GREEN ENERGY MIGHT BE THE FUTURE OF THE SHIPPING INDUSTRY.

I wrote an article a few weeks back where I talked about electric vehicles becoming the future of the auto industry in a few years. In my recent readings, I came across the "estraden" a cargo ship fitted with rotor sails which can reduce a ships carbon emission by 1000 tons per year and also reduce fuel cost by 400 dollars per day. 400 dollars per day is nothing in the shipping industry but when you calculate that in yearly terms for a substantial fleet it comes down to quite a hefty sum especially for the shipping industry which has seen lots of losses in recent years.

The estraden is fitted by rotor sails which is manufactured by north power a company whose main goal is building alternative green energy sources for ships. The rotor sails work on the magnus effect principle. When wind passes through the sails they start spinning at a very fast rate which then creates a differential pressure to move the ship. It's similar to what works in air planes but in different axis. Rotor sails have been in existence since the 1920s but weren't really viable until recent years due to the advancements in technology.

Ships fitted with the rotor sails presently still need an internal combustion engine but naval architecture researchers at the university college london are saying it's possible for ships to be fully propelled with only green energy sources.

Do you think it's possible? Let me know in the comment section.

ps I have a Facebook group called ask the engineers where I do a lots of writing like this you could join and get inspired.