The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Capital Clean Energy Carriers Corp., HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, as Founding Members along with Foresight Group, Navios Maritime Partners L.P., Singapore Maritime Institute, and Dorian LPG, as Innovation Members, are participating in the new Maritime Consortium of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a groundbreaking collaboration between academia and leading maritime industry stakeholders aimed at developing advanced solutions that enhance the sector’s competitiveness while reducing its environmental footprint.
This new international consortium aspires to develop new technologies in the field of nuclear propulsion and alternative fuels, data-driven management strategies for optimized performance and decision-making, autonomous systems and cybersecurity, as well as onboard manufacturing of spare parts.
BHMAgazino conducted an interesting conversation with Michael Triantafyllou, who participates in the Faculty Steering Committee of the MIT Maritime Consortium and who also holds the Henry L. and Grace Doherty Chair in Ocean Science and Engineering’ at MIT. He is the Director of the MIT Sea Grant Program, as well as Director of the ‘Testing Tank and Propeller Tunnel Facilities’. His research focuses on the field of biomimetic robotics, fluid-structure interaction, dynamics, and the control of floating vessels and structures.
We spoke with Professor Triantafyllou about his work and vision for sustainable shipping solutions.
According to Aristotle, philosophy marked the beginning of the study of ‘physis’ (nature). The words ‘physics’ and ‘physis’ share the same Greek root. Early philosophers observed nature to explain the world around them. I understand you’re conducting research that involves observing nature as well.
Of course, yes! Biomimetics.
Do you think that ‘mimesis’ (emulation) of nature in technology is the way to go rather than develop technologies that are unrelated to the natural world?
Well, the natural world has developed certain optimized functions through evolution for millions of years, so where the subject is relevant you can find the solutions there. We are not always going to introduce biomimetic solutions but we have a lot to learn and of course the ultimate biomimetic project is to emulate the human brain, which is one of the most difficult problems we can solve and that’s the limitation, but we are talking about much simpler functions like how birds fly, or fish swim, how sea lions are so maneuverable and dexterous underwater. So there is a lot of progress that was made by emulating the function of natural organisms.
In fact, you mention Aristotle. Aristotle is saying that ‘mimesis’ is the first step to learning, so that’s exactly what we do because we don’t want to imitate; we want to eventually emulate what is happening. So, airplanes are not going to flap their wings, but small insect-like drones can flap their wings, because they can flap them at a very high frequency with high precision and position themselves much better than with other engineered solutions. So, as long as they are related to the application, that is most important. I studied a lot of fish function for that reason, because underwater it is so difficult to be maneuverable and to do things. And that has been translated in other applications as well; for example, you can fit ships with large controllable foils to control flow, so a lot of lessons are coming that way.
Could technologies currently utilized in vessels be enhanced by the study of the natural world?
Right, examples abound, for example, sharks have skins made out of little platelets, which are loosely bound on their skin and that helps facilitate the flow, so we can imagine as material science progresses that we are going to create new materials and meta-materials, which will allow us to do a lot of things with ship hulls which are impossible to do now. Right now, we use a rigid construction of the ship hull, but eventually, we will be able to make those hulls more sensitive to the environment; they will be able to sense the flow and react. For example, oysters have a way of detecting where there are cracks in their skin, and then they generate and send material to fill in those cracks, so you can think of a self -healing hull, or a hull that senses where is a lot of biofouling, which causes an increase in resistance, to go there and remove the biofouling. So you make the vessel more aware of itself. Right now, we don’t have as many sensors as are needed, but eventually, sensors will become very inexpensive. For example, your cell phone right now has about 50 sensors of all kinds, because they are so cheap, they cost a few cents each. So eventually, we are going to have an abundance of sensors and then we will have to do something with these.
So, like living beings that have sense perception and adapt to the environment, we can create similar machines.
Yeah. 50 years ago, who would think that your own phone would have 50 sensors, and that we are talking about sensors now that will measure your heart pulse, monitor your health, on an individual basis, and all these data can be transferred to the internet and we can create databases where we will know how healthy people are and their needs.
