Maritime DTU

As Maritime DTU sets sail into the Christmas break, during the period of closure at DTU, we want to extend our warmest wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all. The fall semester of 2024 was filled with exciting and impactful events, such as the successful organization of the 3rd Maritime Career Day, our participation in the NATO Innovation Competition, and our involvement in the Digital Tech Summit, commencement of new research projects, among many others. We also celebrated the beginning of new PhD journeys and the extension of postdoctoral research. Our commitment to maritime security, innovation, and sustainability continues to grow, setting the stage for a dynamic and eventful 2025. We look forward to a new year full of maritime updates, events, and opportunities. Stay engaged as we continue our journey of growth and exploration in the maritime field.

At Maritime DTU we support innovation and students in the maritime area and we are thrilled that DTU students Gabriella Szabó, Nikolas Vitaliti, and Sebastian Pieters won second place at DTU's student conference Green Challenge, where students present sustainable projects to businesspeople and others, and in record time created a prototype for a product that - if all goes well - could make the shipping industry greener. The product is an antibacterial coating that is applied to the underside of boats and ships. It prevents algae from sticking to the boat, creating less friction and, therefore, less fuel consumption. The coating is non-toxic, which is extremely important when it is in constant contact with seawater. Read more about it here https://lnkd.in/dHM8TUXX DTU - Technical University of Denmark

🎉 Maritime DTU Celebrates 10 Years of Impact in Blue Denmark! 🎉 It has been 10 years full of research and educational activity for students, professionals, professors, researchers, companies and so many stakeholders. Maritime DTU has been at the forefront of supporting cross-functional initiatives at DTU and across Blue Denmark. From fostering groundbreaking collaborations to driving innovation alongside education, our journey has been defined by meaningful contributions and transformative projects. As we celebrate this milestone, we reflect on some of our key achievements—and look forward to building an even brighter maritime future! Our Milestones: 2016, Maritime DTU has made significant impact in advancing Denmark's maritime sector. The Blue Growth team, where Maritime DTU represented the universities, initiated efforts to enhance collaboration across research and educational institutions, laying the foundation lasting partnerships. https://lnkd.in/dw2apeSv 2021, Maritime DTU launched a mini sector development project on Green Fuels in Blue Denmark, which inspired numerous follow-up initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable shipping solutions. https://lnkd.in/dCSNF4GY That same year, the organization supported the design and construction of DANA V as an educational platform for maritime testing and training, with funding from the Danish Maritime Fund and Orient’s Fund. 2022, Maritime DTU represented the universities in a national partnership to explore the future of Danish Navy ships, reinforcing its role as a leader in maritime innovation and security. https://lnkd.in/d5s95iWj 2023, two maritime chairs were welcomed to DTU to bolster research and education, drawing from years of academic and industry expertise. 2024, three strategic maritime PhDs were awarded by DTU focused on maritime safety and furthermore a partnershipwas launched with MARTEC to educate a new generation of maritime engineers through an advanced skibsingeniør program https://lnkd.in/dYwyiC-F As we mark 10 years of Maritime DTU, we are proud of our legacy in advancing maritime research, education, innovation, and scientific advising. Together with our partners, we look forward to continuing this impactful journey—driving progress and sustainability within the maritime industry for years to come. Here’s to the next decade of excellence!

Are you interested in digitalisation and sustainable shipping? Then you will not be disappointed if you join the final seminar of the ROROGREEN project. Hosted by DFDS in Copenhagen, the ROROGREEN team will showcase the innovation and research results that we have achieved trying to make short-sea shipping sustainable through digital innovation. Join us on the 10th of December, and hear about how simulation, artificial intelligence, optimisation, and computer vision can be used to reduce short-sea shipping emissions, and to achieve more efficient operations. We will discuss results, success histories, and challenges over drinks and a light reception. Register for the seminar her: https://lnkd.in/dG8JnkqZ

4.5% of the global GDP is connected to some sort of cost of corrosion or rust. This is a huge number. Let’s do something about it!   To prevent corrosion and rust, structures are coated. This is particularly important in the maritime sector, where structures are placed in harsh environments. It will be a game-changer in corrosion detection and predictive maintenance, if you can look through any coating and see, if the underlying structure has started to corrode.   This is what we target in the new project TeraRust DTU Electro. We use a DTU-invented sensor system based on terahertz (THz) light to penetrate the coating and pick up a signature about underlying rust – without damaging or removing the coating. The THz technology has been developed at DTU Electro over the past 7 years and has been commercialized via the spin-out company GLAZE Technologies Hopefully the TeraRust project can help bring Danish deeptech technology out into society to solve a huge problem for society.

