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Scavenge Inspection

Q. Why Scavenge Inspection Is Done And What Are The Things Should Be Checked During Inspection?
Ans. Scavenge Inspection Is The One Of The Most Efficient Method Used Onboard To Determine Engine's Running Condition. It Provides Us All The Useful Information Like Condition Of Cylinder Liner, Piston, Rings, Piston Rod, Skirt Etc. At Almost Zero Expense.

Things Should Be Checked During Scavenge Inspection. 
1.    Keep Cooling Oil And Cooling Water Circulation On And Check For Any Leakage. 
2.    Inspect The Scavenge Air Box And Ports For Any Sludge Accumulation And Ensure Scavenge Drains Are Clear. To Reduce The Risk Of Scavenge Fire, Remove Any Sludge And Carbon Deposits In The Scavenge Box. 
3.    Inspect The Condition Of Piston, Piston Rings, Liner, Piston Rod And Skirt. It Should Be Visually Examined Through Scavenge Air Ports. Check Piston Crown For Burning Marks And Deposits. Check Skirt For Scuffing Marks And Abrasion. In Good Running Conditions, The Running Surfaces Of The Piston Rings And Cylinder Liner Will Be Worn Bright. Rings Should Move Freely In The Grooves And Should Be Well Oiled. Press The Piston Rings Inside The Groove And If It Pushes Back Then Its Intactness Is Confirmed. 
4.    Check All Non Return Valves/flap Valves In The Scavenge Air Box For Their Easy Movement And Possible Damage. 
5.    Inspect All Mountings On The Scavenge Box. Scavenge Relief Valve Should Be Examined And Should Be Cleaned. Temperature Probe Should Be Inspected And All Deposits Should Be Removed.

Alpha Lubricator

Q. Give A Brief Description About Alpha Lubricator

Q. Give A Brief Description About Alpha Lubricator?
Ans: Advent Of New Technology And Increment In The Prices Of Oil Forced To Cut The Running Costs Of Marine Machineries. Alpha Lubricator Can Be Considered As The Result Of The Same. It Hasn't Only Reduced The Operational Cost But Also Optimized The Engine Performance. It Is Modern Method Of Controlled And Calibrated Cylinder Lubrication. Individual Cylinder L.O. Quantity Control Can Be Achieved In Alpha Lubricators. Oil Is Supplied To The Liner Walls Through Quills And Quantity Of Oil Is Controlled By Changing Position Of Central Piston In The Lubricator Unit.

Q. What Are The Main Components Of Alpha Lubricators?
Ans: 1. Pump Station And Starter Panel: Two Pumps (individually Operating) Take Suction From Suction Tanks, Through Filters. Heating Coil Is Also Fitted In The Tanks To Ensure Inlet Temperature In Cold Time. Power Is Supplied To The Pumps Trough Two Circuit Breakers, One Supplying Each Pump.

2. Lubricator Unit: It Is Consisting Of Two Or One Lubricator (depending On Cylinder Bore). Each Lubricator Unit Equipped With One Accumulator With Nitrogen Pressure Of 25-30 Bar On The Inlet Side And One At Outlet Side With A Pre Pressure Of 1.5 Bars For Every Lubricator. A Feed Back Peak Up And Solenoid Valve Is Also Fitted In The Lubricator Unit.
3. Alpha Lubricator Control Unit (ALCU)
4. Load Transmitter: It Is Connected To The Fuel Rack, Transmitting Fuel Rack Index (%) To Master Control Unit (MCU), Calculates Engine Load And Detects Rpm.
5. Trigger System (Shaft Encoder): Shaft Encoder Is Connected At The Fore End The Fore End Of The Crank Shaft Transmits Signal To The Computer Panel. It Helps To Decide Piston Position Hence Injection Timing.
6. Back Up Trigger System: Two Tacho Pick Ups In A Box At Turning Wheel Transmitting Engine Rpm To The Back Up Control Unit (BCU). It Helps BCU To Meter Oil Amount As Per The Engine Rpm When MCU Gets Failed. It Is Also Connected To MCU For Surveillance Purpose.
7. Human Machine Interface (HMI): It Helps Engineer Officers To Do Various Adjustments And Controls.
– Lubrication Feed Rate Adjustment
– Control Of Pump Station
– Display Various Alarms
– Shows Amount Of Oil Consumed

Q. What Are The Main Advantages Of Alpha Lubricator?

Ans: 1. Reduction In SLOC (up To 0.7 Gm/Kwh) Hence Reduction In Cost.
2. Optimum Distribution Of Oil On The Cylinder Walls.
3. Less Deposits In Combustion And Scavenge Spaces.
4. Better Pre Lubrication Can Be Achieved.
5. Individual Cylinder Feed Rate Adjustment.

Q. Give A Brief Description Of Its Working Principle?
Ans: 1. Pump Supplies Oil To The Alpha Lubricators At A Pressure Of 40-45 Bar (varies According To The Cyl. Bore)
2. Injection Timing Decided By The Tacho Peak Ups And MCU Commence The Oil Injection By Activating Solenoid Valve On The Relevant Lubricator, Which Allows Oil To Flow To The Liner Walls Through Quills.
3. A Feed Back Signal By Led Confirms Oil Injection.
4. During Normal Operation System Is Controlled By MCU And If Any Failure Occurs, BCU Automatically Takes Over.

