On my previous post we have discussed about how the engine cooling systems can be affected by scaling and corrosion and how different materials behave when they are exposed to corrosive environment. This post is a continuation and would like to discuss about how we can prevent and inhibit the scaling, fouling and corrosion in…
Diesel engines are the most common type of propulsion and power source for ships that are employed in the marine industry and they typically do not burn diesel fuel, despite their name, but rather heavy fuel oil that has been heated and purified by centrifugal filtering before being used. As a byproduct of the combustion…
Many of you might have often heard the discussion between Master, Chief officer and Chief Engineer with regard to vessel propeller immersion issues, due uneven load of cargo, lack of cargo or impossibility of ballasting/de-ballasting the vessel due shear forces or bending moments. This is a very serious issue as propeller immersion less than 100%…
I believe that most of you have noticed that most of the new and large engine models are equipped with temperature monitoring sensors on the cylinder liners. The systems are known under different names and layouts (e.g. Mapex) and are developed by different marine engineering companies (e.g. Wartsila, Kongsberg, etc.) but all serves the same…
I believe that many of you, have heard in the last couple of years about running the main engine at low load or slow steaming due increasing fuel price and lately due more stringent environmental regulations. The 2-stroke engines are designed and optimized for operation in the load range above 60 % CMCR, but is…
The overall energy efficiency of a vessel is determined by the choices made throughout its lifecycle, from the planning and new build phases to the final recycling phase, and is measured by the total amount of energy consumed in relation to a specific output, the total energy or fuel consumed per nautical mile. Improving energy…
As discusses on one of my previous posts, there are different types of steering gear systems installed onboard vessels, from 4-ram type to rotary vane type. If you want to learn more about them please follow this link. In accordance with IMO regulations the pumps, hydraulic power circuits and can and must operate as isolated…
An insulated system is one that is completely electrically isolated from the earth or in our case the hull of the vessel.The supply neutral point is connected to earth in an earthed system and main low voltage (LV) (440 V AC) systems are generally shielded from the ship’s hull. Ashore, similar systems are earthed to…
The purpose of the thruster units is to turn the vessel when is operating at slow speeds or when is not under way, to keep the ship in position in a cross wind and to move the ship towards or away from a mooring position as required. The thrust is produced by rotation of a…
Onboard vessels, modern power management systems make it less likely for power to go out for no reason, but engineers must be familiar with the specific procedures, where to find the instructions and procedures, and ready to act in case of automation failure. In case of a problem with power main diesel generators or in…