Fullscreen HTML5Med Res (??MB)HTML4

MV Oriana being fitted out at the Meyer shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. The vessel’s hybrid drive system allows five different operating modes, combining diesel engines and electric motors. The drive system can deliver a total of 48,150kW for the ship’s propulsion. ‘MV Oriana’: luxury and technology afloat Most people who see the new P&O passenger ship “Oriana” will be impressed by its luxurious appointments but its electrical equipment is just as impressive. It uses hybrid-electric propulsion and is powered by up to six diesel engines. With a gross registered tonnage of 69,153 and a length of 260 metres, the luxury liner “MV Oriana” is among the largest passenger vessels ever to have been built in a German shipyard. The prestigious order was awarded to Jos. L. Meyer GmbH & Co, Papenburg, by the Peninsular & 26  Silicon Chip Oriental Steamship Co (P&O Cruis­es) of Southampton, UK. ABB Industrietechnik’s Marine Division in Hamburg supplied the main electrical equipment for the vessel, which is also the fastest cruise liner to have been built in the last 25 years. The vessel, which was built at the Meyer shipyard in Germa­ny, in the world’s largest (370m long) covered dry dock, had its keel laid in midMarch, 1993 and was ready to leave the dock on July 30th, 1994. The Oriana left Southampton on its maiden voyage in April 1995, on a cruise that took it to the Canary Islands, Morocco, Gibraltar and Portugal. Oriana has a crew of 760 and will normally carry 1,760 passengers (maximum capacity 1,975). It has an overall length of 260 metres, a beam of 32.2 metres and a maximum draught of 7.9m. At 69,153 tonnes gross, it even surpasses Cunard’s Queen Eliza­beth 2 (69,053 tonnes). This puts the Oriana among the largest passenger vessels operating in One of the two 5.25MW shaft generators which can also run as motors for ship propulsion. Their output is rated at 6.6kV 60Hz. the world today. Despite its impressive size, it is able to pass through the Panama Canal. Oriana has a top speed of more than 26 knots (approximately 48km/h), making it the fastest cruise vessel to have been built in the last 25 years. For passenger comfort, cruise ships normal­ly travel at speeds under rather than over 20 knots, so the Oriana will rarely make use of this top speed. Four 5.25MW diesel-generator sets work with the two shaft gen­erators to produce the ship’s electricity supply. The total installed generator rating is 31.5MW. The machines are brushless, self-excited and self-regulating. The ship has 13 decks, 11 of them passenger decks. The total number of cabins is 914, more than half (594) of which offer a view (118 have a balcony). There are eight suites and 16 luxury cabins. Eight of the cabins are specially equipped for handicapped people. Fire protection Fire is one of the greatest hazards to ships at sea. Oriana has been designed for maximum safety in the event of emergencies. For example, the ship has seven fire zones and is divided into 16 watertight sections for full compliance with the latest fire protection and fire-fighting regulations. In addition, watertight fire-doors are built into the bulkhead deck. A total of 3,700 fire detectors are installed throughout the ship. Individually addressable, they allow any Shaft generator motor 1 Diesel generator 1 Diesel generator 2 Diesel generator 3 Diesel generator 4 Shaft generator motor 2 G/M G G G G G/M M M Bow thruster 2 Stern thruster M M M Bow Bow thruster 1 thruster 3 Engine room substation P-feed A C compressor 1 Deck substation P-feed Emergency switchboard P-feed Spare M Earth Earth M transf. P transf. S AC AC comcompressor 3 pressor 2 Deck substation S-feed Engine room substation S-feed Emergency switchboard S-feed This is a single-line diagram of the ship’s power supply, showing the diesel-generator sets and the drives for the bow and stern thrusters. June 1996  27 The MV Oriana is P&O Cruises’ newest luxury liner. The ship, which has fin stabilisers and is fully air-conditioned, carries 1760 passengers and a crew of 760. The top speed of the 260 metres long and 32.2 metres wide vessel is 26 knots. fire to be pinpointed from the bridge, engine control room or fire protec­tion centre. Monitors provide the crew with a good overview of the different sections of the ship and enable relevant informa­tion to be accessed quickly. If a fire alarm is not acknowledged within a preset time, a signal is given to begin preprogrammed fire-fighting measures. Two pontoons built into each side of the ship’s hull can be swung out for easy boarding of the tenders. Four automatic gang­ways are provided for disembarking on land. as claimed by the shipyard. Fitted as standard to most passenger ships, fin stabilisers are hydraulically operated and have a similar effect to the ailerons in a plane’s wing, literally flying the ship’s hull as it moves through the water. The Oriana is fitted with two four-bladed controllable pitch propellers 5.8m in diameter, three bow thrusters and one stern thruster (each rated at 1,500kW) as well as two spade rudders in the thrust stream. These can be operated by the helms­man, using a central joystick, either together or individually. Fin stabilisers Engine room Integrated fin stabilisers effectively reduce the ship’s rolling motion, by up to 90 percent at a speed of 19 knots, The Oriana’s main propulsion system consists of two 11,925kW and two 7,950kW four-stroke diesel 28  Silicon Chip engines (MAN B&W L58/64), the former with nine and the latter with six cylinders. The engines are grouped in pairs in a so-called “father and son” arrangement, to act via