**BCU Is Based On Random Time Injection. However, Amount Of Injection Depends On The Engine Rpm. In BCU Mode Injection Is 50% Surplus Of The Normally Required At That Rpm.
 

Seafarer wages

The Minimum Wage For Able Seafarers Recommended By

The Minimum Wage For Able Seafarers Recommended By The International Labour Organization (ILO) Will Remain At Its Current Level Of USD 614 Basic Pay Per Month Until At Least 2018.
This Follows An ILO Joint Maritime Commission (JMC) Meeting Held In Geneva Last Week, Comprising Representatives Of Maritime Employers Co-ordinated By The International Chamber Of Shipping (ICS) And Seafarers’ Unions Co-ordinated By The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF).
“The Continuation Of The Current Minimum Wage Until At Least 2018, At The Increased Level Which Came Into Effect In January 2016 As A Result Of The Previous JMC Agreement, Means That Employers Should Benefit From A Period Of Stability In What Are Otherwise Very Challenging Markets For The Global Industry,” The Spokeperson For The Shipowners’ Group, Max Johns (German Shipowners’ Association) Said After The ILO JMC Meeting.
ICS, In Its Role As An Official ILO Social Partner, Says That It Firmly Continues To Support The Global Minimum Wage, A Concept Unique To The International Shipping Industry.
While The ILO Minimum Only Refers To The Basic Wage For The Non-officer Grade Of Able Seafarer, The Total Minimum Payable Is Actually Much Higher When Account Is Taken Of Overtime Payments And Other Pay Related Entitlements Under The ILO Maritime Labour Convention.
The ILO Joint Maritime Commission Is Next Expected To Review The ILO Minimum Wage During 2018.

SUN & RAIN behaviour

SUN & RUN Behaviour

S.U.N BEHAVIOUR
  • Safety first in everything.​
  1. Before every job carry out Tool box meeting.
  2.  Identify hazards  related to each job
  3.  Wear proper PPE and Use proper tools.
  • Understand Fleet management Procedures and complies with them.
  1.  Ensure company’s procedures are strictly followed while    carrying out any job.
  2. Fill up checklist if required for a job and make sure the conditions are truly met.
  • Never walk by, when they can see something is not right
  1. Always inform superiors of any abnormality observed on board ship.
  2.  If anything is not right inform and get it done with the help of people.
             R.A.I.N BEHAVIOUR        

   

  •                          Rushes into jobs
  1. Doing a job without proper understanding will cause damage.
  2. You may get harmed by using improper tools or equipments 
  • Attitude of “it” will do
  1. Right temperament to carry out job safely is very necessary.
  2. Do not ignore any thing on false confidence ​
  • INjure themselves and others.​
  1. An unsafe person is a danger to the people working with and around him
  2. Make sure and away swath others of their wrong doings and point and correct  them immediately
  3. Always stop a work not done in proper procedure.
  4. Always follow SUN behavior and encourage others to follow.

 

Starting air line safeties

Starting air line safeties

>What is Starting air line explosion ? 

Starting air line explosion is one of the major cause of fire in main engine system .
For fire to happen  Heat , Fuel & Air is required .
       
 In an air starting system of Main Engine, fuel may be present in the form of  lube oil which carried over from the air        compressor. oxygen is present in the system in abundance . The heat source come from leaking starting air valve fitted on cylinder head. combination of these three in proper ratio will lead to an air line explosion .

> Precaution and Prevention :-
 
For precautions different safeties are fitted which are followings:-

  • Relief Valve: It is fitted on the common air manifold which supplies air to the cylinder head. Normally fitted at the end of the manifold and it lifts the valve in the event of excess pressure inside the manifold. The advantage of relief valve is it will sit back after removing the excess pressure and thus continuous air is available to engine in case of manoeuvring or traffic.
  •  Disc: It is fitted in the starting air pipe and consist of a perforated disc protected by a sheet of material which will burst in case of excessive pressure caused due to air line explosion. It also consist of a protective cap such constructed that if the engine is required to run even after the disc has been ruptured, the cap will cover the holes when it is turned. This will ensure that in manoeuvring or traffic air is available for engine at all time.
  • Non Return Valve: Positioned in between the Air Manifold and Air Receiver, it will not allow the explosion and its mixture to reach the air bottle because of unidirectional property of N.R. valve.
  • Flame Arrestor: It is a small unit consisting of several tubes which will arrest any flame coming out of the cylinder through leaking start air valve. It is fitted on every cylinder before the start air valve. 
 

