Lewin of Greenwich Naval History & Forum

Michelin’s Wing Sail Mobility (WISAMO) Project Features Inflatable Wing Sails

Back in 2017, we posted Inflated Wing Sail — Rig of the Future? The post showed a prototype daysailer with a single inflatable wing sail (IWS) without winches, halyards, shrouds, or complex deck gear. Now French tire manufacturer Michelin has collaborated with the two Swiss developers to scale up the IWS design to provide sail assist on merchant ships. Their Wing Sail Mobility (WISAMO) project design is an automated, telescopic, inflatable wing sail system that is expected to reduce fuel consumption by up to 20%.

Splash reports that Michelin considers these wing sails to be especially suitable for RORO ships, bulk carriers, and oil and gas tankers, and can be fitted as original equipment on newbuilds or retrofitted on in-service vessels.
Continues, with links and video at:
http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2021/06/mich ... more-57694

Very interesting David , in these days less and less surprises me but the practicalities of its implementation and acceptance ?.
Thanks for posting this

ivorthediver wrote: ↑Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:26 pm Very interesting David , in these days less and less surprises me but the practicalities of its implementation and acceptance ?.
Thanks for posting this

Alfa Laval and Wallenius Form Joint Venture to Promote Oceanbird Wind Propulsion

In September, we posted about a Swedish consortium that included Wallenius Marine has designed Oceanbird, a five-masted sailing car carrier, that, if built, will be the largest sailing cargo ship that the world has ever seen.

Last month, Alfa Laval and Wallenius Marine announced that they would form a 50/50 joint venture – AlfaWall Oceanbird – that will supply innovative wind propulsion solutions for cargo vessels and other ship types. The plan is to have the first Oceanbird system onboard a vessel within five years.

From the press release: Continues at - http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2021/08/alfa ... ropulsion/

International Longshoremen's Association Says Union Will Not Service Automated Ships Without Crews

“Don’t sail them into ILA ports from Maine to Texas, Puerto Rico, and Eastern Canada – they won’t be unloaded or loaded by ILA members.” says ILA President Harold Daggett.

See - https://maritime-executive.com/article/ ... 6JwSFe1r7s

Sailing on Bubbles of Air — MSC Orders 30 Silverstream Hull Air Lubrication Systems

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has ordered more than 30 hull air lubrication systems from UK firm Silverstream Technologies to be installed on current orders of newbuild large container ships. The vessels applying the air lubrication systems are expected to be delivered from shipyards in Asia in 2022-2024.

See - http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2021/09/sail ... more-58224

New Aden, Chinese VLCC With Four Rigid Wing Sails


In 2020, we posted that China Merchants Group had signed a contract with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company (DSIC) for two Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) each with four rigid wing sails to provide wind-assisted propulsion.
The first of the two ships, the New Aden, has now been delivered and features four wing sails, each approximately 130 feet tall, totaling nearly 13,000 square feet of sail area, made of carbon fiber composite material. The sails are trimmed by a fully automatic system to maximize their efficiency. The new ship is 1,092 feet long and 300,000 DWT.
The New Aden is not the first VLCC to be equipped with wind-assisted propulsion. In 2018, China Merchants took delivery of the New Vitality, a 300,000 DWT tanker with two rigid wing sails. The sail-assist provided on the New Vitality must have been successful, as the new ships have double the number of wing sails of their near sister vessel.
According to DSIC and its parent company CSSC, the vessel’s design was designed for operations between the Middle East and the Far East. “The New Aden pays more attention to the optimization of the ship’s operating performance, reduces the ship’s operating fuel consumption, and enhances the ship’s sailing performance in wind and waves,” said CSSC. They estimate that the tanker in operation will achieve an annual fuel savings of 9.8 percent and more than 2,900 tons of carbon. The vessel is also fitted with the latest SOx and NOx technologies to reduce emissions, meeting the EEDI and EEXI standards.


Source - http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2022/10/new- ... more-59789

Michelin Inflatable Wing Sail Being Installed on Ro/Ro MN Pelican

Last year, we posted about French tire manufacturer Michelin’s Wing Sail Mobility (WISAMO) project design that features an automated, telescopic, inflatable wing sail system, which is expected to reduce fuel consumption by up to 20%.
The project is taking a major step forward as Michelin and its partners are joining with Compagnie Maritime Nantaise to install a 100 sqm inflatable wing prototype on CMN’s 8,600 DWT ro/ro MN Pelican.
The project WISAMO rig is being installed on the ro/ro, which was built in 1999, and is currently docked in Spain’s El Astillero Port.

From <http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2022/11/mich ... more-59867>

A regular visitor to Sunderland of late has been the vessel Annika Braren, which sports an EcoFletnner sail.
The ECO FLETTNER technology achieves with a new generation of rotor sailing systems for the break-through as a building block for low-emission shipping

The main question about modern rotor sailing systems is about the performance potential and fuel savings. For the prediction of the rotor’s propulsion power and associated fuel savings, numerous model tests and simulations were performed using the wind tunnel of TU Hamburg-Harburg and numerical CFD methods at the Center for Modelling and Simulation at the Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences. Transparent performance data is required to enable an economic prognosis for the use of Flettner rotors on ships.
A couple of photos that I took of Annika Braren are attached.

Jim

Pyxis Ocean, Sail-Assisted 80,000 DWT Bulk Carrier, Demonstrates Potential of Wind Power

In August, we posted about the Pyxis Ocean, an 80,000 DWT bulk carrier, fitted with two WindWings®, a pioneering rigid wing technology, that had set sail on its maiden voyage from China to Brazil.

Now, six months later, Cargill announced the results of the test voyages of the Pyxis Ocean, underscoring the potential for wind-assisted propulsion technology in moving the shipping industry toward renewable energy use.

The MC Shipping Kamsarmax vessel retrofitted with two large solid wind sails developed by BAR Technologies – – achieved performance consistent with what was predicted, equivalent to an average of 3 tonnes of fuel per day. The WindWings® were added to the six-year-old vessel with the aim of cutting fuel use by about 20% on the voyage, according to Jan Dieleman, president of Cargill Ocean Transportation, which chartered the Pyxis Ocean.

During optimal sailing conditions, the Pyxis Ocean achieved savings of more than 11t/day in fuel consumption, which translates to 41t/day less CO2e emitted well-to-wake, or a 37% emissions savings.

Continues at - https://www.oldsaltblog.com/2024/03/pyx ... more-61434