Composite propeller

Marine composite propellers often refer to ship propellers, usually made from fiber composites like glass or carbon fibers infused with a high-strength resin like epoxy or polyimide. These kinds of composites are made from strong, light, and high-tech materials. Such composite propellers can be produced in several ways, including vacuum infused molding and injection molding processes, depending on size and resin viscosity.

With today's technology composites, propellers cannot be said to be undeniably better than traditional metal alloys in the marine propeller application. The composite material does still have several perks compared to the metal propellers' counterparts.

Advantages

The composite propellers can be made with a layup which causes composites with anisotropic properties. This can be designed to make create a passive adaptation of the propeller blades passive self-twisting propeller. Self-twisting blades are much more energy-efficient compared to rigid propeller blades.[1] Passive adaptation in form might also be affected by propeller geometry.

Lower unit production cost and production without heat are the primary advantages of composite material. While the initial cost of a composite propeller is usually comparable to aluminum, it is significantly less than a stainless steel propeller. Additionally, replacement blades offer significant savings over metal propeller repairs. Another advantage to using composite propellers is that it is a lightweight material. The composite material is about half the weight of aluminum and 1/6 the weight of stainless steel propeller. A lightweight propeller reduces the amount of wear and tear on the entire boat.

Effect on the environment

Composite materials are an environmentally friendly option as the corrosive resistance[2] and resistance to impact damage of composites[3] can lead to a long lifetime in composite propellers. When a composite propeller hits debris, the propeller absorbs the impact energy instead of transferring it to the lower unit; therefore, providing more protection for the drive train. Corrosion from saltwater and electrolysis are basically nonexistent with composite material in water. Still, the water saturation of the propellers and the propeller application cause some problems to the longevity of composite propellers. The corrosive resistant properties of composites cannot be said to be undeniably better than traditional metal alloys in the propeller application with today's technology.[4]

References
  1. Zhanke Liu,Yin L.Young,2009 Utilization of bend–twist coupling for performance enhancement of composite marine propellers
  2. Dr. S. Selvaraju, S.Ilaiyavel, 2011 APPLICATIONS OF COMPOSITES IN MARINE INDUSTRY
  3. Effects of Seawater Immersion on the Impact Resistance of Glass Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composites
  4. Study on Composite Material Marine Propellers (Toshio Yamatogi, Hideaki Murayama, Kiyoshi Uzawa, Takahiro Mishima, Yasuaki Ishihara)
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