A new modelling procedure of the engine room ventilation system for work risk prevention and energy saving

Abstract

Maritime transport is one of the primary international objectives for energy saving and pollution reduction, in agreement with the International Maritime Organization. Within the most interesting energy-saving topics, the ventilation system of the engine room must be highlighted, which represents about 5% of the nominal power of a modern ship. Nevertheless, its energetic optimization is not simple and must consider also work risk criteria, since the engine room is the hottest and, in consequence, one of the hazardous places in the ship. In this research, a complete three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics model of the engine room of a real ship has been developed in order to identify the hottest places and fully characterize their thermal conditions. On the basis of this analysis, a mathematical model of the maximum working time allowed has been defined, which can be directly used to design an efficient control algorithm for the ventilation system. In a complementary way, the minimum time required to rest in the control engine room to release the cumulated heat has also been analysed, in order to optimize its set-point conditions.

Keywords

Engine room heat stress computational fluid dynamics thermal modelling work risk

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