In your research on the natural world and the natural processes, have you ever come to the conclusion that there is divine intervention and that not everything can be explained by science?
I’m a believer in evolution.
So you never reached the point where you have said, “this is too perfect. who has created this?”
Well, we are always amazed by the natural world, but at the same time we see, for example, evolution reaching certain optimized functions, which we have also developed by using math and calculations and the like. It’s really impressive that you converge to the same answer. But there are always ways to explain how this is happening, so the question becomes metaphysical, to start thinking about, what is behind all this, and you can always be amazed. Now in the function of animals, one thing we learn is that evolution works and finds optimal solutions, which is impressive.
Do you think in the context of the sustainability discussion, that only technology is the solution or is it also a matter of reorienting the public’s perception about consumer society? How is it best to lead someone’s life? Maybe further away from material goods, whose production ends up polluting the environment?
Yes, we have to become conscious of where we live. Many probably have said that the most valuable picture that came out of the space program, in the U.S., was the picture of earth taken from the moon, as it was rising, and we can see one small blue planet, in this chaos of stars, a very fragile world in which we live, and that gives you the idea that we better take care of it. And a lot of it is blue, meaning there is an ocean, so we have to be careful with the ocean, which we tend to see always as too big and too robust, but it’s not. It gets depleted, it gets polluted, the climate depends on it, so any effort to improve the operations of ships for example, contributes to a healthy ozone.
Considering that maritime shipping accounts for only 2% of global energy-related CO2 emissions while being responsible for transporting approximately 90% of worldwide goods, would implementing sustainability improvements in shipping practices result in significant environmental pollution reduction?
Everybody has to do their share, and in other industries, the emissions are going down, so we have to do the same thing for ships. Also, the industry grows, so although as a percentage it is, as we said, very modest, it’s still growing, and unless we do something to curve this growth, eventually it will become a problem. So, taking action now is actually a good idea.
What specific advancements in renewable energy technologies do you think have the potential to reshape the maritime industry in the coming decade? And how can industry stakeholders effectively navigate the political and regulatory challenges to promote their adoption?
Well, the consensus is that new technologies can enhance the performance of ships, whether it is to make them more green or more inexpensive to run. Some technologies would be favored over others, so there are some people who favor for example, using sails in ships. I will give you an example. Now it has become of importance to consider the option of having nuclear ships, which was unimaginable before, but with new technologies in compact reactors, it’s something that we can envision as an option for a certain variety of ships. This is not a solved problem by any means, and that’s why we need to study it. But that’s one of the things, for example, the consortium at MIT will be looking into.
And what kind of applications of nuclear technology could be used in commercial ships?
Certain ships can be designed and operated with a nuclear reactor in them. So, the design of the ship itself is one issue. And the regulatory issues such as who is going to own these ships. Probably sovereign states will have to own them, because individual companies don’t have the capacity to supervise nuclear power and we may also have to establish “corridors” at sea where only nuclear ships can go. So, there are hurdles ahead. But looking into the future, it may be one technology that we cannot ignore.
Definitely, because it is probably the only completely environmentally friendly technology.
Right. And it has some risks which we will have to mitigate and make the public feel safe with this technology.
There is a lot of public perception of nuclear technology being dangerous.
But maybe this refers to older technologies.
Yes, exactly. The technology has certainly improved and military vessels and also some icebreakers by Russia are using nuclear reactors, but that’s an old technology by now, so we need to have nuclear reactors which are very compact, capable of being on a ship, super protected, and all the other issues that come with it. So, it’s a combination of different pieces of technology that have developed together with regulatory progress. But the shipyards are already designing such ships. The regulatory agencies like the American Bureau of Shipping are also certifying such ships. So, we are not at the beginning of this.
In the context of the recent executive order aimed at revitalizing U.S. shipbuilding, how do you see the principles of lean manufacturing, combined with digitalization and advanced technologies, playing a role in enhancing competitiveness? What specific innovations do you believe could streamline production processes and improve efficiency in the shipbuilding sector?
