The well-known fact that waste from the work of ships is very detrimental to the environment. The development of innovative types of marine and river transport working with RES is a very important area in the current environmental situation.
Eco Marine from Japan has created a project of vessels using the energy of the sun and wind.
The project is interesting by transforming the appearance of the ship – solar panels will be installed instead of sails. The panels create a single power grid on the ship and feed it with electricity generated from solar energy. In addition, special solar modules will perform the function of sails when controlling the vessel in the presence of a tailwind.
The current year for the Japanese company will be the year of testing the new technology. Representatives of Eco Marine said that they plan to install “solar sails” on cargo ships of small size. The solar panels will replace the traditional sources of energy in ships in full.
The trial period of the new technology will last at least a year and a half. “Solar sails” want first of all to check for efficiency in the issues of electricity generation, in order to accurately determine the number of panels needed for a full-motion movement.
There is this technology and one big enough disadvantage – the price. The fact is that in terms of the introduction of solar energy and on land, the stumbling block is precisely the cost of the project. At this stage, representatives of Eco Marine are working to reduce the cost of “solar sails.”
In addition to the Japanese company Eco Marine, Toyota is also working on creating alternative power sources for vessels. More recently, the company was able to present the scientific community its development – a ship that does not require fuel. Only here in motion the swimming means leads not a sail, but the competent use of wind, sun and water.
The development is a catamaran, the length of which is more than 30 meters, and the width reaches almost 13 meters. Its weight is 28 tons. It should be noted that the presented innovation was previously an ordinary sailboat and even took part in water races. The ship was built in 1983.
This ship is not suitable for the role of a carrier of serious cargo. He can withstand the command and the supplies that she needs.
The former sailboat has excellent maneuverability. Its task will be to study the productivity of the sail and the solar battery in conditions of different waves of the water surface.
Instead of fuel, the ship uses hydrogen. They receive such “fuel” on land thanks to a special electrolysis unit. The plant is able to evaporate salt from sea water, and then divide the resulting liquid into O2 and hydrogen.
Hydrogen after its separation from water is placed immediately in special reservoirs. If necessary, the vessel can use it as fuel.
As a test, the ship will be sent to a cruise, which will last about six years. During this time the ship will visit 50 different countries. The cruise is scheduled for the next year.
Companies are taking on such projects, because in the world now there is a tendency to use hydrogen as a clean fuel. Judicial proceedings were no exception.