In an earlier blog Reducing Air Drag, I mentioned the organization Greenwave. They have another wind power project called the Wind Engine.It is a mechanical sail uses the Magnus Effect and in its practical ship application has a tall cylindrical rotor as pioneered by Flettner in 1926. Test carried out by Auckland University, New Zealand, determined that the thrust produced by the Flettner rotor is eight to ten times more than a sail of equal area. Further tests with a 25:1 model ship indicate that wind assisted propulsion can deliver significant fuel and emission reductions with favorable winds and provides good maneuverability including crash stop performance. Lloyd’s Register provided technical assistance and expertise, for the construction of a full sized prototype rotor that was erected on a site in NE England. The next stage of the project is on board ship tests at sea which will be independently monitored by Lloyd's Register and is scheduled to take place during 2010.
In an earlier blog Reducing Air Drag, I was talking about a wind related project by the UK based shipping environmental charity called Greenwave. They have another project using wind power that is reaching the final development stage and also appears to offer tangible financial benefits to ship owners.
Called the Wind Engine, it is a mechanical sail and is certainly not a new idea. It uses the Magnus Effect to give it its term from Physics and in its practical ship application has a tall cylindrical rotor. Originally pioneered by the German engineer Anton Flettner in 1926., his twin rotor ship the MV Baden Baden completed a transatlantic crossing
Test carried out in this Greenwave project by Auckland University, New Zealand, determined that the thrust produced by the Flettner rotor is eight to ten times more than a sail of equal area. The disadvantage, as with all wind powered vessels is that it doesn’t work if the wind is dead ahead. The equivalent of tacking is achieved by stopping the rotation of the rotor and reversing its direction. Further tests with a 25:1 model ship indicate that wind assisted propulsion can deliver significant fuel and emission reductions with favorable winds. The rotor propulsion also provides good maneuverability including crash stop performance.
The positive results of the model tests encouraged Greenwave to move to a full sized rotor test
Lloyd’s Register provided technical assistance and expertise, for the construction of the full sized prototype rotor measuring 17 m high and diameter 2.3 m. It was erected on a site in NE England by the Port of Blyth where the strong winds make an ideal test site. The results of these full sized rotor tests proved to be even better than the Auckland University wind tunnel tests.
The next stage of the project is the design and construction of two improved Wind Engines to be installed on board a ship for tests at sea. It will use modern materials and manufacturing processes and will be modular to enable containerization for transport to any part of the world for installation locally, under supervision and with appropriate inspection by a classification society.
The sea trial program will be independently monitored by Lloyd's Register and is scheduled to take place during 2010.