Ship stability

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It has been suggested that Limit of Positive Stability be merged into th
is article. (Discuss) Proposed since June 2014.
Ship stability is an area of naval architecture and ship design that deals with
how a ship behaves at sea, both in still water and in waves, whether intact or d
amaged. Stability calculations focus on the center of gravity, center of buoyanc
y, and metacenter of vessels and on how these interact.
Contents
1 History
2 Add-on stability systems
2.1 Passive systems
2.1.1 Bilge keel
2.1.2 Outriggers
2.1.3 Antiroll tanks
2.1.4 Paravanes
2.2 Active systems
2.2.1 Stabilizer fins
2.2.2 Gyroscopic internal stabilizers
3 Calculated stability conditions
3.1 Intact stability
3.2 Damage stability (Stability in the damaged condition)
4 Required stability
5 See also
6 References
History
A model yacht being tested in the towing tank of Newcastle University
Ship stability, as it pertains to naval architecture, has been taken into accoun
t for hundreds of years. Historically, ship stability calculations for ships rel
ied on rule of thumb calculations, often tied to a specific system of measuremen
t. Some of these very old equations continue to be used in naval architecture bo
oks today. However, the advent of calculus-based methods of determining stabilit
y, particularly Pierre Bouguer's introduction of the concept of the metacenter i
n the 1740'S ship model basin allows much more complex analysis.
Master shipbuilders of the past used a system of adaptive and variant design. Sh
ips were often copied from one generation to the next with only minor changes be
ing made; by replicating a stable design serious problems were not often encount
ered. Ships today still use the process of adaptation and variation that has bee
n used for hundreds of years; however computational fluid dynamics, ship model t
esting and a better overall understanding of fluid and ship motions has allowed
much more analytical design.
Transverse and longitudinal waterproof bulkheads were introduced in ironclad des
igns between 1860 and the 1880s, anti-collision bulkheads having been made compu
lsory in British steam merchant ships prior to 1860.[1] Before this a hull breac
h in any part of a vessel could flood the entire length of the ship. Transverse
bulkheads, while expensive, increase the likelihood of ship survival in the even
t of damage to the hull, by limiting flooding to breached compartments separated
by bulkheads from undamaged ones. Longitudinal bulkheads have a similar purpose
, but damaged stability effects must be taken into account to eliminate excessiv
e heeling. Today, most ships have means to equalize the water in sections port a
nd starboard (cross flooding), which helps to limit the stresses experienced by
the structure and also to alter the heel and/or trim of the ship.
Add-on stability systems

These systems are designed to reduce the effects of waves or wind gusts. They do
not increase the stability of the vessel in a calm sea. The International Marit
ime Organization International Convention on Load Lines does not mention active
stability systems as a method of ensuring stability. The hull must be stable wit
hout active systems.
Passive systems
Bilge keel
A bilge keel
A bilge keel is a long fin of metal, often in a "V" shape, welded along the leng
th of the ship at the turn of the bilge. Bilge keels are employed in pairs (one
for each side of the ship). A ship may have more than one bilge keel per side, b
ut this is rare. Bilge keels increase the hydrodynamic resistance when a vessel
rolls, thus limiting the amount of roll a vessel has to endure.
Outriggers
Outriggers may be employed on certain vessels to reduce rolling. Rolling is redu
ced either by the force required to submerge buoyant floats or by hydrodynamic f
oils. In some cases these outriggers may be of sufficient size to classify the v
essel as a trimaran; however on other vessels they may simply be referred to as
stabilizers.
Antiroll tanks
Antiroll tanks are tanks within the vessel fitted with baffles intended to slow
the rate of water transfer from the port side of the tank to the starboard side.
The tank is designed such that a larger amount of water is trapped on the highe
r side of the vessel. This is intended to have an effect completely opposite to
that of the free surface effect.
Paravanes
Paravanes may be employed by slow-moving vessels (such as fishing vessels) to re
duce roll.
Active systems
Many vessels are fitted with active stability systems. Active stability systems
are defined by the need to input energy to the system in the form of a pump, hyd
raulic piston, or electric actuator. These systems include stabilizer fins attac
hed to the side of the vessel or tanks in which fluid is pumped around to counte
ract the motion of the vessel.
Stabilizer fins
Main article: stabilizer (ship)
Active fin stabilizers are normally used to reduce the roll that a vessel experi
ences while underway or, more recently, while at rest. The fins extend beyond th
e hull of the vessel below the waterline and alter their angle of attack dependi
ng upon heel angle and rate-of-roll of the vessel. They operate similar to airpl
ane ailerons. Cruise ships and yachts frequently use this type of stabilizer sys
tem.
When fins are not retractable, they constitute fixed appendages to the hull, pos
sibly extending the beam or draft envelope, requiring attention for additional h
ull clearances.
While the typical "active fin" stabilizer will effectively counteract roll for s
hips underway, some modern active fin systems have been shown capable of reducin
g roll motion when vessels are not underway. Referred to as zero-speed or Stabil
ization at Rest, these systems work by moving fins of special design, with the r
equisite acceleration and impulse timing to create effective roll cancellation e
nergy.

