A maritime company just made history after deploying the first automated, foldable, inflatable wing sail technology on a merchant ship, as reported first by Interesting Engineering.
According to Michelin, the French manufacturer of industrial equipment, the 100 sqm wing prototype was mounted on the container ship MN Pélican, which is owned by Compagnie Maritime Nantaise.
Wing Sail System
The installation of the WISAMO (Wind and Sail Mobility) wing sail on a commercial vessel was made possible by teams from Michelin, French industrial equipment supplier Start2Prod IMECA, Compagnie Maritime Nantaise - MN, Michelin Aria, and Michelin Recherches et Technologies (MRT Switzerland), the company wrote on Linkedin on Thursday.
"This new step is a great multicultural experience and moments of diverse competencies sharings to contribute to an important cause toward maritime transport decarbonization," the company added.
The 1999-built commerce ship is currently deployed in Spain's El Astillero Port as part of the WISAMO (Wing Sail and Mobility) project.
According to the company, the prototype may be installed on both commercial and leisurely yachts. The method is believed to decrease fuel usage by up to 20% per ship by relying on wind energy.
The wing sail system can be incorporated into a ship's design, as original equipment, or it can be retrofitted onto a ship that is already in operation. It is ideal for tankers, bulk carriers, LNG carriers, and ro-ro vessels. The company claimed that the tech retracts for easy passage under bridges and into ports.
A collaboration agreement was reached in June 2022 between Michelin and the Compagnie Maritime Nantaise-MN, a branch of SOGESTRAN Group, to test the "pioneering solution" on a ship. This installation project is founded on this agreement.
The roro-containership MN Pélican at Compagnie Maritime Nantaise - MN is leased by Brittany Ferries since 2016. It makes two weekly trips from Poole, United Kingdom, to Bilbao, Spain.
The installation will allow Michellin to test the WISAMO wing in real commercial marine navigation conditions in line with the new technology's industrial development phase.
Fleet-wide Wind Propulsion
If the tests are successful, the collaboration agreement might permit further research utilizing a larger wing sail, which would be a significant step toward decarbonizing maritime transportation, according to Michelin.
The maritime industry is increasingly focusing on wind propulsion as one of the options that can help ships become more efficient and more eco-friendly.
According to Gavin Allwright, Secretary-General of the International Windship Association (IWSA), the adoption of fleet-wide wind propulsion by 2050 might result in fuel savings of 1 trillion dollars.
The most recent deployments of wind propulsion technology on large commercial vessels have increased the cargo-carrying capacity of ships powered by wind above the record of one million tonnes of deadweight (dwt), as per Interesting Engineering.
There are now 21 large commercial ships with wind propulsion systems. IWSA projects that 25 large commercial vessels with a combined weight of 1.2 million dwt will be equipped with wind propulsion systems by the end of the year.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Jace Dela Cruz
