[ INSIDE MARINE ]

[ ICE EFFICIENCY ]

Twentyfour7.

IMPROVED

ICE EFFICIENCY
and exploitation of natural resources in
arctic regions, especially in seas around the former Soviet Union,
together with the opening of the Northern Sea route, is resulting
in an explosion of orders for ice-strengthened tonnage.

INCREASING EXPLORATION

T E X T: PAT R I K W H E AT E R | P H O T O S : I N D AV

ussias oil production has increased

exponentially, and exports to world
markets from the icy seas of the Arctic
region are currently running at around seven
million barrels per day. The demand for Russian
crude oil exports from the icy seas of the Arctic
regions is such that some USD 4.5 billion has
already been invested in ice-class tonnage, mostly
for high specication ships with Ice-Class 1A
vessels designed to operate in ice of thickness
up to 0.8 metres.
Currently, 262 ships are being built to iceclass standards, a total of 4.2 million dwt, with
the vast majority (almost 80%), being less than
20,000 dwt. Even so, the eet is set to double
in both number and size.
According to a recent survey carried out by
Clarksons, an additional 234 ice-strengthened ships
will join the eet by 2012. Of these, 165 will be IceClass 1A. There are also orders for three Finnish/
Swedish Ice-Class 1A Supervessels. Commercial
considerations of one type or another mean that
almost all of these new vessels will be substantially
larger than ships currently in operation.
60 Twentyfour7. 2.06

Navigating a ship through frozen seas packed

with ice 2-5 metres thick with ridges that rise as
high as 13 metres results in a number of unique
risks. Increased loads, low ambient temperatures,
the reduced effectiveness of components, long
periods of darkness and poor weather conditions
all bring with them a ood of design, operational,
manning and propulsion challenges.

THE FLEET OF
ICE-CLASS SHIPS
IS SET TO DOUBLE
IN BOTH NUMBER
AND SIZE.
The most obvious risk comes from increased
loads on the ship through contact with ice.
This applies not only to the hull, but also to
the propulsion system and related appendages

such as the rudder. Low ambient temperatures

also reduce the ductility of materials used in ship
construction and this, together with the ice, can
reduce the effectiveness of many components
critical to ship operations such as deck machinery
and sea suction below the waterline.
At the extreme, temperatures can plummet
to more than 50C below zero, and if a vessel is
operating supercharged engines, the density of
the ambient air results in an increase in engine
ring pressure. Wrtsil has met this particular
challenge, and provides a sound solution based
on many years of experience and a large base
of installed engines already operating in arctic
conditions.
Trend towards four-stroke
There is also a growing trend towards the use
of four-stroke diesel-electric propulsion in
vessels other than icebreakers which operate in
ice conditions. While this arrangement poses
challenges in determining minimum/maximum
power requirements, it does have signicant
advantages over two-stroke solutions for ships

[ INSIDE MARINE ]

02.2006.

that operate in heavy ice (especially vessels of

Ice-Class 1A and above): when combined with
a controllable-pitch (CP) propeller, a four-stroke
engine can provide 100% torque at low rpm, a
favourable proposition in arctic operations.
Teus van Beek, Director of Propulsion
Technology at Wrtsil, says the difference is in
ice-going capability. A low-speed engine with a
xed-pitch (FP) propeller would require a lot of
torque which would overload the engine. This is
why tankers with FP propellers usually require a
fairly large amount of ice-breaking assistance.
Almost unlimited power levels
However, the cost of offhire while waiting for
ice-breaking assistance from icebreakers is not
the only factor which has an adverse effect on
the operators budget. Experience has shown that
the skewed trailing edges of FP propeller blades
are more susceptible to damage by ice than their
controllable pitch (CP) counterparts and more
money must therefore be set aside for repair. With
CP propellers, since the direction of rotation is
one-way, the leading edge of the blade interacts
with the ice in a more positive manner.
Podded propulsion and the Double Acting
Tanker concept is of course an option and even
though more costly, is probably the optimum
solution in ice conditions. Time spent actually
navigating through ice-covered seas is however
the deciding factor. Although it will of course
vary according to the actual operating route,
a recent study has shown that the amount of
time spent in ice can be just 20% of total voyage
time. A podded solution has two limitations: the
maximum power so far applied in Ice-Class 1A
Super is 16 MW, and the free-running efciency
of a pod in free-sailing conditions is less than that
of a FP or CP propeller. In many cases, therefore,
where good performance in open seas must be
combined with good ice-going capacity, the CP
propeller can be said to be the optimum solution.
CP propellers can also offer almost unlimited
power levels in ice-strengthened applications.
Multitude of propulsion solutions
Wrtsils long history in the ice-strengthened
applications sector means a multitude of
propulsion solutions can be delivered: two-stroke
or four-stroke engine and gearbox combinations
with FP or CP propellers of any size and power
level. A favoured solution is a propulsion package
based on the Wrtsil 38 or Wrtsil 46 mediumspeed engine driving a novel E-hub CP propeller
via reduction gears. The E-hub, as can be seen
on page 47, is a CP propeller that incorporates
a stronger, smaller-sized hub designed to reduce

