IIT Roorkee and IMU Visakhapatnam develop fuel-efficient maritime transportation solution

HYDERABAD : A collaborative research effort involving Hydropower Simulation Laboratory (HSL) of the Department of Water Resources Development and Management (IIT Roorkee), and Indian Maritime University, Visakhapatnam (IMU-V)], sought to find an environmentally friendly, and fuel and cost-efficient maritime transport solution.

The research was funded by The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, according to IMU.

The Visakhapatnam Port Trust provided significant information related to the various types of marine vessels, their operational schedules and expected design feasibility.

In this collaborative research, HSL researchers adjusted the functioning of power sources (diesel-engine-driven induction generators and batteries) of the tugboats so that the load demand could be met while consuming the lowest possible amount of fuel.

A coordinated control strategy based on a state machine control algorithm for the real-time tugboat operational cycle was also incorporated.

Researchers successfully improved the fuel efficiency of diesel-electric tugboats; fuel savings obtained by the above methods were 29.86 percent and 26.42 percent respectively, as against the traditional diesel-mechanical tugboat propulsion system.

HSL, in collaboration with IMU-V, is also working towards absolute battery-operated SEMV designs and high-efficiency fault-tolerant marine electric powertrains to produce competent zero-emission SEMVs.

As the global market for battery-driven electric vehicles expands, it is anticipated that the adoption of lithium-ion batteries with long life cycles (approximately decommissioning life of SEMV) and good power and energy densities would lead to the commercialization of absolute battery-operated SEMV with the help of HSL’s ongoing research outcomes and experience.

Prof Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Roorkee, said: “This collaborative research by IIT Roorkee and IMU Visakhapatnam on the design and experimental validation of short endurance marine vessels has shown promising results. We intend to make it stronger so that it can empower our marine industry”.

Elaborating the research effort, Mr. Thanga Raj Chelliah, Faculty-in-Charge, Hydropower Simulation Lab, Department of Water Resources Development and Management, said “Through the munificent financial support of The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and help from The Visakhapatnam Port Trust, the joint research effort of HSL and IMU-V has led to the achievement of a fuel-efficient maritime transport solution.

The methodologies used in the research yielded significant results, providing fuel savings to the extent of 29.86 percent. This endeavor proves that high-quality research can offer modern, effective, efficient and environmentally friendly business solutions, he said.

Mr Vidyasagar Tummakuri, a PhD student in HSL extends his study on lithium-ion batteries, battery management systems, criteria for selection of charging portfolio, and the degree of applicability of wireless charging at Indian ports. We expect the collaboration between IIT Roorkee and IMU-V to continue so that the two institutions may continue to contribute to the development of the nation”.

Source : The Hindu Business Line