Gyroscopic internal stabilizers

Gyroscopes were first used to control a ship's roll in the late 1920s and early
1930s for warships and then passenger liners. The most ambitious use of large gy
ros to control a ship's roll was on an Italian passenger liner, the SS Conte di
Savoia, in which three large Sperry gyros were mounted in the forward part of th
e ship. While it proved successful in drastically reducing roll in the westbound
trips, the system had to be disconnected on the eastbound leg for safety reason
s. This was because with a following sea (and the deep slow rolls this generated
) the vessel tended to 'hang' with the system turned on, and the inertia it gene
rated made it harder for the vessel to right herself from heavy rolls. [2]
Gyro stabilizers consist of a spinning flywheel and gyroscopic precession that i
mposes boat-righting torque on the hull structure. The angular momentum of the g
yro s flywheel is a measure of the extent to which the flywheel will continue to r
otate about its axis unless acted upon by an external torque. The higher the ang
ular momentum, the greater the resisting force of the gyro to external torque (i
n this case more ability to cancel boat roll).
A gyroscope has three axes: a spin axis, an input axis, and an output axis. The
spin axis is the axis about which the flywheel is spinning and is vertical for a
boat gyro. The input axis is the axis about which input torques are applied. Fo
r a boat, the principal input axis is the longitudinal axis of the boat since th
at is the axis around which the boat rolls. The principal output axis is the tra
nsverse (athwartship) axis about which the gyro rotates or precesses in reaction
to an input.
When the boat rolls, the rotation acts as an input to the gyro, causing the gyro
to generate rotation around its output axis such that the spin axis rotates to
align itself with the input axis. This output rotation is called precession and,
in the boat case, the gyro will rotate fore and aft about the output or gimbal
axis.
Angular momentum is the measure of effectiveness for a gyro stabilizer, analogou
s to horsepower ratings on a diesel engine or kilowatts on a generator. In speci
fications for gyro stabilizers, the total angular momentum (moment of inertia mu
ltiplied by spin speed) is the key quantity. In modern designs, the output axis
torque can be used to control the angle of the stabilizer fins (see above) to co
unteract the roll of the boat so that only a small gyroscope is needed. The idea
for gyro controlling a ship's fin stabilizers was first proposed in 1932 by a G
eneral Electric scientist, Dr Alexanderson. He proposed a gyro to control the cu
rrent to the electric motors on the stabilizer fins, with the actuating instruct
ions being generated by thyratron vacuum tubes.[3]
Calculated stability conditions
When a hull is designed, stability calculations are performed for the intact and
damaged states of the vessel. Ships are usually designed to slightly exceed the
stability requirements (below), as they are usually tested for this by a classi
fication society.
Intact stability
Illustration of the stability of bottom-heavy (left) and top-heavy (right) ships
with respect to the positions of their centres of buoyancy (CB) and gravity (CG
)
Intact stability calculations are relatively straightforward and involve taking
all the centers of mass of objects on the vessel which are then computed/calcula
ted to identify the center of gravity of the vessel, and the center of buoyancy
of the hull. Cargo arrangements and loadings, crane operations, and the design s
ea states are usually taken into account. The photo at right illustrates a commo
n misconception about vessels. In fact, in the vast majority of vessels, the cen

