Investigating the thermal profile of a marine vessel engine room through simulation with field measurements

• Published in: Applied thermal engineering Vol. 73; no. 1; pp. 1360 - 1370
• Main Authors: Newton, Will, Lewis, Mel, Carswell, David, Lavery, Nicholas P., Evans, Benjamin, Bould, David, Sienz, Johann
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 05.12.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Applied sciences; CFD; Computational fluid dynamics; Energy; Energy. Thermal use of fuels; Engine room; Engine rooms; Engines and turbines; Equipments for energy generation and conversion: thermal, electrical, mechanical energy, etc; Exact sciences and technology; Forced ventilation; Generators; Heat transfer; Marine; Mathematical models; Theoretical studies. Data and constants. Metering; Thermal modelling; Ventilation; Vessels; CFD; Forced ventilation; Thermal modelling; Engine room; Computational fluid dynamics; Simulation; Ventilation; Modeling; Engine
• ISSN: 1359-4311
• DOI: 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2014.09.019

This paper assesses the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to model the ventilation of a working marine vessel, its performance in extreme climates, and potential improvements to the ventilation system which could lead to increased efficiencies of the engine and generator set. Comparisons between data gathered on the marine vessel and the computational model show good agreement, with an average discrepancy in temperature of 0.4%. The model showed that the current ventilation system was inadequate for the use of the marine vessel in Arctic waters. In contrast, the model showed the vessel was suited for tropical waters, and that the boat complied with British Standards for ventilation. Directing the flow within the engine room was found to improve the overall cooling of the room, and reduce the range of temperatures to improve thermal comfort. Directing the flow has shown reduced intake temperatures of the engine and generator set, improving efficiencies by 0.5% and 0.57% respectively. This paper demonstrates that the use of CFD to model marine vessel engine rooms can be used in retrospective design of ventilation systems, furthermore, it can be a tool utilised in the design stages for optimised engine rooms ventilation systems. •CFD model of the ventilation of a marine vessel engine room.•Model and experimental results in excellent agreement under baseline conditions.•Simulations used to analyse the thermal profile under varying climatic conditions.•New layout of ventilation system has shown an improved thermal profile.•Improved engine efficiency due to new layout of ventilation system.