With its experimental sails reaching 37.5 meters in height, the large cargo ship Pyxis Ocean is undertaking a six-week journey from China to Brazil.
The Pyxis Ocean sails the seas with new wind-powered sail technology. Video : Cargill
The large cargo ship Pyxis Ocean, equipped with two special sails called WindWings, has begun its maiden voyage and could become a new model for wind-powered vessels, Popular Science reported on August 21.
Each WindWings sail consists of three main sections, each 37.5 meters tall. The middle section is 10 meters wide, the front section is 5 meters wide, and the rear section is also 5 meters wide. These three sections work together. Each section has a central rotating shaft, and the entire sail rotates. This allows the sail to be adjusted to various angles and shapes, depending on wind angle and speed.
Chartered by the shipping company Cargill, Pyxis Ocean will travel from China to Brazil to test two robust WindWings sails made from the same material as wind turbines. This design could help reduce emissions by up to 30% over the vessel's lifespan.
Each WindWings sail on the Pyxis Ocean can save 1.5 tonnes of fuel per day, resulting in a reduction of 4.65 tonnes of CO2. Combined with alternative fuel sources, that figure could increase. During the estimated 6-week voyage, the pair of sails will be closely monitored with the hope of scaling up the technology for application to other Cargill vessels and the shipping industry.
"Wind is a fuel with virtually no marginal cost. In addition to significantly increasing operating cost efficiency, the potential for reducing emissions is also enormous," explains John Cooper, CEO of BAR Technologies, a company collaborating on the project.
Wind not only provides zero-emission propulsion, but it is also an inexhaustible and predictable resource. These characteristics are highly beneficial for the shipping industry, which contributes approximately 2-3% of global CO2 emissions, equivalent to 837 million tons of CO2 per year. Currently, fewer than 100 cargo ships utilize wind-powered technologies, representing a small fraction of the more than 110,000 ships operating worldwide. Depending on Pyxis Ocean's testing, WindWings could help promote the retrofitting of older ships with green technology or the construction of new ships with suitable systems.
Thu Thao (According to Popular Science )
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