All language subtitles for Impossible Engineering s08e01 Secrets of the Supertanker.eng

In this episode...

...the biggest oil tanker
on the planet.

This is a massive ship.

...and the groundbreaking
innovations from history...

It's an amazing piece
of engineering.

It was something that really
hadn't been done before.

...that make
the impossible possible.

Captions by vitac...
www.vitac.com

captions paid for by
discovery communications

oceans cover 70%
of the earth's surface.

They're our planet's
life support system

and a lifeline
for global commerce.

The seas are the highways
for world trade.

And it's estimated that
thousands of boats and ships

are operating on them
at any given time.

Naval architect Nick Bradbeer
is at a simulator

at Solent university,
Southhampton

that allows him
to recreate today's

heavily congested
shipping lanes.

Global trade has driven
a huge increase

in the amount of shipping
in the world.

90% of goods moved
around the world move by sea,

and most of them move across
a relatively small number

of important shipping routes.
Some of those routes pass

through quite narrow
choke points,

and those areas might see 600
ships passing in a single day.

They get very busy.

The modern cargo ships
that fill these shipping lanes

are sophisticated machines,
but it's taken engineers years

of pioneering innovation
to get here.

Around 1200 A.D.,
the first ocean crossing traders

were the Polynesians,
crossing from island to island

in canoes.
By the 1500s,

sir Walter Raleigh and sir
Francis Drake used galleon ships

to sail around the globe
exchanging goods.

But it wasn't until
400 years later

that Norwegian Roald Amundsen
crossed the final frontier...

The arctic waters
of the northwest passage.

Today, thousands of ships
travel these same routes,

creating a massive traffic jam.

With more and more goods to move

along these busy
maritime highways,

many experts believe
the solution

isn't to build more ships,
but to build bigger.

This is supertanker Europe,

the biggest oil tanker
in the world.

It's capable of carrying
almost half a megaton of cargo

through some of
the harshest seas on the planet.

It's an incredible machine.

This is just
an absolutely enormous ship.

The nerve center of this
colossal machine

lies six floors above deck
on the bridge.

From here, captain Nedjeljko
Lobrovic navigates

the crude oil
on board around the world.

With so much cargo to transport,

engineers had to build a ship
on an unprecedented scale.

Supertanker Europe is
249 feet high

with a 1,247-foot long deck.

It's capable of holding
seven times its own weight

in crude oil,

enough to fill
15,000 road tankers.

The monster ship is pushed
through the water

by a 103-ton propeller

and steered by a rudder that
weighs an incredible 251 tons.

Everything about this vessel
is super sized.

Even the anchor chains
that are stored in lockers

at the bow of the ship.

Their job is to pull up the
anchors that weigh 24 tons each.

It may seem like a simple task,

but on a supertanker, this
requires some epic engineering.

These anchors need to be
strong enough

to hold the fully laden
551,000-ton ship in place.

Their chains alone
weigh 340 tons.

It takes an elite crew

on board to
operate this incredible machine.

And this ambitious supertanker
needs a team of engineers

that aren't afraid to push
the boundaries.

To design, build, and run a ship
of this size

requires us to overcome

some seemingly impossible
engineering challenges.

The first thing is, how do you
build a ship this long

strong enough that it won't
just snap in two at sea?

How do you prevent millions
of liters of flammable cargo

from catching fire or exploding?

And finally, how do you build
an engine powerful enough

to push a ship
this big through the water?

Designing, building, and
operating a ship of this size

is a seemingly impossible
engineering challenge.

Now, the real challenge
in designing a ship structure

is the middle.

When a ship moves through waves,
they bend it up and down.

And we need to make sure
the structure is strong enough

that the ship
won't break its back,

especially in the middle.

That's where those bending loads
are the greatest.

And that's where
it's most likely to break.

Now, as the ship
gets longer those bending loads

get bigger and bigger and harder
and harder to design to resist.

For ship as big as this one,

building a structure that's
strong enough

is a real challenge.

Supertanker Europe
is wide enough and long enough

to carry over 2,000 cars
on its deck.

So gigantic that unassisted,
it takes over three miles

and up to 21 minutes
to come to a stop.

For a ship this massive
with such slow braking ability,

any type of impact could be
devastating, and out at sea,

danger can come in many shapes
and forms.

The key to supertanker's safety
may lie deep within a piece

- of incredible marine history.
- See if I can fit here.

So far, so good.
Here we go. Ooh, I'm caught.

Here we go.

This is supertanker Europe,

the biggest oil tanker
in the world,

capable of carrying over
100 million gallons

of crude oil on board.

Everything about this ship is a
feat of super-sized engineering.

