Ship designers have come up with some ingenious ways of saving fuel over the years, but have they been missing a trick all along?
Patricia Fernandez of Massive Science argues that the world could be a better place if hulls mimicked the hydrodynamic properties of shark skin.
Her simple argument is that by limiting the amount of bunkers carried on vessels, any harmful spills would be reduced as a result.
She believes bio-inspired designs may help.
"As part of my master’s thesis, I worked with a team of researchers at the University of the Basque Country and AZTI Tecnalia in the Bay of Biscay, Spain," she wrote. "We studied the speedy mako shark to better understand its skin’s hydrodynamic properties.
"Using computer-tested models, we’ve learned that if boat hulls used a design similar to mako shark skin, it would decrease their drag, reducing the force acting against the boat."
After all, swimmers have known about the go-faster properties of shark-skin swimsuits for years. So why not ships?
Fernandez added: "We have to treat our planet better — and stopping oil spills is an important step. There are many, small improvements to the shipping industry that could make a big difference.
"No more removing oil from otters and birds. No more slicks suffocating waters and coastlines. No more cancelled surf trips!"
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Shipping and art are not often associated with each other.
But Singapore's Ultra Deep Solutions is doing its best to raise the tone with its new offshore support vessels.
The company already operates ships called Van Gogh and Picasso, with Andy Warhol, Kandinsky and Ultra Deep Matisse to come from shipyards this year and next.
A vessel named Banksy can only be a matter of time.
But TradeWinds wonders what happened with the naming of the company's other pending newbuilding delivery, the rather more prosaic Deep Installer?
