As part of our ongoing development of the Boldrewood towing tank we’ve spent a week carrying out the International Towing Tank Conference‘s recommended Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) benchmark case. PIV technique allows the velocity field to be measured across a two -dimensional plane created by a laser sheet. The tank is seeded with small reflective particles and two photos are taken a short time interval apart. Image processing allows the velocity field within a high resolution underwater camera’s image frame to be measured.
Flat plate at angle of attack to flow – matt black finish reduces unwanted reflections from laser sheet
In these tests a rig was built to allow a flat plate to be towed at an angle of attack creating a strong tip vortex. The PIV measurements allow the location and strength of the vortex to be obtained experimentally. The tank test has to be run in the dark with the use of special protective goggles when observing the tests.
Just the carriage lights on prior to a test
The tests for the calibration are carried out at low speed of 0.4 m/s with even the carriage light switch off and just the faint glow of the data acquisition computer screens
Video of a test at 0.4 m/s showing team on the carriage and then the laser sheet pulses and can see the seeded particles
Thanks to the team lead by Magnus with support from Melike, James and David. Funding the LaVision PIV system came through the EPSRC funded National Wind Tunnel Facility
The 30th September 2022 marked a significant milestone in the Maritime Engineering group. Prof Ajit Shenoi, who joined the then Ship Science Department in October 1981 completed 41 years of tireless contributions to our research, teaching, culture and ethos. On his retirement we have lost direct continuity back to our graduates from the ’80s.
Now two Emeritus Professors in the loading bay for the Boldrewood tank carriage…
It was great to catch up with Ajit, also joined by long retired Prof Tony Molland, and have a high speed run on the tank carriage. For those who know and remember Ajit from their time at Southampton he will be continuing as an Emeritus Professor and keeping us on our toes. Ajit’s contribution to maritime research especially in the field of lightweight composites is exceptional and many high up in industry owe their expertise to his insights. For the University he was instrumental in the bottom up creation of Southampton Marine & Maritime Institute which brought together the many interests at Southampton from oceanography, law, through to history and archaeology as well as the ship scientists. SMMI celebrates 10 years of formal existence in ’22 but the initial collaborations started around the millennium and were key alongside collaboration with industry in the development of the Boldrewood Innovation Campus with its many laboratories and facilities. We wish Ajit all the best for his well deserved retirement
If you are thinking about a future in mechanical engineering or aerospace why not consider maritime? Salaries remain strong, there is a worldwide shortage of engineers with maritime expertise and you as an individual can really make a significant difference.
Looking to the future the UK maritime sector is set to continue growing and to become an ever more important part of the UK’s economy. Already the maritime sector with an economic impact of £116bn is larger than the rail and aviation sectors combined. As an industry it supports over a million jobs that are 45% more productive than UK average, with pay 30% higher than UK benchmark and has expanded by 35% between 2010 and 2019.
These are the highlights from a detailed report by CEBR commissioned by MaritimeUK that discusses crucial maritime activities in the UK: shipping(£49Bn), engineering and science(£34Bn), business services(£13.7Bn), ports(£10Bn) and leisure(£8Bn) all play their part.
Research and development will play a key part in future UK success particularly in green technology developments around: decarbonising the shipping fleet of the world; developing the technology to harvest marine renewables such as floating offshore wind, tidal and wave energy; digital technology to ensure that ships are productive and can operate safely minimising risk to crew through increased use of autonomous systems; data analytics that allow ships to manage their voyage to account for the latest weather; achieving improved performance through use of foiling technology developed through high performance sailing events such as the America’s Cup, reducing ship resistance using air lubrication technology and returning to the age of sail through wind assist.
What industry needs are the highly qualified maritime engineers and ship scientists that can create and implement these innovative technologies. Typically 15 times as many students apply for aerospace as opposed to maritime courses and as a result only a small proportion of aerospace graduates actually go to work in their sector whereas in maritime there are many many opportunities worldwide as well as in the UK.
