Work starts on fossil fuel free cargo ship. Development is underway to design the modern world's first 100 per cent fossil fuel free sailing cargo ships. With rising fossil fuel prices and the global challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, this project is set to change the shipping industry by providing efficient and affordable low-carbon shipping. The project combines proven technology, using the state of the art dyna-rig sail propulsion system with an off the shelf Rolls-Royce engine powered by waste derived liquid biomethane (liquid gas). The ships are being developed by B9 Shipping, part of the B9 Energy group of companies, which has started work on a full-scale demonstration vessel validating the engineering and economic assumptions of the initial vessel design. Diane Gilpin, Director of B9 Shipping, says: "The shipping sector is a highly complex, interconnected system and our task has been to develop relationships with key players across the industry.
TOWT – TransOceanic Wind Transport | Transport à la voile. The University of Tokyo reveals next generation cargo ship concept with 50m high sails uses 30% less fuel. The aim of the Wind Challenger Project is to substantially reduce fuel consumption by large merchant vessels. Under development by a group including members from the University of Tokyo, the idea is to utilize giant retractable sails, 20m wide by 50m high, to make maximal use of wind energy. The group has done simulations for shipping routes such as Yokohama-Seattle. The results indicate that hybrid ships with sails and engines could reduce annual fuel consumption by about 30% on average. “Using today’s technology, it’s possible to make big sails, and to control them automatically. Also, navigation technology includes networked maritime information and weather forecasting, so ships like this can travel safely. Using wind energy, as in old-fashioned sailing ships, is actually feasible.”
The angle of each sail is controlled individually, to obtain the maximum propulsive force. “The sails have a curved surface, and they need to be hollow, so they can expand and contract. Sailing into the future of global trade? 27 December 2012Last updated at 19:02 ET By Fiona Graham Technology of business reporter, BBC News We are sailing: French wine is unloaded in central Copenhagen, having made the journey by brigantine "We wanted to keep the energy that the producers had already put in the wine, and not break the chain. And, I'm telling you... this wine just tasted amazing. " On a warm summer's day in August, Danish wine merchant Sune Rosforth took delivery of 8,000 bottles of wine that had arrived from France.
From the offices of financial institutions flanking the quay, workers looked out at something that had not been seen in central Copenhagen for many years. The ship that had brought the wine from the Breton port of Brest was a 32m-long brigantine, a twin-masted sailing ship, called the Tres Hombres. Mr Rosforth's company, Rosforth and Rosforth, supplies restaurants in Denmark with organic and biodynamic wines.
Sailing ahead But this hasn't stopped other companies trying their luck. Get on board. SAIL. NSRSAIL (nsrsail) sur Twitter.