Effect of Barnacle Fouling on Ship Resistance and Powering

What is it about?

A series of towing test was carried out using flat plates covered with artificial barnacles. The roughness effects of the fouling conditions on the ship resistances were predicted by using 3D printed artificial barnacles.Added resistance diagrams were then plotted using these predictions, and powering penalties for these ships were calculated using the diagrams generated.

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Why is it important?

This study provides an experimental method on the effect of biofouling on ship resistance by using recently developed the 3D technology.Having shown the applicability of the artificial fouling organisms and the methods used in this study, a future experimental study might be to test different sizes of barnacles and other types of fouling.