BRIDGE WATCHKEEPING

LO3
Ship Manoeuvring – Engines and
Rudders

RJLance V2 06/2013
Hull Form
Coefficient of fineness
 How readily the vessel

will travel in a straight

line without deviation.
 Finer the lines the

greater the directional

stability.
Momentum and Inertia
It is important to realise that a ship does not stop
when the engine is put in neutral.
Stopping the prop spinning will have little

effect on the speed of the vessel for quite some

time.
The larger the vessel the longer it will take to

stop. E.g. a tanker could take up to 3 miles

before it is stopped in the water.
Engines
 Likewise, a ship will not move immediately
when the engine is put in forward or reverse.
 There will also be a delay when changing
engine revolutions.
 There may be considerable delay in moving
from ahead to astern power.
 Furthermore different types of engine will
have an affect how a ship is handled.
Slow Speed Diesel
 Runs at less than 150
revolutions per minute.
 Good to develop power.
Slow to respond to speed
reductions.
 Do not develop much
power when operating
astern propulsion.

Mitsubishi UE low-speed diesel engine

Medium Speed Engines
 Operates 350-650rpm
 Generally connected
through gearbox to CPP.
 Engine continuously runs
in same direction.
 Always running at The River Class vessel is powered by two Ruston 12 RK
optimum revolutions. 270 medium speed diesel engines, rated at 4,125kW, driving
twin controllable pitch propellers
 Speed response depends on
hydraulic system operating
blades.
Medium speed diesels are also
used in the Cat-Link V 91m
wave piercing catamarans

These vessels are powered by four Ruston 20 RK270

conventional medium-speed diesel engines.

Each engine drives a transom-mounted waterjet.

The jet control system provides, apart from
steering and reversing, the option of thrust
vectoring and autopilot. The waterjets give the
Cat Link IV a two-way average speed of 48.2
knots, or 43.0 knots laden.
High Speed Diesel
 Operating 900-1200 rpm.
 Connected through
reduction gearbox to a
CPP.
High-speed diesel engines such as this MTU 12V Series
 Engine runs continuously 2000, are compact for their power output, leading to
engine rooms with ample space for maintenance.
giving excellent response
to engine movement.
 Very good astern power.
 Good for providing power
to ‘azipod’ drive units.
Propellers
 Vessels usually have one or two propellers, some ships
such as the old ocean liners had four or even six.
 Propellers are referred to as right- or left-handed,
depending on the direction the screw turns.
 To determine this, pretend you’re standing astern of the
vessel watching the props turn. If it turns clockwise, it is
right-handed.
 The propeller may have a various number of blades and
pitch.
 Each configuration will have different handling
tendencies.
Terminology
 Propeller Thrust. The force caused by the displacement of
water along the propeller shaft to thrust the ship ahead as the
ship moves in the direction of the low pressure area. The after
face of the propeller blade creates a high pressure area.
 Transverse Thrust The force that moves the stern of the ship in
the direction of screw rotation. Side thrust produced by the
screw's rotation through the water. It is noticeable at the stern
of the ship. The twin-screw ships cancel side force created by
the rotating the screws in opposite directions.
 Propeller Wash. Turbulence produced by the propeller turning
against the water. While operating astern, it negatively effects
a short radius turn by decreasing the efficiency of the rudder.
Terminology (continued)
 Twist. On multiple screw ships, it is the effect of
propellers rotating in opposite directions.
 Pitch. The distance a propeller would travel in one
revolution if water were a solid medium.
 Slip. The difference between the speed of a ship and its
propeller.
 Cavitation. Cavities or bubbles around a propeller which
are a result of the pressure on the lower and upper blade
surfaces being unequal. It is caused by blade tip speed
being excessive or by the vessel riding high in the water.
Fixed Pitch
 ‘Variable pitch’.
 Cast as one piece with
central boss and blades
permanently fixed.
 Designed for operating at
a particular speed so that
each blade can deliver the
optimum thrust at that
speed.
Controllable Pitch
 Made up of a number
of pieces. A central
boss onto which
separate blades are
bolted.
 Designed to give
optimum performance
not at one fixed value
but over a range of
revolutions.
Shrouded/Ducted
 Initially came about to
reduce bank erosion due to
wash produced.
 Found to give better thrust
and greater fuel economy.
 Propeller is inside a
circular tube. This
increases the flow of water
through the duct to provide
additional thrust.