 > prevention of starting air line explosion :-

  • Ensure that all the safety devices which are  fitted are working correctly.
  • Draining of the air bottle  is done at every watch.
  • Auto drain to be checked for proper functioning.
  • Air compressor should be well maintained to avoid oil carry over.
  • The oil separator  at discharge side  of the compressor is working efficiently.
  • The starting air manifold pipe should be cleaned and check for paint deformation, it indicates overheating of the pipe.
  • Starting air valve to be overhauled regularly to avoid leakage.
  • Starting air valve seat to be inspected and lapped

Air bottle or Air receiver mountings

Air bottle or Air receiver mountings

What is an Air bottle or Receiver?

The air bottle or air receiver is act as a reservoir to store high pressurised compressed air supplied by the main air compressor of the ship.This compressed air is very important to start main engine or auxiliary engine and also it is used for various purposes on ship.

Purpose of Air Bottle

  • The high pressurised air is used for initial starting of the marine I.C engines.
  • It also supply control air to the marine engines.
  • Service air is supplied from the air bottle.
  • If the quick closing valves are air operated, safety air is supplied through air bottle.
  • Spring air for exhaust valve is supplied through air bottle.

What are the Air Bottle Mountings and Connections?

The general mountings and connection present on air bottle of a ship are:-

  • Filling valve:- This is a valve fitted in the supply connection from main air compressor to the air bottle.
  • Outlet to Main engine:- An outlet valve and pipe is fitted for connection from air bottle to main engine for supplying air during starting.
  • Outlet to auxiliary engine:- An outlet valve and pipe is fitted for connection from air bottle to auxiliary engine for supplying air during starting.
  • Auxiliary connection:- Other auxiliary supplies connections such as service air, safety air etc. is also provided with isolating valve.
  • Relief valve:- A relief valve is fitted on the air bottle to relieve excess pressure inside the bottle.
  • Drain valve:- A drain valve is fitted at the bottom of the bottle to drain accumulated condensate from the receiver.
  • Fusible plug:-  A fusible plug is fitted in the bottle with a separate connection leading out of the engine room so that in the event of fire, this plug will melt and relieve all the air to the outside atmosphere.
 
  • Manhole door:-  A manhole door is fitted in the bottle to carry out inspection of the same.

References:-

Book on Marine Aux. Machinery by H.D.McGeorge

 
 

Oral Questions Asked By Surveyor

IMPORTANT ORAL QUESTIONS

 Important Questions of MEOL (MOTOR), asked by Surveyor in MMD KOLKATA 
    (  * cross questions asked by surveyor)

PART A :-

1.   Types of Turbocharging?
           *Why Pulse Type Turbocharging Generally Used In Generator?
           * Advantages And Disadvantages Of Both Types.
2.   Crankcase Inspection Of Generator.
3.   Why there is a small axial play at bottom end bearing?
4.   What is Bumping Clearance?
             *How to take Bumping Clearance.
5.   Main Engine Crankcase inspection?
6.   What are Air Line Safeties?
7.   Engine Type in your ship?
                *Specification of your engine. (In details)
8.   How Lubrication, Fuel injection, Exhaust valve operation takes place in M/E.
9.   Why Air Spring use in M/E Exhaust Valve?
10. Crosshead Bearing full construction and clearance?
                *How Piston Sits over Crosshead?
11.  Regulations of high pressure pipe?
12.  Uses of piston guiding tool.
13.  Type of engine, stroke, bore.
                  *specification of engine name.
14.  Power calculation in kw with indicator diagram.
15.  Generator not starting on Air, what  are the reasons?
16.  A/E 1000 hrs routine maintenance.
17.  What are procedure of taking Tappet Clearance. 
                   *how to know that piston is at TDC?
18.  Micrometer Calibaration? piston ring Calibration?
19.  what is hot corrosion?
20.  Sump oil differences between M/E & A/E.

Inert Gas System starting procedures

IG SYSTEM STARTING PROCEDURE

Careful consideration is required on board for proper operation of inert gas system. The oxygen content must always be maintained at 5 percent by volume; further reduction in oxygen content can lead to mixing of impurities in gas that would be hard to separate. Certain precautions must be taken prior to starting the inert gas system.
Precautions:-
1. Open all the related valves to the fuel burner; check their is adequate fuel for the operation (boiler/IGG).
2. Turn on the electric power to the control panel.
3. Water drain lines on the scrubber must be opened.
4. Ensure oxygen analyzer is working and calibrated.
5. Set the pressure control setting for the inert gas in distribution lines.
6. Set pressure control valve of the fuel burner.
6. Ensure sea water supply to deck seal.
7. Ensure the system lines are lined up.
8. Start the inert gas generator before entering the port. (Actually it is done to avoid dark black smokes coming out visible when it start).

Starting Procedure:-

1. Follow all the I.G system checklist as per the company guidelines.
2. Ensure all cargo openings are closed.
3. Line up the system prior to start.
4. Take above precautionary measures.
5. Start the Inert gas system.
6. Check for the readings of oxygen analyzer.
7. Supply inert gas to the deck opening I.G main supply valve.
8. Monitor all pressure parameters.
9. Monitor temperature and oxygen level of inert gas during the cargo operation.
10. Increase the inert gas pressure before stopping the inert gas plant.

Note: The inert gas system is only operational during the cargo discharge; any abnormality during the process lead to stop cargo operation.

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