Closed-Loop Trim Control System for Ships
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing goods transport ships rely on seawater ballasts that can harm ecosystems by transporting aquatic organisms and require expensive decontamination and maintenance due to sediment accumulation.
Innovation Solution
A transport ship with a trim control system that uses non-seawater liquid tanks and a roll-stabilizing tank with partition walls, allowing for adjustable trim and roll stabilization without communicating with the sea, using a distribution device with pumps and valves to manage liquid between tanks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If seawater ballasts are used to adjust ship trim, then the ship can maintain proper draft and prevent propeller lifting, but the ship transports aquatic organisms between zones requiring expensive decontamination and maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the ballast water system from communication with the sea by using a closed-loop fresh water system. The fresh water tanks are filled with fresh water and never discharged into the sea, thereby eliminating the transport of aquatic organisms between different marine zones while preserving the ability to adjust ship trim.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces fresh water as an intermediary substance to replace seawater in the ballast system. This intermediary allows the ship to achieve trim adjustment without the harmful effects of seawater discharge, as the fresh water does not contain aquatic organisms that would be transported to different marine zones.
2Ease of operation
If seawater ballasts are used to adjust ship trim, then the ship can maintain proper draft, but sediment accumulates at the bottom requiring periodic maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the source of sediment accumulation by using fresh water instead of seawater in the ballast system. Since fresh water does not contain the same sediment and organic matter as seawater, sediment accumulation at the bottom of the tanks is eliminated or significantly reduced, thereby reducing maintenance frequency and costs.
3Stability of the object's composition
If roll-stabilizing tank is filled with seawater, then the ship can stabilize rolling motion, but the same ecological and maintenance problems occur
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies the same extraction principle to the roll-stabilizing tank by using fresh water instead of seawater. This allows the tank to perform roll stabilization functionality while avoiding the transport of aquatic organisms to different marine zones, as the fresh water remains contained within the closed system.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If decontamination equipment is installed to treat seawater ballast, then ecological harm can be reduced, but the equipment is expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The invention eliminates the need for decontamination equipment by using fresh water in the ballast system. Since fresh water does not contain aquatic organisms that would harm marine ecosystems, no decontamination treatment is required, thereby avoiding the cost and complexity of installing such equipment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution eliminates the ecological risks and maintenance costs associated with seawater ballasts by using a closed liquid system that can adjust trim and stabilize the ship as needed, without the need for seawater intake or discharge.
Implementation Method 1
The flow of the seawater in the roll-stabilizing tank is slowed by one or more partition walls, thereby creating a momentum that tends to stabilize the rolling of the ship
Implementation Method 2
the distribution device including at least one pump and a plurality of valves
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a transport ship (1) comprising a trim control system (10) not in communication with the sea,in which the trim control system (10) comprises:at least one front liquid tank (20),at least one rear liquid tank (30),a roll-stabilizing tank (40) including at least one pair of partition walls (42) arranged to slow a flow of liquid in the roll-stabilizing tank (40) along the transverse axis (Y-Y′) of the ship, anda distribution device (60), the distribution device being in communication with said at least one front liquid tank (20), said at least one rear liquid tank (30), and said roll-stabilizing tank (40), and being designed to distribute a volume of liquid therebetween.