Coating for long term flow control around marine objects
AssigneeInnovalue B.V.
InventorHendrik Jacobus Arie Breur
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Abstract
The invention pertains to the use of an easy-to-clean soft fiber-coated material on the underwater surface of structures to mimic mammal pelage and as such reducing residual drag, wherein said material comprises or consists of fibers having an average fiber length between 0.3 and 4 mm, and an average fiber thickness between 5 and 80 μm. The underwater surface of structure is preferably the hull of a movable or moving vessel, or the underwater part of a static structure such as offshore wind monopiles and off-shore rigs. In some embodiments, the invention pertains to the reduction of fuel consumption of a nautical vessel passing through water.
Claims19
A method for reducing residual drag of a structure immersed in water, wherein at least part of the underwater surface of said structure is provided with a soft fiber-coated material, wherein said material comprises or consists of fibers having an average fiber length between 0.5 and 2.5 mm and an average fiber thickness between 5 and less than 50 μm, and wherein said fibers are attached perpendicularly to the underwater surface of the structure and configured to remain substantially perpendicular when there is relative motion between the water and the underwater surface of the structure, and wherein the angle of attack of water flow is 0 degrees and wherein water moves around said structure, wherein said fibers reduce the residual drag of the structure.
A fiber-coated material on the underwater surface of a movable or moving nautical structure, wherein said material comprises or consists of fibers having an average fiber length between 0.5 and 2.5 mm and an average fiber thickness between 5 and less than 50 μm, and wherein said fibers are attached perpendicularly to the underwater surface of the structure and configured to remain substantially perpendicular when there is relative motion between the water and the underwater surface of the structure, and wherein the angle of attack of the water flow is 0 degrees, and wherein the fibers reduce residual drag on the nautical structure when the structure is moving.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.