HYDRODYNAMIC PERFORMANCE OF SHIP HULL FORMS DESIGNED FOR THE NSR CARGO SHIP

In the R & D project on the design of the optimum hull form for transiting along the Northern Sea Route (NSR), three bow and two stern forms were designed and tested. Not only ship performance in ice but also in ice-free waters should be evaluated in order to design the optimum hull form, because the vast portion of the NSR from Japan to Europe is ice-free. In particular, evaluation of hydrodynamic performance at sea is indispensable because the NSR cargo ship, which inevitably has a shallow draft, must go through heavy seas such as the Bering Sea in winter and encounter very high loads induced by waves. This paper describes the results systematic model tests conducted in ice-free waters: resistance tests in calm water,and self propulsion tests both in calm water and in regular head waves. Based on the results of these experiments and the associated simulation results, the hydrodynamic aspects of the optimum hull form design of NSR cargo ships are discussed.