K-Sim Engine used to analyze and
compare fuel economy in hybrid
solutions
Photo is used as an illustration only
© Andrey Armyagov | Dreamstime.com
BY: ARILD HERMANSEN, PRODUCT ADVISOR, KONGSBERG DIGITAL AND ANNE VOITH, MARKETING MANGER, KONGSBERG DIGITAL
AIM FOR ZERO EMISSION
The Norwegian Parliament has adopted
a resolution to reduce emissions from
cruise ships and ferries in the Norwegian
fjords within 2026. The regulation aims
to make the fjords the world’s first zero-
emissions zone at sea. Because of this,
several ship-owners, especially those
with coastal sailing routes, will have to
convert their fleet to a more environ-mentally-
friendly power supply plant.
FUEL/ENERGY ECONOMY PROJECT
In order to select the safest, most cost-
effective and environmentally-friendly
propulsion plant solution for a shipown-er,
Kongsberg Maritime together with
Kongsberg Digital, has tested and ana-lyzed
various hybrid solutions. Central
to this project was Kongsberg Digital’s
K-Sim Engine simulator solution.
“The simulation gave us the possibility
to optimize the vessel route by using
the minimum of fuel/energy. It enables
us to compare power configurations and
extract learnings from previous opera-tions
through simulations and machine
learning. This is taking the advantage of
a digital twin at an early stage in order to
provide the best solutions for our cus-tomers,”
said Terje Valset, Vice President
Energy & Handling, Kongsberg Maritime.
ANALYSIS OF HYBRID SOLUTIONS
A customized simulation solution was
developed and used to analyze fuel
consumption and compare the power
plant configurations; AC vs DC for the
specific vessel route. The intention of
the study was to determine the capac-ity
of the battery bank and the most ap-propriate
electrical system for the route
the specific ship will traffic.
To enable accurate calculation of fuel
consumption during various load condi-tions,
such as in port, manoeuvring, and
full cruising speed, a calculator is built
into the simulator. The calculator is ca-pable
of reading real recorded data from
actual voyages, which gives an indica-tion
of which electrical system and bat-tery
capacity appropriate for the spe-cific
route the ship shall operate.
The specially developed K-Sim Engine
hybrid model includes the following:
• 4 dual fuel diesel generators
• 2 battery banks
• 2 Azipods
• 2 bow thrusters
• Transformers and converters
• 400V AC switchboards
• 400V AC consumers
Selection of power supply:
• 690V AC plant
• 1002V DC plant
“The K-Sim Engine technology is ideal for
process and engineering studies. In this
project, we used it for fuel consumption
comparision and analysis, which is insight
the ship owners are often interested in,”
commented Tone-Merete Hansen, Senior
Vice President, Kongsberg Digital.
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THE MARITIME SIMULATION NEWSLETTER | DECEMBER 2018 PAGE 3
/Dreamstime.com
