Session: 07-04-01 Vessels in Ice and model test

Paper Number: 102474

102474 - Impact of New Bow Shapes on Fsicr Power Requirements 

In the Baltic Sea, the merchant ships receive icebreaker assistance during the winter period based on their Ice Class, which are granted based on the Finnish Swedish Ice Class Rules (FSICR). The FSICR set the minimum requirement for the ship structural strength and the power demand, so that each ship with a certain ice class have a sufficient ice performance in the design ice condition of the ice class. The increasing interest on sustainable transportation has recently led to new power restrictions for merchant ships. Consequently, fulfilling the new restrictions requires new principles for the design of a ship bow, especially for merchant ships, which mainly operate in open water and only occasionally in ice.

The new open-water-optimized bow shapes can differ substantially from the traditional ice-capable merchant ships. Instead of the traditional low stem angles, the bow angle can be vertical or close to vertical. As the FSICR consider an old channel as the determining ice condition for an ice class, this design typically performs adequately. However, the current FSICR may not evaluate these modern bow shapes uniformly and fairly, as our recent research on ship brash ice channel resistance has shown. To secure the uniform ice class classification, including the modern bow shapes, this paper reflects the conclusions and lessons learned from our recent research results on the ice class rules power requirements and suggests improvement to the current rules.

Presenting Author: Riikka Matala Aker Arctic Technology Inc

Presenting Author Biography: Riikka Matala graduated from Aalto University in 2012, and has been working for Aker Arctic since that. 2012-2022 her work focused on ice model testing, and since 2022 more broadly in ice performance. Concurrently, she is doing part-time doctoral studies in Aalto University with a research topic related to ship resistance in old channels. She has been a member of ITTC Specialist Committee on Ice since year 2021.

Authors:

Riikka Matala Aker Arctic Technology Inc
Mikko Suominen Aalto University