The shipbuilding sector is so labor intensive that countries with low wages have an advantage, but manufacturing now is rapidly changing. We can 3D-print very complex structures right now. New materials will allow us to do things that will automate a lot of the processes and also, they will be a lot more functional. So new meta-materials, structures that are made of small bits which, when combined have built-in sensors, will have small actuators. These structures now completely change the environment of how we are going to manufacture things. So it will be a major effort, it is not going to be something easy. But the executive order shows that there is dedication to that.
In your view, which existing technologies currently used on commercial vessels do you consider antiquated, and what alternatives could be implemented to enhance performance and safety? For instance, do you think active collision avoidance systems could be effectively replaced by newer technologies?
Yes, because right now, there is a whole revolution happening from the fields of artificial intelligence, and robotics, especially the combination of the two. The sensors are absolutely essential, we are talking about trillions of sensors existing in the future. The fusion of these sensors is a major issue because you will have RADAR, LIDAR, other kinds of sensors, optical sensors, all this information has now to be combined. This was not possible 10 years ago.
So, this is done by AI? The fusion of the data?
That’s an enabling technology. And also, the manufacturing of very inexpensive sensors, which can be used now abundantly. So, I think that will really change the way we run ships and avoid collisions, and function in the clutter of the environment.
Regarding the contribution of Capital Clean Energy Carriers as a Founding Member in the MIT Consortium, how do you think having access to very large amounts of data from various kinds of Capital vessels, would benefit the development of new technologies?
Well, it is essential to have a company involved that has the reputation of also embracing innovative technologies, so Capital has shown many of its ships employ ways to improve their performance and that’s exactly what we want to do and amplify. Eventually, we would also like to try some of these new technologies in collaboration with shipyards. We have one of the largest ones, the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in the consortium.
In the consortium, would the sensors be a promising line of research?
Yeah. The sensors will be a major issue, incorporating and using the data for ship operations, including weather prediction, routing the ships, operating the ships, so the fuel consumption drops, That I think will be a major and very successful project especially having multiple ships collaborating. You can think of an environment where there are multiple ships and they exchange data, which requires of course cyber security, processing the data and the like. But eventually it will be a tremendous benefit for all the vessels, to know where each other is, what the weather is like. For example, having GPS in your car you know that the highway is blocked, because many other cars are there and the GPS lets you know so you can go somewhere else. So that’s a major area. And then there are the new technologies, new manufacturing, AI methods of optimizing ships, hydrodynamics, common engine and the like, again, all this it will find application on the ships
I think it is maybe the first time that such a research consortium focused on maritime technologies has ever happened, hasn’t it?
Certainly at MIT, and I don’t know of many places where such a consortium has happened to this extent. So, this may break the ground for new discoveries. I think this is an exciting project and I think we will see a lot of out of it, so we will work together to make sure it happens.
And it is also a worldwide effort, with organizations from Asia, Europe, the U.S.,
Exactly.
Turning to your studies as a young student, when you went to MIT for the first time, what was your experience?
Well, you would be surprised but, because I was a student in the NTUA (National Technical University of Athens), we had a lot of homework at the time, so it was very intense. I was wondering “what if MIT is going to be, even more intense”? But MIT was targeting the basics, teaching you concepts, teaching you to think. So, in a way, it was easier because you could classify your thoughts and concentrate. Also, they didn’t care about anything else other than what you have to say. I felt very encouraged to participate, so it was a very nurturing environment. It was competitive, it was hard, but not excessively, it was conducive. Even in tests, the idea was not to test you but to make you learn. In the NTUA we had, sometimes 13 classes in one semester, in MIT we had three or four So you were really focused and you went in depth, and I remember the feeling that you would come out of the class and say “Oh I know this topic as well as anybody can wish.” That confident feeling, it was very good.
So what would be your advice to students who would like to study abroad and maybe go to MIT, is it still the same as it was, is it easier, is it harder?
-It has become a lot more competitive. Because many Americans now want to get advanced degrees, it has become more competitive, but the process is the same, you have to focus on targeting what you want to learn, learn it in depth and have a commitment to it, so you have to enjoy what you are doing, otherwise when the difficulties come, you possibly abandon it.
