Public defence in Mechanical Engineering, M.Sc. Mikko Kotilainen

Due to their large cargo carrying capacities, ships are an environmentally and economically efficient mode for transporting cargo. During winters, the ships must navigate in ice-prone waters and hence understanding ice loads is important ship design which needs to be a compromise between the hydrodynamic performance, weight, and ice load endurance. Because the mechanical properties of ice and the ice breaking process are changing quickly as the ship navigates in ice, this thesis used full-scale measurements to study how the statistical distribution of ice loads changed with conditions, for example ice thickness and ship speed. The research shows that the ice loads increase in thicker ice, whereas the effect of ship speed on ice loads is more convoluted. In addition, we researched how the ice breaking process affects the ice load distribution, and how the size of a rotating ice cusp affects the load distribution. The results and methods of the research can be used in deciding whether it is safe for a to navigate a route with known ice conditions, and to decide a safe speed to navigate in specific ice conditions.

Doctoral Student: Mikko Kotilainen

Opponent: Prof. David Molyneux, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada

Custos: Prof. Mikko Suominen, Aalto University School of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering

The public defense will be organized in Lecture Hall 216, Otakaari 4

The thesis is publicly displayed 10 days prior to the defense in the publication archive Aaltodoc of Aalto University. 

Contact information of doctoral student:

Doctoral theses in the School of Engineering: https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/handle/123456789/49