With the cost of fuel on the rise and pressure to reduce carbon footprints, new ideas have to appear to make the transportation of goods as efficient as possible. The Energy Technologies Institute has teamed up with Teignbridge Propellers International Limited who have been developing high efficiency propulsion systems in order reduce carbon emissions in a cost effective system.
In a project due to last two years Energy Technologies Institute has partnered with Teignbridge Propellers International Limited, with the aim of reducing fuel consumption in ships by 8%. If successful, the project aims to the fit the propellers on to a variety of different vessels. The project will be based in Newton Abbot, Devon. Teignbridge is the largest company of its kind in Europe, focusing on propeller and stern gear production.
With ETI focused on analyzing and improving the UKs shipping fleet, further research into fuel economy is supported by the Instituteâs previous reports into targeting a 30% improvement in fuel efficiency within marine vessels. The ETI has also published an analysis of the UKs marine fleet in an attempt to look for technologies and opportunities to improve the fuel consumption.
The £3 million research project will be conducted on a purpose built vessel which will have two hulls. The companies in partnership aim to design and test a variety of different propellers and propulsion methods to find the most cost effective and efficient one to be produced on a larger scale. The research will see the first floating laboratory to conduct the research. The system that will be built specifically for the purposes of the research. The center will allow for the propellers and equipment to be tested in a range of different environments, including slow speed, high board pull and high speeds. The test center will be able conduct research on the propellers at speeds up to 40 knots.
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