The robot that could help make the shipping industry cheaper and greener

by

(CNN) – When a boat sails the sea, barnacles, mussels, algae and other organisms cling to the hull of the boat. This process is called biofouling and is a big problem for the shipping industry.

Biofouling increases the drag of ships, so more energy is needed to power them, increasing fuel costs and multiplying their carbon emissions.

The accumulation of marine life can also lead to the introduction of non-native invasive species into new environments. This could cause irreversible damage, as these species become dominant in their new habitat and alter biodiversity, an issue that the IMO considers “one of the greatest threats to the world’s freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems.”

To combat biofouling, technologies such as special boat liners and guided cleaning by diving teams are common. But the Norwegian company Jotun has a different approach.

The HullSkater, shown in the image, is a robot that eliminates biofouling.

The HullSkater, shown here, is a robot that eliminates biofouling.

Jotun

Jotun has developed the HullSkater, a 200-kilogram (440-pound) magnetic drag robot that eliminates the early stages of contamination. It is remotely controlled by Norwegian operators, who use a 4G connection and the robot’s four high-definition cameras to inspect the surface, before using the brush to remove the first signs of buildup.

Advancing in biofouling

By cleaning up biofouling at an early stage, “we remove it before it becomes a problem,” explains Geir Axel Oftedahl, Jotun’s director of business development.

Depending on the size of the boat, Oftedahl says inspecting and cleaning with the HullSkater takes about four hours and happens eight to 16 times a year. The robot is kept on board the ship and can be deployed as long as the ship is stationary and has a data connection, he adds.

Biofood is the accumulation of marine life, such as barnacles, mussels, algae and other organisms. Here's one

Biofood is the accumulation of marine life, such as barnacles, mussels, algae and other organisms. Here is a “drool” in the hull of this ship.

GloFouling / IMO

Jotun has also developed a special coating that is painted on the ship to work with the HullSkater brush, Oftedahl says. This increases the efficiency of the technology and reduces the risk of over-eroding the ship’s surface during cleaning, which could leak chemicals into the sea, he says.

Jotun says it is the first company to combine a robot, management and a coating, to ensure that the helmet is always clean.

According to Geoffrey Swain, director of the Corrosion Control and Biofouling Center at the Florida Institute of Technology, there are challenges in managing antifouling technologies, as different movements and locations activate coatings in different ways. But he says robotics is the “best technology we have so far.”

Reduction of costs and emissions

Swain says the concept of proactive hull cleaning was first funded by the U.S. Bureau of Naval Research in 2005, to add an additional strategy to antifouling coatings. However, it claims that coating management packages, such as the one offered by Jotun, are a new response to the rise of IMO biofouling regulations.

“If you take a boat to Australia or New Zealand, you’re inspected, so it’s best to be proactive,” Swain says. “It’s making shipowners or even boat rentals come in and start to really focus on how they manage the hull lining of the ship.”

According to the IMO, about 9% of the fuel consumed by a ship is due to biofouling. In 2018 it established a strategy to reduce the carbon intensity of international shipping, with the aim of reducing the industry’s carbon emissions by at least 40% by 2030, compared to 2008.
The HullSkater uses four high-definition cameras to inspect the surface and brush to remove the first signs of buildup.

The HullSkater uses four high-definition cameras to inspect the surface and brush to remove the first signs of buildup.

Jotun

The IMO estimates that biofouling management could result in a reduction of around 80 to 90 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emitted to the global fleet per year, the CO2 equivalent of some entire countries, including Greece or Nigeria, he says.

The HullSkater, which took more than four years to develop, was designed to help decarbonize the shipping industry. Jotun claims that every $ 1 invested in its technology, including coating, robot and offshore monitoring, will save more than $ 3 in fuel costs.

So far, the company is on track to market its invention, manufacturing and supplying 50 vessels, Oftedahl says.

After announcing the HullSkater at a virtual event in March, it signed its first commercial contract with the Swiss-Italian container shipping line Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC); later this year, the robot will be installed on one of MSC’s largest ships at the Chinese shipyard in Guangzhou.

“Clean helmets are just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to delivering a more sustainable shipping industry,” says Giuseppe Gargiulo, MSC’s deputy manager. “However, it’s a centerpiece.”

.Source

Leave a Comment