Program Overview

Course Overview

The course "Marine Technology 4 - Propulsion Systems, Safety and Environment" (TMR4335) is a third-year course, level III, offered at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The course is worth 7.5 credits and is taught in Norwegian.

Course Details

• Course Start: Autumn 2025
• Duration: 1 semester
• Location: Trondheim
• Examination Arrangement: Aggregate score
• Language of Instruction: Norwegian

Course Content

The course introduces students to the basic design and application of machinery systems for propulsion and power generation for ships and offshore systems. It covers power requirements and operating profiles, characteristics of main machinery, and factors affecting machine power, energy utilization, and exhaust emissions. The course also explores relevant fuel types, primary energy conversion during combustion, air pollution, and regulations.

Learning Outcome

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Understand and describe a typical propulsion/power system on board a vessel
• Give a brief overview of each part of the system
• Apply basic analyses of fuel, power, and the reliability, availability, maintenance, and safety expected for the system
• Appreciate the environmental impact of different systems, mainly in terms of emissions

Specific Learning Outcomes

Hybrid and Electric Propulsion

• Have basic knowledge for analysis and operation of hybrid (electric) power and propulsion systems onboard ships and maritime installations
• Define electrical power in 1- and 3-phase AC circuits and relate this to typical marine electric installations
• Understand the basics of electric power systems for vessels, including AC and DC grid, and power management system
• Explain the principle and modes of operation of electrical machines for marine systems
• Understand the principles of electric propulsion and associated controllers for marine vessels
• Understand the principles of hybrid battery and fuel cell power systems

Engine and Fuel

• Quantify a vessel's power requirements in different operational phases and describe this using operating profiles
• Calculate fuel consumption and the amount of exhaust emissions to the atmosphere, based on a given operating profile
• Apply the principles for design of the main machinery in a vessel based on a given operating profile
• Understand the principles of combustion and know elementary concepts such as calorific value, excess air, lean and fuel-rich combustion
• Perform calculation of the combustion process using energy and mass balance
• Describe and analyze work processes for internal combustion engines using p-V diagrams
• Calculate simple thermodynamic circle processes to determine energy utilization and work yield
• Explain the main components of the machines, the principles of energy conversion, and typical operating characteristics of diesel engines

RAMS (Reliability, Availability, Maintainability, and Safety)

• Understand basic concepts related to risk and safety, and apply some methods in risk analysis
• Understand and quantify a component's reliability
• Understand and calculate the reliability of complex systems with redundancy
• Apply fault tree analysis to calculate reliability and risk to technical systems
• Understand what is meant by system availability and calculate availability
• Understand principles for maintenance management and planning
• Calculate how a system's reliability can be improved by preventive maintenance
• Understand basic optimization with respect to RAMS requirements for a system
• Apply economic criteria to evaluate design concepts and maintenance strategies

Learning Methods and Activities

The course includes lectures, project assignments, laboratory exercises, and ordinary assignments. Some assignments may be mandatory for eligibility to take the exam.

Evaluation

The course grading is based on aggregated assessments, including a written exam and laboratory assignments. Compulsory exercises must also be passed to attend the exam. If there is a re-sit examination, the examination form may change from a written exam to an oral exam.

Recommended Previous Knowledge

• TEP4110 Fluid Mechanics
• TEP4120 - Engineering Thermodynamics 1
• TFY4104 Physics
• TMR4245 Statistics

Course Materials

To be announced at the start of the semester, including chapters from the textbook, lecture notes, and compendium.

Credit Reductions

The course has academic overlap with TMR4310, and taking overlapping courses will result in a credit reduction in the course with the lowest grade. If the grades are the same, the reduction will be applied to the course completed most recently.

Subject Areas

• Marine Technology

Examination Details

• Examination Arrangement: Aggregate score
• Grade: Letter grades
• Ordinary Examination - Autumn 2025: School exam with a weighting of 70/100 and laboratory assignments with a weighting of 30/100
• Re-sit Examination - Summer 2026: Details to be specified later