The shipping industry contributes to approximately 13% of global SOx emissions, To comply, shipowners can either switch to low-sulphur fuels like marine gas oil, low-sulphur fuel oil, or liquefied natural gas (LNG), or use an Exhaust Gas Cleaning System (EGCS), commonly known as scrubbers. Scrubbers allow ships to continue using cheaper heavy fuel oil (HFO) while cleaning the exhaust gases. The two primary scrubber types are wet (open-loop and closed-loop) and hybrid scrubbers, which can switch between open and closed modes. Open-loop systems comprising about 83% of the market, but they discharge wash water containing harmful pollutants like heavy metals directly into the sea. Closed-loop scrubbers (1% of the market) recirculate water onboard but still produce hazardous waste, while hybrid scrubbers (16% of the market) can switch between modes but share the same environmental risks in open-loop operation. The wastewater from scrubbers contains residues from the fuel (NOx, PAHs and metals) which is discharged directly to sea when operating in open-loop. Research carried out at DTU Sustain shows that the discharge of contaminants depends on the operating conditions with higher discharge rates at sea compared to harbors. Metals, particularly copper, zinc, vanadium and nickel, were identified as key drivers of toxicity both in short and long-term scenarios, presenting a risk to marine environments, especially in harbors. Overall, scrubber water poses a considerable risk to marine organisms, affecting multiple trophic levels. The pollutants harm marine ecosystems and add to the overall environmental footprint of shipping despite scrubbers’ benefits in reducing SOx emissions. A transition away from heavy fuel oil is crucial to avoid exacerbating environmental damage, but economic incentives currently slow this shift.

Live Now: NATO Maritime Student Innovation Challenge! Excitement is at its peak in Copenhagen, where students from Denmark’s esteemed educational institutions are diving into the future of maritime security! 🚢💡 This exclusive event brings together some of Denmark’s brightest young minds, all enrolled in the country’s educational system, to tackle a challenge focused on energy efficiency. These talented students collaborate across academic disciplines and blend insights in maritime technology and engineering. Together, they are crafting innovative solutions to transform oceangoing vessels into sustainable ships with low consumption and low emissions for peacetime needs, while they are competent to ramp up the energy production in accordance with the situational demands. As we speak, teams are preparing to pitch their solutions to an assessment committee. There is a lot of enthusiasm, as they gear up to present ideas that will bolster resilience, adaptability, and security for the future fleet! Thanks to Marie Lützen, Henrik Lund Frandsen and our own Mette Sanne Hansen for developing the case. Thanks to The National Defence Technology Centre and NATO for making the event possible. DTU - Technical University of Denmark Syddansk Universitet - University of Southern Denmark Aalborg University Copenhagen Business School Teknika - Copenhagen College of Technology Management and Marine Engineering Aarhus Maskinmesterskole / Aarhus School of Marine and Technical Engineering MARTEC Royal Danish Defence College Fotograf: Marie Prangsgaard Royal Danish Defence College

Join us for an interesting seminar on digitalisation abd sustainable shipping the 10th of December.

On October 1, Bengt Johansson joined DTU - Technical University of Denmark as a professor in the Section of Thermal Energy for Internal Combustion Engines (ICE). He previously had similar positions at Lund University and Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands and KAUST in Saudi Arabia. He specializes in advanced combustion processes in ICE to minimize emission formation and fuel consumption. There is a big push for fuels with low climate impact, like methanol, hydrogen and ammonia. Their use in advanced combustion processes will be the research focus of Prof. Johansson at DTU. The goal is an engine with 60% efficiency and below ambient exhaust emissions. He recently applied for funds to develop the AI-controlled engine, a concept with a fully fuel-flexible engine that can convert itself from a diesel engine to a gasoline engine if so needed and fully automated adaptive optimization to utilize the future fuels in the best possible way.

Dear network! As you all know technical innovation is essential for the maritime industry, yet it remains challenging for the wider maritime ecosystem to connect with emerging start-ups. To address this, Nicklas Viby Fursund has made a significant effort to gather and share information, to bridge these start-ups with the rest of the industry, potential customers, investors, partners, etc. Denmark now has over 65 start-ups in the maritime sector, and thanks to this initiative, anyone interested can easily stay updated on ‘what’s new’ in the field. For more, visit the link: https://lnkd.in/dmHtkyCH