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Hull coating

Hull coating in dry dock
The coatings will reduce the resistance of the ship hull through water, and reduce the needed engine power, and thus reduce the fuel consumption.
The savings of applying advanced hull coatings is difficult to measure, but there is no doubt a possible saving by applying high end products. In combination with good hull condition monitoring and maintenance, savings will be achieved. The benefit from this measure will come in terms of reduced fuel consumption and thus a lower fuel cost.
Applicability and assumptions
Hull coating is applicable for all vessel types and ages. Ships are generally recoated every fifth year and by applying high performance coating, hull resistance can be reduced. The reduction potential in frictional resistance will be higher for full bodied ships such as bulkers and tankers. For existing ships there is also a higher potential on segments with a relatively high average ship age. For these segments it is assumed that hull sandblasting will be needed in order to obtain the full effect. The measure will have a capital expense every fifth year when the ship is in dry dock.
Cost of implementation
The cost of hull coating is dependent on the vessel size and segment and will vary in price based on which product one choses. However, a price within the range of $30,000 to $500,000 (USD) can be expected.
Reduction potential
Several tests on commercial ships and laboratories have showed that high end products are able to reduce the overall ship’s resistance by up to 8%. This goes both for silicone based and self-polishing types of coatings. The reduction potential is dependent on vessel size, segment, operation profile and trading areas and is in the range of 1% to 4% on main engine fuel consumption.
Other References
- Fathom Focus – Hull Coatings for Vessel Performance / The Important Role of the Hull in Ship Efficiency
- Hullwiper / Fuel saving calculator based on hull cleaning
- Air pollution and energy efficiency / IMO energy efficiency appraisal tool
- Third IMO GHG Study 2014 / International Maritime Organization (IMO) / Smith, T.W.P.; Jalkanen, J.P.; Anderson, B.A.; Corbett, J.J.; Faber, J.; Hanayama, S.; O'Keeffe, E.; Parker, S.; Johansson, L.; Aldous, L.; Raucci, C.; Traut, M.; Ettinger, S.; Nelissen, D.; Lee, D.S.; Ng, S.; Agrawal, A.; Winebrake, J.J.; Hoen, M.; Chesworth, S.; Pandey, A. / 2014
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