Vijayakumar Rajagopalan

The shipping business expects to develop energy-saving and drag-reducing techniques addressing the cost of shipping and environmental problems. It has been reported that for slow-moving vessels, frictional resistance accounts for up to 80% of the total resistance, needing urgent attention to reduce the same. To reduce frictional resistance, the air has been used as lubricant, which is injected below the moving body known as Bubble Drag Reduction or the Air Lubrication System. In this article, results obtained from experimental investigations into drag reduction of a 1:23 scaled model of an 8000-ton deadweight bulk carrier by injecting air bubbles below it are presented. Investigations were carried out for a speed range of 6–10 knots, and for each speed, the effect of six injection flow rates of .5–3.0 CFM were investigated. To investigate the effect of different sizes of injection holes, two types of injector units have been used: one with injection holes of 1 mm diameter and the other with injection holes of 2 mm diameter. The study carried out has many practical implications because it is easier to create bigger size holes which will reduce the power required to inject air, thereby increasing the efficiency of the entire technique.

For vessels moving at slower speeds, the frictional resistance contributes up to 80% of the total resistance, demanding a reduction in it. In the BDR/ALS technique, to reduce frictional resistance, the air is injected below the moving body, which is one of the active and interesting research topics. In this work, to reduce the total resistance and the energy required to run a ship, experimental investigations were performed on a 1:23 scaled model of 8000 Tonnes Deadweight Bulk Carrier for a Froude number range of 0.06 to 0.18. For each speed of operation, consequences of different air injection rates of 0.5 to 3.0 CFM, and different sizes of injection holes were thoroughly investigated. With the injection holes of 2mm and 1mm in diameter, the maximum savings in the energy of 29.2% and 25.1% were observed at the Froude numbers of 0.09 and 0.11, respectively.

The increase in fuel costs and looming restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions are driving the shipowner into reducing the ship’s resistance and required installed power. It was earlier reported that, merchant vessels operating at lower speeds, the frictional drag accounts of almost 70–80% of the total drag; thus, there is a strong demand for the reduction in the fluid frictional drag, especially in the marine transportation business. The use of air as a lubricant, by injecting below the plate or the body, which is famously known as microbubble drag reduction (MBDR) in order to reduce that frictional drag is an active research topic. Latest developments in this field suggests that there is a potential reduction of 80% in frictional drag in case of flat plates and about 30% reduction in case of ships, which encourages researchers to investigate further. In this study, 3D numerical investigations into frictional drag reduction by microbubbles were carried out in Star CCM+ on a channel for different flow velocities, different void fractions and different cross sections of flow at the injection point. This study is the first of its kind in which variation of coefficient of friction both in longitudinal and transverse directions was studied along with actual localized variation of void fraction at these points. The numerical framework consists of the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations and the standard k−ε turbulence model with standard wall function treatment, which is validated in both conditions of with and without microbubbles with the existing experimental data. The design exploration study was carried out for various flow speeds, injector flow rates, cross sections of the channel/heights of channels and of course void fractions. Coefficient of friction and void fraction values are measured at 12 longitudinal positions, and at each longitudinal position, 11 in number transverse and 10 in number depthwise positions were studied. In all, for one simulation, data at more than 1000 positions were collected. More than 60 simulations were carried out to understand the effect. From the study, it is concluded that since it is a channel flow and as the flow is restricted in confined region, effect of air injection is limited to smaller area in transverse direction as bubbles were not escaping in transverse direction.

Reducing the ship’s drag is an effective technique for reducing emissions, operating expenses, and improving EEDI. For slow-moving vessels, frictional resistance has been reported to contribute up to 80% of total resistance, demanding a thorough investigation in reducing it. Air or the gas has been used as a lubricant, to reduce the frictional resistance known as Micro Bubble Drag Reduction, which is the need of a present era. In this paper, the current research scenario on the technique is presented, which suggests a plausible reduction in frictional resistance of 80% for ships. The review suggests that reduction in drag depends on void fraction, coalescence and breaking of injected bubbles, the salinity of water and type of gas used, depth of water in which the bubbles are injected, and of course, on the location of injection points. In the end, recommendations have been provided to improve the drag reduction.