Kappel propellers for Danaos container vessels

It will also provide Kappel propeller boss caps with fins and engine-power limitation for the 8,500 TEU container vessels.

Dimitrios Vastarouchas, technical director and deputy chief operating officer of Danaos, said: “At Danaos we look forward to have the vessels upgraded.”

“Our R&D Department has conducted very thorough investigations before concluding what the right upgrade solutions for these vessels are and we are confident that the vessels will be highly competitive in the market once upgraded.”

Both container vessels are powered by MAN B&W 12K98MC-C main engines rated at 68,520 kW at 104 RPM.

With the propulsion upgrade the main engines will be limited to 44,000 kW at 89.7 RPM however; top speeds of more than 23 knots will still be available.

Alongside the upgrade, the vessels will also enter dock to rebuild their bulbous bows, this is expected to reduce fuel consumption at the new optimisation speed of 18 knots by a total of more than 15% compared to 2014.

The new Kappel propellers have swept propeller blade tips to reduce the tip vortex and consequentially the drag of the blades trough the water.

They have lower pressure pulses induced to the hull allowing a smaller clearance between the hull and propeller blade tips. This means the propellers diameter can be enlarged to increase the efficiency of the Kappel propeller even further.

With a diameter of approximately 9m the five-bladed propellers are said to be the largest fixed pitch Kappel propellers delivered to date.

They will be manufactured by MAN Diesel & Turbo licensee, Zhenjiang Tongzhou Propeller Co. Ltd in China along with the new propeller boss caps with fins.

The new Kappel propellers and propeller boss caps with fins contribute with an efficiency gain of 6% which can be directly transferred to reductions in fuel oil consumption and emission.

Kjartan Ross, business development manager of MAN Diesel & Turbo, said: “I started my carrier in the maritime industry in 2004 – same year as these vessels were delivered.”

He concluded: “Taking the fairly high top speed of more than 23 knots still available after the upgrade into consideration I am continuously impressed by how much technology has leaped forward in the maritime industry just during these last 12 years.”

The propellers will be delivered directly to the shipyard where installation of the new propellers and bulbous bows has scheduled for July and September 2016.