October 17 2013

For our second technical meeting for the 2013-2014 season, the speaker was Prof. Michael Triantafyllou, Professor of Mechanical and Ocean Engineering, Director at the Center for Ocean Engineering and Head of the area of Ocean Science & Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the subject was:

“New Technologies and the Potential for Ship Overall Efficiency Optimization’’

The future of shipping will be shaped by novel and emerging technologies.  These technologies will provide unprecedented capabilities but will also require radical re-thinking of ship design.  Emerging technologies will be presented and their potential impact on ships will be discussed, including efficient power-trains, especially of the hybrid type, and engines using alternative fuels; progress in surface chemistry which allows the development of novel coatings to protect ship hulls and cargo holds, and can be used to reduce fluid drag; work on the all-electric ship, which has generated new methods to design and operate ships with increased automation, reduced manning, and increased reliability; new sensor arrays, which will allow sensing of the self-generated flow and create the capability for active flow manipulation and hence increased capabilities for maneuvering and efficient propulsion; robotic developments that promise routine unmanned inspection and remote underwater intervention; global ocean modeling and prediction that will allow effective routing and operation of vessels in rough seas with unprecedented detail.