Investigation on Maneuverability of a Twin-Screw Ship Driven by One Screw

It is possible for a twin-screw ship that one screw failure occurs during navigation, and the maneuverability in this case should be noticed by ship designers and operators. It is of great significance to evaluate the related risk. Firstly, a mathematical model for the twin-screw ship maneuvering motion with one failed screw is developed based on the maneuvering model group (MMG) equations, and verified by the model test results. Secondly, the maneuvering motions of a twin-screw liquefied natural gas (LNG) ship with one free rotating failure screw or with one locked failure screw are simulated and compared by using the mathematical model. It is shown that the numerical modeling results are in agreement with the model test results. Compared with those of normal navigation, the port turning ability of the ship with one failed port screw is better, but the starboard turning ability and yaw checking ability become worse. The maneuverability of the ship with locked failure screw is better than that with free failure screw, although the ship speed drops obviously. © 2017, Shanghai Jiaotong University and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany.