Final Report Summary - SWIRL-JET STUDY (Research to evaluate the technological application of swirling jets in the fields of seabed excavation, vessel propulsion and underwater cleaning)
From its inception, the project was committed to developing and / or improving three commercial applications, which are defined as: seabed excavation, underwater cleaning and vessel propulsion. Each application was the responsibility of the three lead SMEs: SILT, KORT and HTS, respectively. The project was conceived, effectively, as a 3-in-1 project. Each application, while different in its own way, was linked to the others by a common theme, which is that they all exploit or depend in some way on the behaviour of swirling jets. The project started with the three applications at different stages of commercial advancement.
The SILT seabed excavation application, which provided the original motivation for the project, comprised of an existing, but still experimental, ducted-propeller jetting system. This had previously been shown to work extremely effectively under certain bed conditions, but its performance was not sufficiently reliable for the system to be considered commercially viable. SILT thus saw the research as providing a better understanding about the behaviour of the jet under impinging conditions, ultimately with the objective of controlling this behaviour by some modification to the duct.
KORT's vessel propulsion application comprised an existing, well-established, ducted-propulsor system that had been used for over 50 years for propelling a variety of surface craft. The principles of its operation were well understood, but KORT was interested in undertaking further research to see if improvements in propulsion performance could be achieved.
HTS has an existing business, developing and marketing high-pressure jetting equipment, mainly for the shipping industry. It was interested in taking the concept of a swirling jet, as used for seabed excavation, and applying it on a smaller scale to underwater cleaning. Its application is thus wholly new, in the sense that there was no existing item of equipment.
All three application module of the project are considered to have been brought to a successful and beneficial conclusion. They have all met, or are expected to meet or surpass, the performance targets set at the beginning of the project. For the three lead SMEs: KORT, SILT and HTS, this success can also be measured by the fact that, not only have they advanced their scientific understanding of the subject, through interaction with the RTD performers, but they have tangible proof of the potential commercial application (through successful field trials) in the three respective fields. In addition, commercial knowledge stemming from the project has been protected by two patent applications that cover key findings from the seabed excavation and underwater cleaning modules. Copies of these patent specifications have been uploaded to the project website. As was anticipated at the start of the project, it has not been possible to secure patent protection on the knowledge generated by the vessel propulsion application. However, this knowledge remains proprietary to KORT and UNEW and can thus be used in the future to further their individual commercial / scientific ambitions.
The SILT seabed excavation application, which provided the original motivation for the project, comprised of an existing, but still experimental, ducted-propeller jetting system. This had previously been shown to work extremely effectively under certain bed conditions, but its performance was not sufficiently reliable for the system to be considered commercially viable. SILT thus saw the research as providing a better understanding about the behaviour of the jet under impinging conditions, ultimately with the objective of controlling this behaviour by some modification to the duct.
KORT's vessel propulsion application comprised an existing, well-established, ducted-propulsor system that had been used for over 50 years for propelling a variety of surface craft. The principles of its operation were well understood, but KORT was interested in undertaking further research to see if improvements in propulsion performance could be achieved.
HTS has an existing business, developing and marketing high-pressure jetting equipment, mainly for the shipping industry. It was interested in taking the concept of a swirling jet, as used for seabed excavation, and applying it on a smaller scale to underwater cleaning. Its application is thus wholly new, in the sense that there was no existing item of equipment.
All three application module of the project are considered to have been brought to a successful and beneficial conclusion. They have all met, or are expected to meet or surpass, the performance targets set at the beginning of the project. For the three lead SMEs: KORT, SILT and HTS, this success can also be measured by the fact that, not only have they advanced their scientific understanding of the subject, through interaction with the RTD performers, but they have tangible proof of the potential commercial application (through successful field trials) in the three respective fields. In addition, commercial knowledge stemming from the project has been protected by two patent applications that cover key findings from the seabed excavation and underwater cleaning modules. Copies of these patent specifications have been uploaded to the project website. As was anticipated at the start of the project, it has not been possible to secure patent protection on the knowledge generated by the vessel propulsion application. However, this knowledge remains proprietary to KORT and UNEW and can thus be used in the future to further their individual commercial / scientific ambitions.