Resistance and 3-Degree of freedom analysis of various hull forms for a wind propelled weather routed energy ship

The Energy Ship (ES) is a concept of weather-routed wind-propelled ship that captures wind energy via Flettner wind rotors. At the equator, wind is low compared to the northern and southern hemisphere which has abundant low-pressure zones, equating to lower Return of Investment (ROI) for fixed offshore windfarms. The mobile ES is not grid-connected, making it able to harvest massive wind pockets wherever available offshore. This captured energy is converted via electrolysis into Hydrogen, Methanol or Ammonia and is offloaded ashore as green fuel. This study was focused on the resistance and three degree of freedom (DOF) analysis component that contributes to an efficient wind-propelled ship; the hull-form. This study compared three hull-forms, with the base comparison being the mono-hull. The other three hull-forms studied are the; Catamaran, and the Trimaran. It is known, that often, the primary pursuit for speed and a low-resistance hull-form, often sacrifices the corresponding stability and seakeeping of a hull-form. This is further accentuated with tall wind rotors that functions with the wind abeam at 90 to 60 degrees perpendicular. Whereby, the wind and wave propagation are naturally in the same direction, making the ship roll in abeam seas and quartering seas, which was the secondary analysis of this study. Analysis was also done at 0 degrees, following seas, for other types of wind propulsion that were considered such as the Hard Sail and Kite. Whereby, the envelope of operation is between O to 60 degrees from the stern. With these analyses, this study has contributed to a better understanding on designing the optimum hull-form that fits the nuances of wind propulsion, which is a new frontier for naval architectural design. The outcome of this research topic, is the identification of the best hull form overall, in terms of displacement and deck area. These two attributes are important for the green fuel cargo carrying capacity and the deck area for mounting the rotor or hard sails. This study also determined the best hull-form in terms of resistance, powering and seakeeping in waves of 8. 7 m and 3.9 m in the South China Sea (SCS).