Kortz Nozzle
Azimuthing
 The whole propeller
has two degrees of
freedom.
 It can revolve about its
shaft and the direction
the shaft is facing can
also rotate.
Rudders
 For the rudder to turn the ship, there needs to be
water flow
 When the ship is not moving through the water the
rudder has no effect
 The faster the ship is moving the quicker she will
respond to the rudder
 The rudder is most effective when the propeller is
actually engaged, and forcing water over the rudder's
surface
Conventional Rudders
 The conventional rudder is a compromise between
economy and necessity. Complete with its pumps
and steering motors it is a fairly simple arrangement
and relatively economic to install and run.
 On passage it is being continuously worked with a
succession of small rudder angles to keep the ship on
course.
 Large alterations of course can be achieved using a
maximum of 35° rudder angle and moderate speed.
Rudder Angle up to 35°
 At any stage up to this
angle and ‘hard over’ the
rudder retains a smooth
water flow across both
faces and this creates
positive pressure on one
side and negative
pressure on the other.
 Flow of water may be from
the propeller forcing water
or tide/current.
 Size, shape and design
greatly effect the handling
characteristics of a vessel.
Water Flow across a conventional Rudder

Water
 Acts a wing Flow

Low Pressure Area High Pressure Area

Rudder
Force
Rudder Angle Over 35°
 Over 35°/45° the water flow
across the rudder especially
on the low pressure side
becomes progressively more
turbulent until eventually
the rudder stalls.
 Hence although fine whilst
on passage, this is a
disadvantage when
manoeuvring at slow speeds
in confined waters The basic rudder is not
hydrodynamically efficient beyond an
angle of 35°
Alternative Rudder Designs
 Non-specialized ships
have single balanced
rudder mounted
directly aft of a single
screw.
 Vessels requiring more
manoeuvrability may
have more than one
rudder and propeller.
Active Rudder (Becker Rudder)
 Rudder stall minimised by fitting independently
moveable flap at the trailing edge.
 The movement of the flap is proportional to the
movement of the rudder e.g. at 5 degrees flap will
move 0.5 degrees. However at rudder angle 35
degrees flap moves additional 35 degrees giving
70 degrees rudder angle.
 This ensures a smooth flow of water over the
rudder and flap at all times with good lift and
improved turning ability.
flap_rudder_3d.mov
Schilling Rudder
 This rudder is shaped so
that it can be turned to
70 degrees.
 The fore body is
elliptical in shape which
runs into the rear body
which is concave.
 Top & bottom of rudder
are flanged to channel
the water across the
rudder face.
 Generally these rudder are
used much like
conventional rudders.
 They have excellent
turning ability with correct
use of ‘kicks ahead’.
 When used with a bow
thruster good lateral
motion can be achieved.
 Due to excessive strain on
the steering gear at high
speeds the use of the
rudder beyond 35° may be
restricted to 5 or 6 knots.
VecTwin
• The VecTwin system
offers significant
manoeuvring enhancement
for single screw vessels.
•The propeller is fixed
pitch constantly running
ahead.
• The twin asymmetric
Schilling rudders operate
independently behind the
propeller allowing full
360° vectoring of the
propeller thrust.
 The rudders are
synchronised to work in
harmony with each other in
response to a single joy
stick control from the
bridge.
 The equivalent to ‘stop
engines’ is obtained by
adjusting the joystick to an
intermediate neutral
position between full ahead
and full astern which gives
neither ahead or astern
thrust.
 Propeller wash will be
deflected sideways.
 BP British Pioneer
Registered in the Isle of Man, the British Pioneer is a crude oil carrier with a capacity of 320,000 tons. Seems to have
a fairly neat turning circle in this pic!
References;
 Rowe, R.W. 2000. The Shiphandler’s Guide,
The Nautical Institute.