It's as tall as a 24-story
building

and 223-feet wide,

double the size of the locks
on the Panama canal.

At 1,247-feet long,

it's much larger
than the Titanic.

But out on the open ocean,
gale force winds can hit

43 miles per hour with waves
over 33-feet high.

This is a brutal environment,
even for a super tanker.

For chief officer Josip Ivanov,

one of the biggest threats

is the unpredictable force
of nature.

To make sure this massive ship
stays unbreakable

even in the roughest waters,

engineers looked to a pioneering
innovation of the past.

Naval architect Nick posh

is at the Menominee river
in Michigan,

home to one of
the earliest examples

of a revolutionary design.

Wow.
There it is.

This ship,
the William H. Donner,

was built in 1914,

it was in service
for about 100 years.

The William H. Donner is huge,

once carrying up to 22,000 tons.

And this ship once worked

in one of the toughest trading
environments in the world.

Trading iron and coal
across the Great Lakes

has been testing engineers
for centuries.

Demand for ore and coal at the
beginning of the 20th century

grew very rapidly,

so ships had to grow bigger
in order to carry more cargo.

But some weren't strong enough
for the task.

Some were literally
breaking their backs.

In 1906, British naval
architect sir Joseph Isherwood

created an ingenious way

to build massive,
strong ships...

...known as
the Isherwood system.

His invention was a unique
internal framework

running from bow to stern

and leaving no weak spot
in the middle.

This is an awesome piece
of marine history.

You don't see very many
intact ships this age anymore.

Nick is making his way
to the deepest part

of this historic wreck
to find out how

the William H. Donner
has survived for so long.

I can really tell,
this is a really old ship

with all the rivets
you have on going on right here.

This is a very old method
of ship building.

Watch your step.

So this looks like to be
the old coal room.

Oh, geez.
Don't step on that.

This is where they would
basically feed the boilers

to propel the steam turbine
to propel the ship.

What's in here?

There is an old anchor chain
in here and actually an anchor.

So it really feels like you
stumbled

into a treasure trove in here

because of all the history.
I feel like an ant

in here is what...
What I... what I feel like, so.

But the ingenious idea
that paved the way for bigger,

safer ships
lies even further below.

Wow, this is a really tiny hole.

Through this hole, looks like
you'll be able to get

all the way
to the bottom of the ship.

I'm not sure if I'll be able
to fit in here,

but we'll give it a go.

Let's see.
See if I can fit here.

So far, so good.

And here we go.
Ooh, I'm caught.

Here we go.
All right.

Here, Nick can finally see
the secret

to how this ship has lasted
for over a century.

So these big transverse frames
form a giant belt

around the hull.
They serve a structural purpose

in that it keeps the ship
from collapsing in on itself.

The longitudinal frames
you see here

keep the ship from bending
longways or longitudinally.

Traditional ships were
constructed with closely spaced

transverse frames
from the keel up to the deck.

But over time, as ships got
bigger and cargo got heavier,

this structure couldn't keep up.

But by using a combination
of transverse frames

with more tightly
spaced longitudinal frames,

the Isherwood's system was born

and with it, the ultimate
strengthening solution.

It feels pretty cool being down
here and seeing the way

they constructed
these massive beasts.

Without the modern aid
of computer design,

teams had to lay
all these giant pieces

out in a large temple
to build these sorts of ships.

And they had to calculate
everything by hand.

And one miscalculation could
literally break the ship's back.

Nick has made it to the cargo
hold of the vessel

where he can check out
the innovative system in action.

It's so massive because
the Isherwood system

allows the vessel
to be a lot lighter

because of less structure
and allows to carry more cargo,

which is the reason
for this huge cargo hold.

And on the side here,
you can also see the indents

of where the longitudinally are,

as well as the transverse
frames, widely spaced.

Isherwood's ambitious design
paved the way

for the mighty cargo ships
of the future.

The majority of the
tankers are built using

the Isherwood system today,

including the T.I. Class
supertankers.

I really admire Isherwood
for coming up with this concept

because it is such
an innovative design

and really changed
the course of shipbuilding

throughout the years.

The massive supertanker Europe

uses the Isherwood's system
on an unprecedented scale.

Chief officer Josip Ivanov

is heading to where
the brute force of the ocean

hits first... the bow.

Hidden below are over 10,000
transverse

and longitudinal frames
built on a monumental scale...

A testament to one man's
incredible engineering vision

that made it all possible.

The supertanker remains one of
the most impenetrable tankers

on the ocean today.

It has two hulls,
one sitting inside the other

for double the strength,

making this the biggest
double-hulled ship in the world.

