Autonomous container ship

LockH

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Ummm.. Started out in Victoria BC Canada, then sta
World's first all-electric autonomous container ship to set sail in 2018:
http://newatlas.com/autonomous-elec.../49477/?li_source=LI&li_medium=default-widget
http://www.supplychain247.com/article/yara_birkeland_zero_emission_autonomous_vessel

[youtube]VjTKL4hm4B0[/youtube]

:shock: 8) :)

YARA Birkeland will initially operate as a manned vessel, moving to remote operation in 2019 and expected to be capable of performing fully autonomous operations from 2020.

Lunchtimes to be a lonely affair... Hehe
 
Hmmm ? Electric drive container ship....
They need a few thousand kW , and many hours or days of range .! ..that will nees quite a few kWh of battery.
I wonder how they will recharge that in a short stay port turn around ?
 
^^ Hehe... must investigate... One clue, unlike terrestrial/urban vehicle travels, not so much "stop and go". :) No hills to speak of. :mrgreen: Guessing some super-slippery paint on the hull... Some of the "cargo" is fresh/recharged battery packs from port, so "pack swapping" large-scale perhaps... I recall that large cargo vessels/passenger ships coming into Halifax, Nova Scotia had to start slowing down many miles before they got into port. Expect inertia of mass comes into play here A LOT.

TBA :)
L
 
How `bout an assist?

beluga-skysails-kites-002.jpg


Seen here:
https://www.treehugger.com/cars/cargo-ship-with-kites-first-trans-atlantic-trip-a-success.html

"In even moderate winds, the first flights of an initial 160-square-meter towing kite propulsion system from the Hamburg-based manufacturer SkySails demonstrated how this innovative auxiliary propulsion system was able to substitute for 20% of the engine's power." After the pilot phase, the towing kite will be replaced by one that is twice the size, providing twice as much energy and saving twice the fuel (which could mean $2000/day).

:wink:
 
I suspect shipping designers have already exhausted most options to reduce drag and power requirements, but they still require some of the worlds most powerful engines... http://www.autoblog.com/2011/07/22/worlds-largest-diesel-engine-makes-109-000-horsepower/. And that isnt for accelleration or hillclimbing !
That would be a lot of kW to keep feeding all day, so a mighty battery would be needed.
But yes, ..maybe "containerised" battery units could be used and swapped out at the same time as the cargo.
However you then need a huge supply of battery units and charger systems, at each port the vessel planned to stop at.
Logistical nightmare !
Try some "napkin number" calculations....
Assume a small ship,..only 10,000 kW power (a fraction the size of the big freighters)
And assume ..a short 24 hr passage
So, theoretically 240,000 kWh of energy required.
Best available battery energy density is approx 200Wh per kg, hence 5kg per kWh, and 200kwh per Tone
So the daily requirement of 240,000 kWh needs 1200 tons of battery
At approx 25 tons per container, that means 480 containers per day just to keep the ship moving.!
Im sure there are major errors in the above assumptions, but it does indicate the scale of the project .
EDIT.. Corrected container max capacity 25 tons for 20' unit.
 
I recall a movie where computers took over satellites, elevators, web-based info, etc...

I can now envision Somalian pirates take over an autonomous cargo ship, and they can't get it to obey...and the emergency repair robots have access to nail guns and oxy-acetylene torches, etc...
 
^^ "nail guns and oxy-acetylene torches"... :lol:

... and help is on the way! Imagine one or more barges anchored along the route(s), with solar (panels, savonius rotors, props spun by ocean currents... etc) recharging "pallet"-sized batts to quick-swap (the robots do all that messy/loading/transferring stuff)...

Better? (Crews left on shore playing golf, etc... Anybuddy wanna vacation on an offshore barge - with lots of toys, restaurants, etc - for one/two weeks? Change your address for a while?)

:mrgreen:
 
Watt? Zero thoughts??? OK. Fine. Resolved: That some/many MIGHT be interested in crowdfunding one/two/or more barges to serve as vacation spots/homes to build up a fleet of sea-going container ships such that barges can serve as stop off locations to "battery-swap" container/pallet-sized batteries (charged by solar powers) to power a fleet of ocean-going "autonomous" electric vessels... Anybuddy wanna make money?

Just curious...
 
Anybuddy remember the "towns" in the 1995 movie "Waterworld"?

waterworld2.jpg
 
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Well... DANG. Now I'm curious... Might ANYBUDDY wanna buy shares in a biz w/floating platforms as combo hotels and "refueling stations" for a fleet of sea-going electric cargo ships to "battery swap"?

Tap to me please?
 
LockH said:
Watt? Zero thoughts??? OK. Fine. Resolved: That some/many MIGHT be interested in crowdfunding one/two/or more barges to serve as vacation spots/homes to build up a fleet of sea-going container ships such that barges can serve as stop off locations to "battery-swap" container/pallet-sized batteries (charged by solar powers) to power a fleet of ocean-going "autonomous" electric vessels... Anybuddy wanna make money?

Just curious...

I guess you did not read or comprehend my estimation of the size/scale of batteries needed for these EVships ?
..as they say.." your gonna' need a bigger barge buddy" ! ...and a much bigger charging system...even for one ship never mind a "fleet" ! :shock:
The only practical way of powering these huge vessels cleanly ( no carbon fuels ) , is the way the Navy already does it ..Nuclear !! :shock:
 
^^ "World's first all-electric autonomous container ship to set sail in 2018"... So. Maybe a string of anchored battery-swapping cruise ship/barges...

dreamstimelarge_21631102.jpg


:wink:
 
Hillhater said:
:?: :?: they look like portable generator sets..likely diesel powered ??

Hehe... Diverse Contracting Ltd in the UK is supplying "batteries" (fully charged) as a "UPS" to power stuff like "hospitals, online banks, data centres and communication hubs. In fact any sectors where it is crucial for them to have power should their main electricity source fail."

http://diverse-contracting.co.uk/

:wink:
 
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