Feature 2
Sealed pumps offer safety first
a debate needs to be had on safety levels observed in enginerooms relating
to pumps, according to innovative pump maker KRaL, of Lustenau,
austria.
W
hile current Safety of Life at Sea otherwise of the engineroom. This is partly why increasingly, after three to five years of a ship
provisions demand fire prevention magnetic, hermetically-sealed pump units have being in operation, owners came round as they
measures in the engineroom, been preferred by forward-looking operators, looked to improve the operational efficiency
defining distances between pump booster such as Maersk, Columbus Ship Management, of their ships. E R Schiffahrt has now installed
modules and areas with hot surfaces, and also and E R Schiffahrt, says KRaL, while also KRaL magnetic pumps onboard 15 ships, Mr
setting out fire protection requirements, SoLaS reporting new and rising levels of interest from Flauger says.
also inherently accepts that, in some cases, heavy cruiseship owners. To support this, KRaL has devised a ‘pump
fuel oil pumps can leak. ‘We have found that there are different upgrade project’, through which it offers
In the case of higher pressure common-rail reasons why owners are deciding to opt for pumps featuring magnetic couplings on a free
engines, rules require pumps to be jacketed so magnetic pumps,’ says Thomas Flauger, KRaL trial basis, typically over six to 12 months.
that no spray can occur within the engineroom. Pumpen-Volumeter product manager. ‘one is at the same time, however, KRaL is keeping
However, in the case of lower pressure systems, they save money over time, because they don’t abreast of developments in the larger market
no such strictures prevail. have to replace the mechanical seal three times for pumps featuring mechanical seals, where
KRaL is exploring levels of interest in a year. also, it can be hard to find well-trained changing HFo quality is having an effect on
developing new rules that could specify staff to maintain operations onboard, so there the materials used. as fuel viscosity levels have
hermetically-sealed pump units as the safer is a tendancy to reduce the level of support risen, so has the necessity for pre-heating fuels.
option for engineroom operations. needed in the engineroom. That means a Typically, a 380cst quality fuel will need to be
The pump maker points out that the more reliable product is required, rather than pre-heated by 120
o
-130
o
, but a 500cst fuel will
hermetically sealed option affords advantages one that needs frequent checking.’ require pre-heating by 150
o
. More abrasive
over conventional booster units when it comes Mr Flauger conceded that owners were fuel types demand different materials in the
to facing inspections by Port State Control. one often hard to convince of the benefits of o-ring, and it is for this reason that KRaL’s
of the prime items on PSC and Class checklists magnetic couplings at the newbuild stage, mechanical seals now feature sicarbide as the
on boarding a vessel will be the cleanliness, or for budgetary reasons. However, he said that, sealing material. NA
Largest transmission from ZF
The second of a pair of large fast ferry builds for operations in Japan from
Tasmanian yard Incat are also distinguished by one of the largest ever marine
transmission installations from ZF Marine.
The second ferry for Higashi Nihon Ferry will join her sister Natchan Rera
(Significant Ships of 2007), completed by Incat last August, in service across
Japan’s Tsugaru Strait between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.
At nearly 11,000gt the new 112m long Natchan World is due delivery in April
and is one of the largest vessels built by Incat. Yet she will function with a
loaded draught of just 3.83m, enabling her to operate into the shallowest of
ports.
With Natchan World, Incat reckons to have reached the pinnacle in high-
speed craft luxury and comfort, with this its most valuable export to date. Horizontal offset, remote mount marine
Operating at speeds of approximately 40knots and with capacity for up to 800 transmission.
persons and 355 cars, or 450 lane metres of trucks and 193 cars, Natchan World
is almost identical to her sister, Natchan Rera.
Like her sister, the ship has four independent enginerooms, each with a 9000kW MAN Diesel engine at 1000rev/min,
and each engine works in combination with one of the largest transmissions from ZF Marine GmbH, the ZF 60000 NR2H.
This marine transmission with reduction drive gearing and hydraulically-actuated multi-disc clutch for engagement has
an output shaft rotating in the opposite direction to that of the input shaft. The unit has been especially designed for low
weight in heavy duty fast ferry applications. It is also suitable for other weight sensitive craft, for example high-speed motor
yachts. ZF points out that it is compatible with all types of engines and waterjet propulsion.
The Naval Architect March 2008 59
NA Mar 08 -
p59.indd 59 10/03/2008 14:19:39
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