But even with such
an intricate build,

engineers still face
one of the toughest challenges

in the history
of nautical engineering...

Crude oil is dangerous.

It's a flammable,
volatile cargo.

This is potentially
a floating bomb.

Supertanker Europe...

...the largest double-hulled
vessel in the world.

Inside, 21 separate cargo tanks
are loaded

with over 100 million gallons
of crude oil.

But this cargo
is highly flammable

and could destroy
the ship in seconds.

The danger starts as soon as we
start to load it onto the ship

through a system of pipes
like these.

And then across to the cargo
holds and down.

As we have millions of liters
of thick oil being forced

at high pressure through
these pipes, we get friction.

And that leads to a build up
of electrostatic charge,

which can cause sparks.

Once the cargo reaches
the cargo holds, it's sitting

in these enormous tanks,
mostly full of flammable oil,

but also full of evolved
flammable vapors.

This is potentially
a floating bomb.

And so it's critically important

that we make it
as safe as possible.

Deep below deck lies the heart
of the oil distribution system

and the most dangerous place
on this ship... the pump room.

Many ships have a pump room,
but few are built on this scale.

Supertanker Europe's pump room
houses not one,

but three massive pumps capable
of discharging up

to 276 tons
of crude oil per minute.

The oil is brought on board and
discharged to the cargo tanks

before being offloaded
at its final destination.

But one of the dangers
that can strike at any time

during this process
is a rise in temperature.

When oil heats up, it vaporizes.

The hydrocarbon gas
that is created

can cause
a critical rise in pressure,

enough to blow a massive hole
in the ship.

The elite team that operates
supertanker Europe

protects the oil cargo

by deflecting
the burning rays of the sun.

270,000 square feet
of surface area

are constantly maintained

with fresh layers
of white reflective paint.

Pump man Ferdinand Guevara

manages any pressure
fluctuations from the deck.

But the pressure caused
by the gas and vapors

isn't the only issue.

To eliminate
the threat of an explosion,

engineers must look
to the innovators of the past.

Engineer Luke Bisby

is at the royal air force museum
in the U.K.

To uncover an engineering secret

hidden inside one
of the most iconic aircraft

ever designed for service
during world war ii...

...the Avro Lincoln.

I can't believe how little space
there is in here,

it's really tight,
really claustrophobic.

First taking to the
skies in 1944,

the Lincoln's long range
made it perfect

for bombing raids
over Germany and beyond.

But the plane and crew
were also at risk of being hit

by anti-aircraft fire
from the ground.

Bomber planes were built
by both sides

for some of the war's most
dangerous and deadly missions.

The bomb aimer would sit down
here just below the cockpit,

charged with aiming
and releasing thousands

of pounds of bombs.

And these were truly
devastating machines,

so both sides did all
they could to stop them

reaching their targets.
If an engine caught fire,

most planes of this era
had sensors and switches

which triggered fire
extinguisher systems.

And these systems
were quite effective

at fighting engine fires,
but protecting

the huge fuel tanks
was a much bigger challenge.

The Lincoln's engineers
had to find a way

to ensure that
if the plane was hit,

its fuel tanks wouldn't explode.

Liquid fuel is
surprisingly stable,

so a full tank, if struck,
is unlikely to catch fire.

The problem starts
as the fuel is used up.

Any flammable vapor left
in the tank is highly volatile.

So a part-empty tank struck
above the fuel line

will explode.

Planes flying across Europe

would have partially drained
their fuel tanks

by the time they encountered
anti-aircraft fire,

limiting their chance
of survival.

But in 1943,
aircraft designer Roy Chadwick

incorporated
an ingenious discovery

that changed
the future of aviation

and could help solve
a potentially explosive problem

on supertanker Europe.

This system was based on
a very simple principle...

Fire needs oxygen.
So if the oxygen is reduced,

there's less chance of a fire.

So what I'm going to do is put
some fuel into this receptacle

and we can imagine this being
the fuel tank of a bomber,

for instance.

And then if I take this fuel
and I just shake it around,

and in doing so,

I generate flammable vapor
inside my fuel tank.

Who, I certainly would not
want to be on an aircraft

with that going on out
on the wings.

Next, using an identical
fuel-filled bottle,

Luke's able to show
an engineering breakthrough

that reduced
the level of oxygen.

So this time, I'm also going to
add to my bottle an inert gas.

And in this case,
I'm going to use nitrogen.

And so now you can see I've got
my fuel tank and inside it,

I have my flammable vapor
as well as now nitrogen.

Let's see what happens
when I hold a match.

And you can see here now
the nitrogen is doing its job

and I'm not getting
any combustion whatsoever.

