EcoNavis Solutions is developing a next generation wind-assisted propulsion system designed to enhance the performance and commercial viability of Flettner-type rotor sails for deep-sea shipping, the company said in a press release.

The company’s Eco Rotor Sail introduces a patented tail-appendage device designed to increase thrust, reduce power demand and widen the range of wind angles in which rotor sails can operate efficiently.

“Flettner rotors already offer one of the highest lift-to-drag ratios among wind-assisted devices, with a relatively modest footprint, but the main drawback has been the narrow band of wind angles, typically beam and stern-quarter winds,” said Dr. Batuhan Aktas, chief executive officer and founder of EcoNavis.

“The Eco Rotor Sail expands the range of wind angles over which the rotor can operate efficiently.”

According to the Glasgow-based innovator, initial simulations indicated an increase in thrust of up to ten percent alongside a five percent reduction in torque.

The Eco Rotor Sail retains the conventional rotating cylinder but also introduces a fixed aerodynamic appendage downstream that can stabilize the airflow behind the rotor.

EcoNavis plans to build a scale model for wind tunnel trials at Politecnico di Milano, Italy, to validate performance and correlate results with simulation data.

Subject to successful validation, a full-scale prototype could be built later this year for shipboard trials as part of an integrated power system.