couplings on a gearbox which reduces the drive speed from 428 RPM to 127.6 RPM for the controllable pitch propellers. In addition, each gearbox is equipped with an ABB shaft generator which can produce up to 5.25MW of electrical energy. The two synchronous generators are each rated at 6.6kV and 60Hz, for a rotational speed of 1,200 RPM. The shaft generators can also be used as motors, being coupled via the gearing to the drive shaft. In this case, the electrical power is taken from the auxiliary generators. Thus, five different modes of propulsion are possible: 1 The Terrace, with whirlpool 2 Children’s play area and paddling pool, next to it Peter Pan’s playroom 3 Pacific Lounge, with stage and dance floor 4 The Oriental Restaurant 5 The Terrace Bar 6 The Conservatory, restaurant with outdoor seating • Main diesel engines (“fathers”): 2 x 11,925kW. • Main diesel engines (“sons”): 2 x 7,950kW. • Shaft generators as motors: 2 x 4,200kW. • All main diesel engines: 39,750kW. • Main diesels plus shaft generators: 48,150kW. The smaller main diesel engines, the “sons”, can also be used independently of the propeller system to drive just the shaft generators. Apart from the two shaft generators, there also are four MAN B&W 5.25MW auxiliary diesel-generator sets that provide the ship’s 6.6kV 60Hz electricity supply. These bring the total available generator capacity up to 31.5MW. A standby generating 7 Decibels and Outer Space, teenager’s room with video games 15 Pontoons for easy boarding of tenders 16 Anderson’s club bar 17 Monte Carlo Club, casino 18 Curzon Room, saloon with evening entertainment 19 Royal Court and Knightsbridge – shopping on two levels 20 Tiffany Court and Bar, top level of an atrium rising over four decks, with waterfall 21 The Riviera Pool, with two whirlpools 8 The Lord’s Tavern 22 The Riviera Bar 9 Chaplin Cinema 23 Oasis, fitness centre with aerobics area, gymnastics room, whirlpools, sauna, massage room, beauty salon, hairdressers and bar 10 The Crystal Pool 11 Crichton’s, for card games, next to it the Thackeray Library 12 Harlequin’s Night Club 13 The Peninsular Restaurant 14 Deck games area (tennis, shuffleboard, golf, quoits and clay-pigeon shooting) 24 The Crow’s Nest, saloon and bar with panoramic view 25 Iberia Room, VIP area next to Crow’s Nest 26 Theatre Royal set with a 937kW generator provides back-up in emergencies. The bow thrusters are driven by three 1,500kW 3-phase induction motors. An identical 1,500kW induction motor is used to drive the stern June 1996  29 trouble-free switching. Mechanical contact position indicators and inspection windows have been added to ensure maximum safety for the personnel. This type of switchgear is currently in use on many new cruise ships in operation all over the world. The entire power supply is controlled by a management system from ABB’s marine division in Hamburg. Its duties include the automatic connection of the thrusters, the air-conditioning plant’s compressor and other major power consumers. ABB developed this system especially for power plants on large ships. Control panels The main switchboard for the ship’s 6.6kV power supply. It employs SF6-gas puffer circuit-breakers. thruster. For these machines, ABB has installed two metal-enclosed switchboards with built-in starting transform­ers, vacuum contactors and programmable controllers. The compressors for the air-conditioning systems are driven by three 3-phase AC induction motors, also from ABB. Main switchboard A main switchboard consisting of 30 panels distributes the 6.6kV produced by the four diesel-generator sets and the two shaft generators. The switchgear uses SF6-gas (silicon hexa­ fluoride) puffer circuit-breakers which allows it to be installed in confined spaces. Each of the switchboard panels is divided into metal clad compartments (for the bus-bars, cable connections, circuit-breaker, voltage transformers and instruments). Interlocks ensure Each of the 6.6kV deck substations has two discon­nectors for opening the ring network on both sides of damaged equipment or for isolating parts of the network which need to be serviced. A fuse-switch, via which power is fed to the transform­ers for the low-voltage network, is also included. Each of the generator control panels has a display that shows all the important operating data, including the voltage, current, power frequency and power factor. A second display on the panel gives the following information: • Status of the diesel-generator set; • Measured generator data; eg, revs/ min, temperature, etc; • Alarms triggered; • Status of the overall plant. The emergency switchboard consists of nine panels. The emergency power supply operates at the voltage levels 660VAC, 440VAC, 220VAC and 220VDC/110VAC. A total of seven substations are installed on the decks. Comprising 24 panels in all, they distribute electrical power in a 6.6kV ring network. Each of the deck stations has two discon­ nectors; eg, for opening the ring on both sides of damaged equip­ment, or for isolating parts of the network on which service work has to be carried out. Each station also has a fuse-switch for the transformers to the low voltage network. Another seven substations are installed on the decks for the low voltage distribution. With a total of 30 panels, they supply power at voltages of 660VAC, 440VAC, 220VAC, 220VDC and 110VAC. However else you may regard the Oriana, as a luxury liner, floating hotel or whatever, it also has a very large energy distribution system to keep it all going. Acknowledgement This article has been reproduced courtesy of the ABB Re­view, from the SC April 1996 issue. 30  Silicon Chip