And I can even drop the match
into this tank.

So here we are, safe and sound
with our inert gas system

and I'm much,
much happier on this bomber.

And that's because nitrogen,
along with other gases

like carbon dioxide,
is inert, thus displacing oxygen

and preventing
the violent combustion.

And this was the key
to protecting the planes.

In 1944, the first
inert gas system

was installed
in the Avro Lincoln.

So I'm now in the
central portion of the aircraft

and the wings are extending
either side on that side.

And on that side.
And at this location,

there would have been
a series of nitrogen tanks,

much like these oxygen tanks,

and they would have been
plumbed into the fuel system.

The nitrogen was fed at high
pressure through brass tubes

to filters and valves, out along
the wings into the vent pipes,

feeding the six fuel tanks.
And as the fuel was depleted,

the tanks were steadily
filled with nitrogen

to ensure that the fuel
vapor couldn't combust,

and the inert gas system
became a life-saving solution

for many industries...
From the skies to the seas.

To create supertanker Europe,

engineers took
the inert gas system

and combined it with some

even more impressive
engineering solutions.

Since 1944, the inert gas system

has prevented explosions

on countless aircraft and ships
throughout the world.

But the engineers behind
supertanker Europe have taken it

one step further.

This supertanker doesn't
just use inert gas,

it carries all the machinery
and equipment

onboard to manufacture
and distribute it.

It keeps oxygen levels
in the oil tanks

as low as 5%.

Chief engineer Zlatan Gyurov
is heading to the ship's stern

where the inert gas system
is housed.

This entirely self-sufficient

inert gas system spans
three floors.

At the bottom is a 33-foot
tall heating system.

The boiler generates
the inert gas,

which is siphoned off
to the floor above.

Inside each tower,

a shower of seawater cleans
and cools the gas.

Next, it travels to three
massive centrifugal fans

on the top floor that propel it
to the cargo tanks

where it sits above
the volatile oil,

preventing a buildup
of explosive vapor.

The inert gas system

is one of the most important
integrated systems

ever designed for an oil tanker

making a volatile liquid stable

and safe enough to load
and transport across oceans.

But before supertanker Europe
can actually transport anything,

engineers face
another major challenge

when it comes to moving this
massive ship through the water.

One of the huge challenges
in building a super-sized ship

like this
is providing enough engine power

to move it through the water,
including through

some of the world's
worst weather conditions.

This giant vessel is heavier
than 100,000 elephants

and soars 249-feet high
from below the ocean

to the top of the bridge.

Onboard a total of 13 floors

house the machinery and
equipment

needed to operate this
impressive but complex ship.

This colossal creation
must be able to hit speeds

of 19 miles per hour,

even in the harshest
environments.

Nick Bradbeer is in the
simulator at Solent university

recreating the conditions
often faced at sea.

One of the huge challenges
in building a super-sized ship

like this
is providing enough engine power

to move it through the water,
including through

some of the world's
worst weather conditions.

In the Atlantic ocean,

the average wave
is 11-feet high,

but monstrous waves
reaching 95-feet high

have also been recorded.

Now to push a ship through that
kind of weather,

we need a lot of engine power.

The engine needs
to be very reliable.

We can't afford for it
to break down.

And when we're burning
as much fuel

as we are on a ship this big,

we really need a very efficient
engine, as well.

So we want power, reliability,
and fuel efficiency.

Any one of these three
is a significant challenge.

But to have all three together
in the same engine,

now, that's tough.

Engineers need to build
the perfect engine

that will be capable of moving

over 550,000 tons
of ship and cargo.

But first, they'll have to take
an up close look

at one of the most powerful
breakthroughs in history.

These are trains that
haven't been seen

on the railways in decades.

As it powers
across the Atlantic ocean,

supertanker Europe
will be exposed

to the often
unpredictable elements,

and this mega vessel will need
an engine strong enough

to push all 550,000 tons of it

through any situation
it encounters.

The solution can be found
in an important

but nearly forgotten
piece of history.

Engineer Agnes D'Entremont

is visiting a remote train yard
in Alberta, Canada,

where North America's
post-world war ii economy

saw an increase in demand
for bulk goods.

This is so cool.
These are trains

that haven't been seen
on the railways in decades.

Steam engines, which were
the freight haulers of the time,

were just not reliable enough,

and they required
a lot of maintenance and upkeep.

And so a new solution was needed
for this new freight demand.

The solution can be found

in the general motors
F3 diesel locomotive.

Wow. That thing's big.

This is the engine
that transformed

North America's railways
and could hold the key

to powering
the mighty supertanker Europe.

This is an EMD567 two-stroke
diesel engine.

