4 ms·
Seems like there is some opportunity here for some military tech transfer in the form of quiet turbines for shipping. Surely there are some outdated but much qu
by makerofspoons 8y ago
Seems like there is some opportunity here for some military tech transfer in the form of quiet turbines for shipping. Surely there are some outdated but much quieter Cold War era designs that could be declassified and put into production.
- i_am_proteus 8y agoNot sure there are any easy wins here as steam turbines have fallen out of favor. Most commercial ships use diesel main engines due to lower overall costs (capital, fuel, crew, maintenance). Most new warships employ gas turbines (vs. steam turbines) due to power-to-weight and power-to-size ratios, but these are things that commercial shipping does not need and will not pay for. Steam turbines are still kicking around on older ships (like the Jones Act specials rusting up and down the West Coast) and nuclear-powered stuff, and that's about it.
- swish_bob 8y agoA lot of time and money was spent learning how to reduce cavitation because it's the significant component of the noise produced. It feels like more efficient screws (which are incidentally quieter) would be a fairly popular sell to the shipping industry.