Our degree programmes are designed for the future and are taught by academics who are at the forefront of the maritime sector worldwide. As part of the School of Engineering we are in the top four of UK Engineering units of assessment for the the quality of its research (REF2021) and its societal and economic impact. The pathways for our final two years of our MEng programme include advanced computational engineering, ocean energy and offshore engineering, international naval architecture, marine engineering and autonomy, and yacht and high performance craft.
Our courses are the only ones that are joint accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Royal Institution of Naval Architects and the Institute of Marine Engineers, Scientists and Technologists. Year-on-year our national student survey results consistently rate us as the top UK maritime engineering and ship science degree programme.
What did you do in lock down? For Prof’s Molland and Turnock it provided an opportunity to revisit their book on Marine Rudders and Control Surfaces whose first edition came out in 2007. The second edition now contains much revised content capturing recent progress in design of maritime lifting surfaces be they rudders, control surfaces or with many recent applications, hydrofoils. A new chapter was added on hydrofoils as well as a tweak to the title reflecting that upsurge of interest and capturing in particular the alteration of performance for foils in close proximity to the free surface.
Worked example on how to size foils for a foiling board
The content of the book comes from long standing research interests in yachts, ship manoeuvring and fascination in foiling craft performance in what was the Department of Ship Science and what is now the Maritime Engineering group in the School of Engineering at the university of Southampton. For Prof Molland he started his PhD research into the performance of semi-balanced skeg rudders in the early 1970s. He carried out detailed wind tunnel tests in the School of Engineering’s long serving 7′ x 5′ wind tunnel and was the first to measure the complex surface pressure distribution in the skeg gaps as well as the forces and moments in the free stream. Prof Turnock worked as a researcher for Prof Molland’s on his SERC (fore runner of EPSRC) contracts examining the performance of a ship rudder in a propeller race. This work was carried out in the larger R.J. Mitchell wind tunnel using a purpose built rig and formed his PhD on ship rudder-propeller interaction and combined both experiments and computational methods for performance prediction.
With the recent commissioning of the Boldrewood towing tank a whole new world of testing becomes possible from applications to autonomous underwater vehicle control system to the next generation of foils for high performance sailing craft like the recent America’s cup yachts or zero carbon hydrogen powered foiling water taxis.
As COP26 Glasgow approaches the UK recently announced the start of a significant investment in decarbonisation of the world’s shipping fleet. The clean maritime demonstration competition will run until the end of March 2022. Over fifty projects will investigate a variety of technical solutions and carry out demonstrations trials across a wide variety of technical areas. All of which could finds methods of removing CO2 and finding net zero solutions for shipping.
Here at Southampton we have already started work on projects.
In a large scale demonstrator project led by Ocean Infinity Innovations.(OI) Southampton researchers will support the development and testing of a zero-emissions Ammonia Marine Propulsion System – a potential solution to a zero carbon coastal freight network. The target application will be OI Armada Class 78 m vessel designed for autonomous survey but here considered as a coastal transport vessel.
Working with start-up ACUA Ocean Limited, we will test the feasibility of ACUA Ocean Limited’s patent-pending long-endurance liquid hydrogen-powered un-crewed surface vessel (H-USV). Autonomous USVs offer a cost-effective means of protecting and managing oceans and waterways.
A project between the University, Carnival Plc, Ceres Power Limited, Shell, and Lloyd’s Register will investigate the use of innovative solid oxide fuel cell technology and batteries to replace the use of diesel generators on cruise ships when they are in ports. Currently, cruise ships use diesel to generate electricity for onboard systems such as heating, ventilation and waste processing when they are sitting in ports – but this emits pollutants and noise.
Ocean Infinity Armada Fleet
As just part of of our work seeking innovative solutions to the zero carbon shipping challenge we are looking to recruit an expert team of post-doctoral researchers
As we look to the future where the world’s population is rising and the per capita wealth of the planet is similarly rising. To do this we have to focus on how we look after our world’s seas and oceans.