In 1899, German engineer
Hugo Guldner

designed the world's first
two-stroke diesel engine.

And in the 1930s, general motors
perfected the concept,

creating one of the most
successful diesel engines

of the mid-20th century.

So this is a 16-cylinder,
two-stroke diesel engine.

There's 8 cylinders
on this side,

8 on the other side
in a V pattern.

Behind each one of these valves
is where the cylinder sits.

A typical diesel engine
takes four stages or strokes

to create power.

Fuel and air is sucked in,

pressure is applied,

an explosion pushes the
piston down, generating power.

And finally,
exhaust is blown out.

Only one in four strokes
creates power.

A two-stroke engine cuts
the number of stages in half.

As air and fuel are compressed
and combusted simultaneously,

more of the mixture
is drawn into the system.

On the return stroke,
the exhaust is released

and the process starts again.

Power is generated every
other stroke, twice the power.

So these cylinders are longer
bore cylinders,

which means that the piston
travels farther up

and down in the cylinder.

It produces a lower speed
but higher torque,

which is perfect
for freight applications.

Let's take a look
at some of these cylinders.

We could see
just... they're enormous.

This is amazing. I mean, this is
almost a 70-year-old engine.

It's in beautiful shape
and still operational. Wow.

This 1,500-horsepower,

800-revs per minute
freight hauling diesel

locomotive could be found

on virtually all of
the major railroads at the time.

It's gonna be really cool.

We're gonna get
to see it running today.

Locomotive engineer Terry Wolfe
is on hand.

You want to open them
about two turns.

Okay.

Perfect. Right on.

Okay, that's good.

First, the test
valves are cleared

and then the fuel pumps
turned on.

Hit the bell.

Hit that start button and hold
onto it until she fires.

Wow.
That's loud.

The two-stroke engine
was powerful,

but the turning point
was in creating an engine

that was also economical to run.

To see just how impressive
this engine is,

Agnes is taking a turn
in the driver's seat.

This is amazing.

I'm about to drive a
1,500-horsepower engine

with 700 tons behind it.

Okay, now start bringing
the throttle ahead.

There you go.

This is the first time
I've ever driven a train.

It's way larger
than things I normally drive.

It's an amazing piece
of engineering.

It was something that really
hadn't been done before.

A two-stroke diesel that was
reliable and had enough power

to haul a lot of weight

and do it over and over
again day in and day out.

This extraordinary two-stroke
EMD567 engine

is part
of a mechanical revolution

that inspired the great cargo
carriers of the future.

So this is kind of a proof
of concept

that this could work on a large
scale hauling large things,

and really was the foundation
for further development

at bigger scales
on land and sea.

Not only did engineers
incorporate this revolutionary

piece of machinery
onto supertanker Europe...

...they took it to the extreme.

Supertanker Europe, the largest
oil tanker on the planet.

Chief engineer Zlatan Gyurov
is in the engine room

to inspect an engine
of epic proportions.

It's one fantastic piece
of engineering,

the 1,100-ton engine

is capable of pushing this
550,000-ton ship

through the water at speeds
of up to 19 miles per hour.

The engine is directly
attached to a prop shaft

that drives this
103-ton propeller.

But it's not just the power
that makes this engine unique,

it's the design.

Despite its huge size
for the power needed,

this one is compact.

It's a much simpler construction
inside with fewer moving parts

and its high power
to weight ratio

makes it ideal to fit
and carry on board a ship,

despite already weighing
as much as 700 family cars.

Supertanker Europe reinvented

how the world's
shipping lanes look today

and changed the scale
of what can be achieved

when trading by sea.

Being part of the team

that operates
such an awe-inspiring ship

is a career-defining moment
for its captain and crew.

At 249-feet high
and 223-feet wide,

supertanker Europe is
the largest double-hulled vessel

in the world,

capable of holding seven times
its own weight in crude oil.

With its supercharged
diesel engine

that turns a 103-ton propeller,

its pair of anchors
each weighing 24 tons,

and its incredible
250-ton rudder,

supertanker Europe has changed

the face of ocean-going
trade forever.

Efficiency has driven us

to make ships bigger
and bigger and bigger.

But now we're running
into the limits of how big

we can practically manufacture.
So it's possible

that we will never see ships
bigger than this made.

By looking to the great
pioneers of the past

for inspiration...

...adapting their ideas,
refining their designs,

and overcoming
monumental challenges...

It's a sophisticated ship
able to power

through the worst weather
in all the world's oceans

while packed full
of dangerous cargo.

It's a triumph
of nautical engineering.

Engineers have constructed
something amazing and succeeded

in making
the impossible possible.

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