both drag and fuel consumption at specic levels

of power demand.
The concept was introduced in 2004 for ice-class
and ropax vessels. New developments in propeller
hub design enabled Wrtsil to manufacture a
new 2.085 mm diameter hub with a ush outer
contour that offers optimal cavitation resistance,
reliability and maintainability. The double-lip
blade seal, an established design, prevents oil
seepage. For additional strength the yoke is cast
in bronze instead of cast steel and the blade

CP PROPELLERS
HAVE NO LOSS OF
EFFICIENCY
COMPARED TO FP
PROPELLERS.
carrier is made of special steel rather than the
traditional bronze. Actuation is separated from
the hub design.
Trials of the E-hub and C- and CPS-type hubs
were carried out to obtain comparative data on
bearing behaviour. In the new hub design, local
pressure-peak maxima in the blade bearing were
shown to have been reduced substantially.
When strengthening for operation in ice
conditions, CP propellers are to be preferred
because of the high torque required when
operating a ship at low speed along ice channels.
Hydrodynamic loads are the dominant factor,
especially at higher power levels. Recent CP
references show very good efciency characteristics
for Ice-Class 1A applications, with no loss of
efciency compared to an FP propeller.

Demonstration of the Stena B-MAX model in the icy

basin of the newly inaugurated Aker Arctic Research
Centre in Helsinki. The model and ice behaviour can
be viewed through underwater windows.

AARC now ofcially open

Mr Mikko Niini, Managing
Director of Aker Arctic
Technology Inc., at the AARC
inauguration.

Wrtsils history in the research and

development of ship systems suitable for ice
navigation is a long and prestigious one. But
it reached a pinnacle with the opening in 1969
of the Wrtsil Icebreaking Model Basin and
the 1982 establishment of the Wrtsil Arctic
Research Centre. Wrtsil therefore later took
a 12.5% stake in the US$ 12 million Aker Arctic
Technology Inc.
The Aker Arctic Research Center (AARC) was
ofcially opened in March 2006 with a number
of keynote presentations and seminars to a
delegation that included Aker Yards, BP, Lloyds
Register, ConocoPhillips, Sovocomot, ABB and
Wrtsil.
Aker Arctic Technology Inc. is majority-owned
(62.5%) by Aker Finnyards (Aker Yards). The
other two minority holders in addition to Wrtsil
are Aker Kvaerner Engineering and Technology,
and ABB, each of whom also have a 12,5% stake.
These partners will, through their expertise,
actively contribute to the technology developed
by AARC, which will lead to enhanced overall
performance in ice-going vessels.
PRODUCTIVE CO-OPERATION
Wrtsil has recently opened a dialogue
concerning possible participation in the
development of a new range of high-ice-class
propulsion products. Following the recent
acquisition of Aker Kvaerner Power and
Automation Systems AS, which is involved in
the delivery of electrical drive systems for the
two Russian built icebreakers underway at Baltic
Shipyard in St. Petersburg, Wrtsil is advising
the shipowner and yard on high ice-class units
that require high torque responses.
The AARC complex in the Vuosaari district
of Helsinki includes a 70-metre-long ice model
basin with a glass bottom to improve observation,
and the latest technology for freezing and
data recording. Services provided include eld
research into ice conditions properties, route
selection, design-basis development, concept
development, basic design-feasibility studies,
performance predictions, simulations, testing
at model and full scale, ships and structures,
ofoading operations, oaters, rescue and
evacuation, and ice-navigation training.
2.06 Twentyfour7. 61