Inland waterway and maritime transport

The latest publications in this offer are:

• December 10, 2025

  TRP5021

  Definition of project vessels for the design of maritime port infrastructure

  The definition of design vessels and their associated technical characteristics is essential for the design of maritime port infrastructures but remains a complex exercise given the very wide range of a constantly evolving global fleet. This article reviews the current state of the art, developed through the publications of PIANC, for the definition of design vessels in the context of the design of maritime port infrastructures. The various technical characteristics influencing the design of these infrastructures are described while highlighting the influence and criticality of these characteristics on the design.

• January 10, 2025

  TRP5017

  Community port systems

  Port Community Systems (PCS) are strategic digital platforms for information exchange in ports. Initially designed to promote the massification of container freight transport, they now demonstrate a remarkable ability to adapt to all types oftraffic, simplify international trade, and enhance the resilience of global supply chains in an uncertain environment.New technologies are opening up a new digital space where the interconnection of these platforms with Maritime Single Windows is becoming standard, strengthening international transport while addressing the challenges of decarbonization and reducing the nuisances of port activities by 2050.

• November 10, 2024

  TRP5044

  Data development and processing in the maritime sector

  The maritime sector is undergoing a far-reaching transformation, integrating innovations from the digital world, based on a growing amount of data describing activity and the environment, and on techniques for analyzing this data. This article provides an introduction to these issues, reviewing the various challenges of maritime digitalization, from data availability and use to the main analysis techniques.

• December 10, 2023

  TRP5019

  Numerical modeling in shipbuilding

  Numerical modelling, along with data obtained from experimental campaigns or produced using analytical models, is one of the tools available to engineers for designing and optimising ships and their equipment. Using a number of examples from the shipbuilding industry, this article shows how numerical simulation is used in this sector, the methods and numerical models on which it is based, and the innovations that are helping to renew and improve industrial practices.

• October 10, 2023

  TRP5042

  Maritime energy transition

  Based on the conclusions of the work of the T2EM coalition led by the French Maritime Cluster with the main national stakeholders in this sector, this article is geared toward any reader interested by the maritime industry and energy transition issues, and offers an overview of the issues, challenges and means of action contributing to the objective of decarbonization in this sector.

• April 10, 2023

  TRP5024

  The new uses of vela propulsion

  The shipping industry has been for long one of the main drivers for global trading. Although the consumption of the global fleet might appear relatively low compared to the amount of goods transported, its continuous growth makes the sector responsible for an important share of the greenhouse gas emissions. The modern wind assisted propulsion technologies can come up with an already available and solid solution for this matter. This article will present the different systems developed today, as well as the associated technologies to make the most of them.

• January 9, 2023

  A1870 Review

  Fluid mechanics

• January 6, 2023

  TRP5015 Review

  Public debates on seaport development projects

  Public debates on port projects have been refined in France so that ports and projects owners can better deal with the expectations of the general public and with the requirements of their main stakeholders. The technical engineering of the projects has improved with the “Working with Nature” philosophy, and with the process « Avoid, Reduce and Compensate », and debates engineering involve consultancy specialized in debates management. After a quick overview about the genesis of public debates in France, the article focuses on lessons learnt from some of them and shows how rich can be the information produced for the debates and from the national commission on public debates. Another point to stress is the necessary consistency between individual port projects and port masterplans.

• September 10, 2022

  C184

  Hydraulic modeling of rivers and river structures

  Nowadays, there are many tools available for engineers in order to carry out hydraulic modelling of rivers and river structures.Although the tools are numerous, the modelling process keeps following the same steps: the physical analysis of the problem, the selection, the building and operating of the model and finally the analysis of the results.This paper presents the different model types and the stages required for their implementation, highlighting also the limits and the deviation of the modelling process. This one is described thanks to physical and numerical model studies examples; hence it may well help the teams engaged in those modelling processes to make the right choices.

• July 30, 2021

  D5620 Review

  Electric ship

  After a review of the origins and advantages offered by the multi-phase advanced electrical drives in terms of resilience and dependability, this paper describes the control methods of the marine propellers from the automation point of view. Then, hybrid propulsion systems are dealt with, spanning the power chain and the control loops. The various functions of the management of the whole energy- propulsion system are also explained. At last, this paper addresses the environmental constraints applicable to on board electrical equipment and their impact on their design.Some prospective breakthroughs such as superconductivity conclude the paper.

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