• Dr. Stefano Brizzolara
  • MIT-iShip, Innovative Ship Design Lab,Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Holden Auditorium (Room 112)
  • 4:00 p.m.
  • Faculty Host: Dr. Eric Paterson

Abstract: High Speed Ships present numerous design challenges and research topics of interest to naval architects. Conventional free surface hydrodynamics is complicated by new important phenomena such as cavitation, ventilation and free surface rupture (spray wave- breaking) which  interact  together.  The relative importance of these topics will be introduced  through  a  series  of  design examples, originating from 15 years of personal experience in fast vessel design and academic research into ship hydrodynamics by numerical/experimental methods. The presentation will touch at first some initial designs of semi-displacement Deep-V monohulls used for the first series of largest-ever fast ferries (140m, 40+ knots) that lead the way to the recent LCS-1 series of US Navy ships, increasing the design speed to transitioning onto planing hulls with steps and partial ventilation of the bottom where the characterization of the air/water mixture flow is essential to accurately solve the problem. A new type of advanced planing craft, intensively studied in the last two years, has demonstrated the ability to reduce the drag of conventional planing hulls by more than 30%, ensuring an optimal behavior in waves at the same time. An outlook onto newest super-cavitating (ventilated) surface-piercing hydrofoils will be finally given.

Bio: Stefano Brizzolara, MSc in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering with honors at Genova University, PhD in numerical hydrodynamic for ship design, has been a professor in the Department of Naval Architecture Marine and Electrical Engineering of the Univ. of Genova where he initiated the course in Numerical Hydrodynamics for Ship Design in 2003. He joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2011 first as Peabody Visiting Associate Professor and now as head of the new Innovative Ship Design Lab (MIT-iShip) in the Mechanical Engineering Department. His current research deals with innovative design of high speed vessels and maritime related topics as Assistant Director for Research at the MIT Sea Grant. He leads and has lead several research projects for the Office of Naval Research of the US Navy, DARPA, the Italian MoD and the Maritime Industry dealing with hydrodynamics of advanced vessel and propulsion systems. He is author of more than 100 scientific papers and holder of four patents.