Project description
A "pit-stop technician" for docked ships
The build-up of microorganisms, plants, algae and animals on submerged marine structures can alter the hydrodynamics of the ship, increasing drag, fuel consumption and emissions. There is currently no efficient way to evaluate the hull when the ship is in the water, and taking it out results in down-time that is costly for ship operators. Furthermore, if a ship is not taken out regularly for inspection, the likelihood of biofouling having progressed increases, resulting in the need for harsher cleaning methods that can damage the hull painting or coating. The EU-funded SleekShip project is developing a semi-autonomous underwater vehicle that will both detect slime at early stages using a multispectral camera and clean it softly with cavitation jetting. The operation can be done while the ship is docked at port for other operations or moored at sea. Commercialisation will enhance the competitiveness of ship owners while reducing fuel consumption and emissions.
Objective
Marine biofouling has a tremendous economic and environmental impact; it can lead to >€1m in lost revenue per ship per year in fuel overconsumption alone. The International Maritime Organization estimates that gas emissions may increase between 38% and 72% by 2020, unless corrective measures are taken.
The only way to mitigate biofouling is to detect it at an early stage (Level of Fouling – LoF 1), while it can still be cleaned with soft methods that do not damage hull paint or coating. With current approaches this is impossible, particularly within port waters as they are heavily turbid and inhibit visibility. Inspections outside port waters induce charter-off time that costs >€20k per day and are thus avoided by ship operators.
SleekShip comprises a Semi-Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (SAUV) carrying a hyperspectral camera that captures light wavelength bands where light backscattering is less and the slime is easier to distinguish despite contamination. The inspection can take place in port waters while the ship is docked for other operations thus no additional charter-off time is incurred. An integrated cavitation-based cleaning tool allows for 100% paint-safe cleaning.
By detecting biofouling early, ship owners will be able to achieve >€1.3m savings per vessel annually by reducing fuel overconsumption and paint/coating damage caused by hard-brush cleaning.
Our consortium comprises SubseaTech, a dynamic manufacturer of underwater robots, QCELL, a high-tech SME specialising in hyperspectral imaging, M.Danchor a leading cleaning and inspection services company, TWI, the global leader in image-based underwater inspection technologies and Danaos, a NYSE-listed containership owner.
Through SleekShip we aim to achieve sales of €41m, generating €17.9m profits and >110 jobs while helping the shipping industry save €3.4bn per year and reduce CO2 emissions by 115m tonnes over the 5 years after market launch. The Net Present Value ROI is 4:1 on EC funds with a grant.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering sensors optical sensors
- engineering and technology materials engineering coating and films
- engineering and technology environmental engineering energy and fuels
- engineering and technology mechanical engineering vehicle engineering naval engineering
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EC - Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.3. - PRIORITY 'Societal challenges
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H2020-EU.2.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
IA - Innovation action
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-EIC-FTI-2018-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
13016 Marseille
France
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.