea. This thereby reduces friction that slows a ship down and improves its fuel efficiency by up to 10 percent. Cruise ships like the Oasis-class (Royal Caribbean) contain six engines, while many others have only four. Space is needed not just for engines, but for fuel tanks, generators, engine workshops, and the control room.
Norsepower's wind propulsion system was also installed on VIKING LINE's newest vessel (still unnamed) scheduled for delivery in 2020. The China-built ferryboat is equipped with two Norsepower-produced rotor sails, doubling its wind power potential. ABB supplied the vessel's power and electric propulsion systems, as well as the Octopus (smart energy management system). While mechanical propulsion is optimized for a single-speed, electric propulsion is based on rotating speed control resulting in energy efficiency at all speeds. ABB's propulsion also improves passenger comfort as the ship runs much more quietly and smoothly. ABB's Octopus marine technology allows real-time monitoring of the vessel's energy (and fuel) consumption.
The crankshaft was directly connected to the propeller through a long propeller shaft. The faster the pistons on the engine moved up and down, the faster the propeller shaft turned and the faster the ship went. Despite the colloquialism of "steaming to St. Thomas," the days of steam engines in ships have all but disappeared. (The last passenger ship built with a steam engine -- Sitmar's FairSky in 1984 – was scrapped in 2013.) Today, diesel engines are the standard. On some vessels, power for one of the fuel oil supply pumps, booster pumps and starting air compressors are also supplied from the emergency SB.
No comments:
Post a Comment