Maritime Engineers and Ship Scientists are trained to understand the engineering challenges of designing ships, floating platforms and the many other types of vehicles and systems that are operated in those oceans. The UK Chamber of Shipping have generated some great content to explore some of these challenges. Follow this link to learn more and watch their video
Looking forward we need to ensure that the development and operation of any system in the ocean is as sustainable as possible. We need to preserve, protect and often clean up the seas. This requires the traditional education of the Naval Architect and Marine Engineer to evolve. At Southampton we are continually looking at the structure and content of our programmes. Our introduction of a set of pathways reflects that. These build on the foundation of engineering science in year 1, the essentials of naval architecture and marine engineering in year 2 and then in-depth pathways focus in years 3 and 4. Our modules that make up these programmes reflect the wider environment and societal aspects of engineering as well as the managerial , manufacturing and operational aspects of maritime engineering design
International Naval Architecture includes a semester abroad
Marine Engineering and Autonomy
Naval Architecture
Ocean Energy and Offshore Engineering
Yacht adn High Performance Craft
Our pathways reflect the challenges we face and equip our graduates with the skills to play their part in the national and global maritime sector . All can be taken with an industrial placement year at the end of the 2nd or 3rd year. Over the next few posts we will be introducing each of these programmes and linking to our staff’s active research interests that support our teaching.
If you want to find out more our Admissions Tutor will be doing a live presentation that you can sign up for or why not visit us in person on Saturday 9th October. You can chat to us, our students and visit our world class facilities on the Boldrewood Innovation Campus that we share with one of the world’s leading ship classification societies, Lloyd’s Register
Flying Nacra Double Southampton Alumni Dr Laura Marimon Giovannetti sailing on the edge
Join the University of Southampton for our next virtual webinar: Sailing on the Edge: The Science Behind the Sport. This event will be held on Thursday 22 July, at 18:00 – 19:00 BST. We are delighted to be featuring an all-alumni line up, with award-winning Sports Broadcaster John Inverdale hosting the event. John will be joined by professional sailor Emily Nagel, former Simulator Lead at INEOS TEAM UK James Roche and Dr Joseph Banks, lecturer in Ship Science at the University of Southampton.The panel will provide an insight into how engineering and science underpin innovation and success in world-class sailing, and in particular, Southampton’s impact on the sport.
This event will include a Q&A session where you will have the opportunity to ask your own questions.
Emily Nagel is the Director of Triangle Racing, a Naval Architecture and Performance Data analysis company, and has held positions with Great Britain’s SailGP. In June, Emily is competing in ‘The Ocean Race Europe Tour’. James Roche has recently worked for INEOS TEAM UK as a Simulation and Performance Team Lead and earlier this year was a part of the INEOS’s America’s Cup Team. Dr Joseph Banks is a lecturer in Ship Science/Marine Engineering at the University, specialising in experimental and computational fluid dynamics, particularly in high performance sport.
We will be running three virtual open days so that you can find about our Maritime Engineering Science MSc at the start of December. We offer a series of exciting pathways through our IMarEst, IMechE and RINA accredited degree programmes tailored to specific maritime industry sectors. Our teaching is delivered by an academic team at the forefront of their disciplines from machine learning and artificial intelligence, design optimisation, lightweight composite structures, future fuels, aero-hydrodynamics, maritime robotics and advanced performance craft.
We offer the following pathways for entry in academic year 2021/2022:
Our MSc programme, running since 1992, has always offered a cutting edge, research driven,and challenging educational opportunity with our graduates much sought after in the worldwide maritime sector. A sector that will continue to thrive as it faces the challenges of
sustainably harvesting the ocean’s resources be that renewable energy from wind, wave and tide, searching for rare minerals or managing aquaculture
ensuring the safety of everybody at sea from small leisure craft to cruise ships with thousands of passengers and crew
designing the ships of the future that deliver 80%+ of the world’s trade to ensure they are emission free
developing autonomous systems that can explore the oceans, protect individuals from harm and ensure the oceans can be protected
Fleur using wave energy to travel along our 138 m long wave/tow Boldrewood tank
It would be great to see you at our virtual open day but if you are unable to attend please contact us.
