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Humboldt Field Research Institute

Posted July 7, 2000

BIW and UMaine Team Awarded $9.2 Million Contract for Advanced Technology

Researchers at the University of Maine and General Dynamics Bath Iron Works will collaborate in a project to design the next generation advanced propulsion system for a technical demonstration ship. With support from a $9.2 million contract with the Office of Naval Research to BIW, scientists and engineers will push the state of the art in composite materials science and engineering.

The project, titled "Advanced Hull Form Inshore Demonstrator" or AHFID, directly supports the Navy's recent decision to use electric drives on the DD 21 next generation land attack destroyer. BIW will lead the team that includes UMaine, General Dynamics Electric Boat Corporation of Groton, Connecticut, and Pacific Marine and Supply Company of Honolulu, Hawaii.

In the AHFID program, the propulsion motor will be housed in a pod fabricated with advanced composite materials designed by a UMaine engineering team led by Vince Caccese, associate professor of mechanical engineering. The pod will contain embedded sensors that can measure the performance of the propulsion motor and will be able to monitor the structural health of the composite materials.

A prototype of the composite pod will be tested at the University's new Advanced Structures and Composites Laboratory. Researchers will validate the design and evaluate the performance of the sensors.

Electric drive propulsion eliminates the mechanical gearing normally found in the propulsion trains of conventional vessels and replaces it with an electric motor. Use of the electric motor allows engineers to design the ship with all electric equipment. Power can be redirected and reconfigured in the event of a mishap.

The AHFID program complements ongoing efforts at BIW and UMaine. BIW is designing an integrated power system for the DD 21 and leads one of two teams competing for the DD 21 contract. The AHFID program would allow engineers at BIW to mitigate the risk associated with the new electric drive technology and potentially incorporate changes into the DD 21 design based on the lessons learned from the AHFID program.

At UMaine, engineers are working with business and government agencies to apply composite technologies to applications ranging from NASA's X-38 crew return vehicle to highway bridges and bicycles. The Advanced Structures and Composites Laboratory maintains testing and fabrication facilities for studying a wide range of mechanical and environmental stresses.

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