Mother Nature’s energy management codes are unique, created through the hard reality of evolution. Here the strongest, best and most efficient invention survives. In recognition of this, Rolls-Royce Marine has opened their minds to ask the tuna for help.
“Most engines today have reached their maturity, which means that the limits of efficiency can no longer be stretched. Aircraft engines go fast, naturally, but there has been no dramatic increase in their speed for many years. We can only hope for marginal improvements at high costs. Car engines and marine engines are also suffering from the same limitations,” explains Rune Garen, the director of Rolls-Royce Marine’s research and development department, which develops new ship-equipment solutions.
“On the other hand, it is not realistic to expect any significant change in the world’s energy requirements, and the need for engine fuel will continue to increase for many years. Due to this, the technology we know today must change dramatically and we must think differently about the way we use energy. Logically, we must reduce the input of fuel and increase the effect of the output,” says Rune Garen.
Nature’s evolution shows the way.
“I realise there is a paradox in mankind’s focus on research and development. During the past 50 years, we have been looking into space, trying to solve the enigma of objects far away from our daily lives. On the other level, science is very concerned about nanotechnology. But one major area we should not forget is our past, and I am talking about the results of millions of years of evolution,” says Rune Garen.
Mother Nature’s energy management codes are unique, created through the hard reality of evolution. “Here the strongest, best and most efficient invention survives – neglecting issues like emotions, pride, market laws and irrational competition. The best product wins,” concludes Rune Garen.
“Mother nature is in many ways the best inventor, but the problem is that mankind yet has to prove that it can decode and utilise the knowledge available in nature’s own creations,” says Rune Garen.
“No human being has yet managed to completely reproduce and understand how the bumblebee can fly, why a pike can accelerate up to 15-20G and why tuna fish can reach record speeds of 110 km/h. These are only some examples of Mother Nature’s exceptional developments, and we still have a lot to learn by looking at our ancient history,” emphasises Rune Garen.
Biomechanical science learns from nature.
“Biomechanical science might be the paradigm we are looking for and scientists from all over the world are increasingly looking to nature for help in developing new products. Nonetheless, we are still in the early days in the biomechanical profession,” he explains.
“Biomechanics is not about breaking the existing laws of nature, but about utilising comparatively small amounts of energy in the best possible way. It is also about combining many sciences at once, such as biology, physics, mechanics, hydrodynamics and controls and automation. We must think interdisciplinary to be able to decode nature’s inventions – and not only dig deep into single professions,” says Rune Garen.
Rolls-Royce asks the tuna for help.
“Rolls-Royce is today one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of engines, whether for the sea, land or sky. We have created engines for more than 100 years now and that gives us a special responsibility to prioritise the environment – not least with regard to future energy consumption. That is also why Rolls-Royce is putting efforts into research on biomechanics,” explains Rune Garen.
Experiments are now being carried out, but it is still too early to say if this will become a viable commercial product.
The most significant and interesting development so far is the “tuna-propeller”. The name in itself will for most people conjure up an image of a tuna fish’s tail connected to a boat. And that is exactly what it is. This invention has come far in its early development and breaks significantly with conservative ideas about propellers. Rolls-Royce is cooperating with the inventor, Professor Magomet Sagov, and the work is being carried out in a joint venture programme involving Norway-based Clavis Biopropulsion and Rolls-Royce Marine. According to Rune Garen, this might be the future of marine propulsion.
Date: 2005-12-20