wind powered cargo ship in our future?

I thought that too NC, but in the past it required a heckuva labor force.
These Tall Metal sails are new to me. Cousteau had a boat with them, but I never heard how it works.
 
10+ kts and the engines turn on or off automatically when winds die or resume from favorable directions.

http://www.cousteau.org/technology/turbosail/

And in emergencies, the turbo-sails could probably be used to cut fog, store grain or intercontinental ballistic missiles!
 
Now that last one would be the Labor intensive ship.
I think I'd bet on those Tall Missile Silo Sails.
 
I was expecting big wind turbines powering generators.
 
The ship in the original post looks like a bulk carrier, and bulk cargo generally isn't in that much of a hurry. But if the "sails" can provide say 25% of the power required, that's a 25% fuel savings. As we all know, fuel isn't cheap.

I don't think we'll see them on a containership any time soon though.
 
quote:
Originally posted by Thudpucker

Now that last one would be the Labor intensive ship.
I think I'd bet on those Tall Missile Silo Sails.

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Thud, I believe those sails on the Windstar ship-yachts are all computer controlled. So probably keyboard work for a few seconds every so often? Times have definitely changed.
 
Sandy we'll take the guy off that Kbd, and hook up with NOAH and a GPS guidence system.
All in all this looks like a good thing to me.
I wonder if those "Silo" sails will hold up in some really bad weather.
 
I think one of those articles above mentioned the prototype Alcyone Turbo-sail system was destroyed in heavy weather when soldering gave way, but the long-term version has apparently held up well. No idea how they could have made this comparison , it also mentioned the turbo-sail system developed something like 3 1/2 times the forward thrust as a conventional sail. 10 1/2 kts is pretty darn good speed for a ship like that "under sail."

The Japanese approach is interesting as a big ship fuel-use-reduction system . Time will tell. A bunch of years ago the KiteShip assist was going to be the big breakthrough, but we haven't heard much about that lately.
http://www.kiteship.com/marine.php
 
"As he called out through the night...on Bubbles, on Gurgles..."
 
Back in the Olden Days, all cargo ships were "wind powered" - they called them sailboats
 
I could see this being utilized for car carrying ships, but not for container ships b/c those masts / sails would get in the way while loading / unloading the containers from the ships.
 
If the "Silo's" were in the way for loading cargo, we'd just lift them off the ship, leave em' on the dock till we were loaded, then snap the silo's back into place.

I spent three days working on a ship in the Seattle (Harbor Island) docking facility.
Those Union guys are fierce in protecting their jobs.
Everything went well though.
I believe they could do just about anything with those cranes.
Including lifting the whole 'silo' power plant out, set it on the dock and put it back later.
 
quote:
Originally posted by HOGAN

Back in the Olden Days, all cargo ships were "wind powered" - they called them sailboats


Click to expand...


Yes! But they'd have to pick the right whales.
 
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