ter of gravity is well above the center of buoyancy. The ship is stable because
as it begins to heel, one side of the hull begins to rise from the water and the
other side begins to submerge. This causes the center of buoyancy to shift towa
rd the side that is lower in the water. The job of the naval architect is to mak
e sure that the center of buoyancy shifts outboard of the center of gravity as t
he ship heels. A line drawn from the center of buoyancy in a slightly heeled con
dition vertically will intersect the centerline at a point called the metacenter
. As long as the metacenter is further above the keel than the center of gravity
, the ship is stable in an upright condition.
Damage stability (Stability in the damaged condition)
Damage stability calculations are much more complicated than intact stability. S
oftware utilizing numerical methods are typically employed because the areas and
volumes can quickly become tedious and long to compute using other methods.
The loss of stability from flooding may be due in part to the free surface effec
t. Water accumulating in the hull usually drains to the bilges, lowering the cen
tre of gravity and actually decreasing (It should read as increasing, since wate
r will add as a bottom weight there by increasing GM) the metacentric height. Th
is assumes the ship remains stationary and upright. However, once the ship is in
clined to any degree (a wave strikes it for example), the fluid in the bilge mov
es to the low side. This results in a list.
Stability is
th seawater.
owering into
enterline of

also lost in flooding when, for example, an empty tank is filled wi

The lost buoyancy of the tank results in that section of the ship l
the water slightly. This creates a list unless the tank is on the c
the vessel.

In stability calculations, when a tank is filled, its contents are assumed to be

lost and replaced by seawater. If these contents are lighter than seawater, (li
ght oil for example) then buoyancy is lost and the section lowers slightly in th
e water accordingly.
For merchant vessels, and increasingly for passenger vessels, the damage stabili
ty calculations are of a probabilistic nature. That is, instead of assessing the
ship for one compartment failure, a situation where two or even up to three com
partments are flooded will be assessed as well. This is a concept in which the c
hance that a compartment is damaged is combined with the consequences for the sh
ip, resulting in a damage stability index number that has to comply with certain
regulations.
Required stability
In order to be acceptable to classification societies such as the Bureau Veritas
, American Bureau of Shipping, Lloyd's Register of Ships and Det Norske Veritas,
the blueprints of the ship must be provided for independent review by the class
ification society. Calculations must also be provided which follow a structure o
utlined in the regulations for the country in which the ship intends to be flagg
ed.
Within this framework different countries establish requirements that must be me
t. For U.S.-flagged vessels, blueprints and stability calculations are checked a
gainst the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations and International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea conventions. Ships are required to be stable in the condi
tions to which they are designed for, in both undamaged and damaged states. The
extent of damage required to design for is included in the regulations. The assu
med hole is calculated as fractions of the length and breadth of the vessel, and
is to be placed in the area of the ship where it would cause the most damage to
vessel stability.
In addition, United States Coast Guard rules apply to vessels operating in U.S.

ports and in U.S. waters. Generally these Coast Guard rules concern a minimum me
tacentric height or a minimum righting moment. Because different countries may h
ave different requirements for the minimum metacentric height, most ships are no
w fitted with stability computers that calculate this distance on the fly based
on the cargo or crew loading. There are many commercially available computer pro
grams used for this task.
See also
Free surface effect
Stabilization at zero speed
Mary Rose
Kronan (ship)
SS Eastland
Niobe (schooner)
Pamir (ship)
Inclining test
References
Title 46 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations
ABS Rules for Building and Classing Steel Vessels 2007
Overview of a few common Roll Attenuation Strategies
From Warrior to Dreadnought by D.K. Brown, Chatham Publishing (June 1997)
"Italian Liner To Defy The Waves" Popular Mechanics, April 1931
"Fins Purposed For Big Liners To Prevent Rolling" Popular Mechanics, August
1932
Categories:
Shipbuilding