Energy Efficient Control for Electric Ship Propulsion Considering Thrust Fluctuation in Regular Waves

Abstract

Ocean-going ships experience power and torque fluctuations in waves unlike conventional diesel-powered ships, the motor-based electric propulsion system can rapidly respond to and compensate for these fluctuations. In this study, we proposed a control algorithm for ship propulsion based on model predictive control that can improve energy efficiency by accounting for power and torque fluctuations. The system dynamics of an all-electric ship powered solely by batteries modeled and considered for control system design. The proposed model predictive control algorithm aims to minimize the energy consumption for propulsion. The response amplitude operators for heave and pitch motions are considered to predict the change of the propeller submergence depth and the resulting load fluctuations caused by regular waves. The feasibility of the proposed control approach is shown through numerical simulations.