Will future ships use clean green Hydrogen as their power source? Maritime Research and Innovation UK (MarRIUK) has proposed a major modal transport shift as part of the UK Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review. The vision is to have within 10 years a fleet of UK built coastal zero carbon ships transporting goods and cargoes around the UK’s large network of ports. Shifting transport from already congested road and rail onto water which is already the lowest energy method of goods transport.
The proposal was developed by a core team of MarRIUK working group members from BMT, Shell Shipping and ourselves at the University of Southampton. It looks to transform how the UK makes the most of its coastal highways. Examining the transport logistics system as whole will allow many of our smaller ports to be transformed, sustaining their localities, will reduce the growing pressures on our road and rail bottlenecks, will revolutionise the approach to vessel traffic management and greatly ease the development of maritime autonomous systems development. However, front and centre is the need to decarbonise shipping. The development of a flagship fleet of zero carbon ships will allow us to take the bold step needed to replace fossil fuels with an energy source that has pollutant free emissions will blaze a trail to the industry woldwide showing how it can be done.
Research and Innovation will be at the heart of the work bringing together the maritime and other sectors to develop a cost effective transport system. MarRIUk is part of Maritime UK which next week (12th-18th Oct 2020) has a series of events as part of Maritime Week 2020. An opportunity to showcase the many aspects of the maritime sector in the UK which is such a strong part of our economy.
Maritime Robotics’ L3 Harris CCAT ready for use at sea
Maritime Engineering is often seen as one of the smaller engineering discipline and yet it support one of the most important sectors of the UK economy [Maritime 2050: Navigating the future, UK Dept for Transport]. With seas and oceans often out sight in our day-to-day lives it is often overlooked.
A recent study from the US indicates that it is worthwhile taking a closer look at the maritime disciplines of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. These were rated as the best value for money degree, in a comparison to all other 162 fields of study considered. While we don’t have immediate access to similar study in the UK our experience is certainly that our graduates are always in strong demand.
Why is this? As the recent government led Maritime 2050 report indicates it is vital to our prosperity and security. We rely on the oceans for our trade, for sustainable food and for an ever increasing part of our energy from marine renewables. MaritimeUK is championing the sector which is:
Supporting over 1 million jobs and adding £46.1bn to our economy, maritime is responsible for facilitating 95% of UK global trade, worth over £500bn per year. The UK maritime workforce is 42% more productive than the average UK worker.Maritime makes a greater contribution to the UK economy than both rail and air combined
Naval Architects and Marine Engineers are vital to the success of the world’s ‘blue economy’. This could be the design of ships to carry cargo around the world, offshore wind and tidal devices to harvest green renewable energy , autonomous underwater and surface vehicles to explore the oceans , superyachts for leisure and racing yachts such as those for the America’s Cup. Many of our graduates can be found outside of design in the production and safe operation of these vessels, as data analysts or as brokers. They are embracing the digital revolution in Maritime Engineering, where AI, Machine Learning, carbon fibre composites, 3D additive manufacturing and autonomous systems are opening up careers in this growing sector.
While it is good to see that Maritime Engineering provides financially rewarding careers it has always been the case that the engineering challenges are significant and are stimulating in their own right. Professional Naval Architects can trace their origins back to at least the Romans, with their associations of shipwrights. Today we need to face the challenge of decarbonisation, cleaning the oceans all while ensuring that in the future our use of its vast resources is sustainable. All of these will need a bright, committed and diverse next generation of Maritime Engineers – please contact us if you would like to find out more.
