New full-electric propulsion system, completely submerged in water, for zero-emissions navigation

Project Information

Full Electric Boats

Grant agreement ID: 728126

DOI

10.3030/728126

Project closed

EC signature date 13 May 2016

Start date 1 June 2016

End date 30 September 2016

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Smart, Green And Integrated Transport

Total cost

€ 71 429,00

EU contribution

€ 50 000,00

Coordinated by

COMPAGNIA ITALIANA MAGNETI ACCESSORI - CIMA 1915 SRL
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Full Electric Boats (New full-electric propulsion system, completely submerged in water, for zero-emissions navigation)

Reporting period: 2016-06-01 to 2016-09-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

With 66,000 Km of coastlines, Europe is the world's number one destination for nautical tourism. The inevitable pressure that nautical tourism places on the European ecosystem in seas and inland waters has led to the introduction of regulations for protecting ecosystems, including laws on the propulsion and power generation systems in boats.

The goal of our project is to launch on the boating market a zero-emissions propulsion system that can be installed on boats up to 10-12 meters long. This goal will be reached by developing an electric propulsion system that is completely submerged in water. With its wide range of power (10-25-50 Kw) and high endurance (over 2 hours), it will be able to be installed on both pleasure craft and passenger boats.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The Pilot Tests gave us a confirmation that our electric propulsion system, submerged in water, has a stable behaviour, does not show any critical overheating even in the toughest conditions and the inverter developed for the purpose works according to the technical specifications.

The freedom to operate analysis has confirmed that there is not any existing patent that could interfere with the implementation of the new propulsion system.

Some important shipyard companies were contacted to let them play the role of early adopters, explaining to them the project vision and the advantages the new propulsion system can bring.

They have been identified all potential risks which can affect the advancement of the project, their consequences and the probability they could happen. It has been defined a list of risk-mitigation measures.

The business planning has allowed us to define with precision all the economic elements involved in our project and the related investment needs. The projections developed in the business plan are positive, therefore they encourage us to continue the project.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

For professional boats and crafts used for passenger transport, assuming an average motorisation of 50 Kw, the reductions in emissions over a year would be 44 tonnes of CO2, 700 kg of NOx, 800 Kg of SOx and 18 Kg of particulate. The money saved in this case by professionals in the sector is significant and may reach 7,000 Euros/year.
Other advantages include lower operating costs, completely silent operation and the ability to travel in protected areas in seas, lakes and rivers where boats with internal combustion engines are prohibited.

engine of smart water-citizenship