Naval Architecture – (M.Sc.)

Contents

The programme consists of a set of Core courses, a Track (there is a choice of five different tracks to follow) and conditionally optional courses. The Core (approx. 40 credits) contains the programme-mandatory courses. In addition to this, the student must select a track (approx. 40 credits), which contains a set of track-mandatory courses. Courses should also be selected from the pool of Conditionally optional courses to reach a grand total of 75 credits. Another 15 credits are available from a free choice of courses. As a student in the programme you have a good opportunity to set your individual profile on your education.

The Core is the set of naval architecture specific courses fulfilling the principal demands and expectations on a modern naval architecture education regarding ship design, ship motions, stability, propulsion, manoeuvring, seakeeping, and hull structural design. The courses Ship Design, Hull Structural Design and Marine Dynamics are closely interrelated. Here each student work with Conceiving and Designing one particular merchant ship in relation to operational demands formulated by invited shipping companies and international regulations. Industry is also involved as reviewers and in guest lectures. In the course Sailing Mechanics the students go through the complete CDIO-process where the operational phase is in terms of a web based sailing competition. The courses include experimental work in model scale as well as in full- scale onboard ships. A yearly visit to a major shipyard in Sweden or elsewhere is also in the schedule.

The compulsory courses are:

* Initroduction to naval architecture (*)
* Lightweight structures
* Hull structural design
* Marine innovation
* Marine dynamics
* Theory and Methodology of Science with Applications

Specialisations

* Track, Lightweight Structures
* Track, Fluid Mechanics
* Track, Sound and Vibrations
* Track, Management
* Track, Sustainable Development

Track: Lightweight structures

Marine vessels are in general lightweight structures built as stiffened shells in hierarchical arrangement. The dominating material in shipbuilding is still conventional steel but it is likely that the use of composite materials will increase, for example to decrease weight and thereby increase the ships energy efficiency. Internationally leading research is conducted at KTH Lightweight Structures which has supported the Swedish industry to apply fibre reinforced composite and sandwich material concepts in large vessels. A significant example is the 70 metre all carbon fibre Visby class corvette.

Other significant applications for composite materials are in racing yachts and pleasure boats. In the Lightweight Structures track students studying naval architecture at KTH have the opportunity to combine fundamental principles of naval architecture with knowledge about modern materials and related design principles and manufacturing methods and applications also in other fields.

The compulsory courses are:

* FEM for Engineering Applications
* Fibre Composites - Analysis and Design
* Fiber Composites - Materials and Manufacturing
* Structural Optimisation and Sandwich Desig

Track: Sound & Vibration

Issues related to sound and vibrations are numerous in ship design. For example in passenger ships, both acoustic and vibration criteria are increasingly important as demands for comfort increases. There are many sources of vibration in ships. The primary sources are the engine and fluctuating pressure pulses and cavitation from the propeller which hits the hull. Many other systems and appliances also cause sound and vibration such as ventilation installations, external waves hitting the ship and various pumps.

The Sound & Vibration track treats the topic from many aspects ranging from analytical understanding of the phenomena, numerical methods of modelling and solving complex dynamic problems as well as experimental investigations by modal analysis. An engineer with this track will be able to work with both details regarding generation as well as propagation and reduction of sound and vibration in complex structures.

The compulsory courses are:

* Signal Analysis
* Experimental Structure Dynamics, Project
* Numerical Methods for Acoustics and Vibration

Track: Fluid Mechanics

Since ships and other naval systems operate in water a good understanding of fluid dynamics is crucial for any naval architect when studying e.g. seakeeping, propulsion, manoeuvring, and sailing mechanics. The Fluid Mechanics track is intended to give fundamental understanding as well as working skills in uncompressible fluid mechanics which is the basis for the flow around naval systems. In the courses, the governing set of partial differential equations, the Navier-Stokes equations, are derived, dissected, simplified and solved.

The characteristics of boundary layers are investigated. The track also includes modules concerning modern computational tools (CFD) for solving for the flow patterns in more complex situations. The fundamental mathematical principles of CFD is covered as well as hands-on projects where modelling and solving of real problems are done.

The compulsory courses are:

* Fluid Mechanics
* Computational Fluid Dynamics
* Applied Computational Fluid Dynamics

Track: Management

As an engineer in the naval architecture field, your work will not only include purely technical activities. It is also important to understand the way businesses are made and the way the industry changes. Managerial issues will almost always be intertwined with the technical tasks that you have to face. In the Management track, you will learn how to deal with the interface between marine technology, shipping, management, and industry development.

This track focuses on the problems in industries of this kind, how the companies produce different types of products and services that are important in the field, and how this type of companies, often project-based and cooperating with suppliers and customers, can be managed. The track aims at providing in-depth knowledge of the financial, organizational and management aspects of a company in the maritime field. Emphasis is on the ability to manage and control projects in these contexts, the connection between business strategy and management, and the risks and opportunities associated with globalization with respect to the industry.

It gives a good foundation for an employment as a manager for companies and projects within the industry as well as a general knowledge about these roles in other types of industries. It also prepares for starting and managing a smaller company in the field, e.g. a Naval Architecture consulting firm.

The compulsory courses are:

* Industrial Management
* Management of Technology
* Logistics & Supply Chain Management (*)
* Purchasing & Supply Chain Management (*)

*: One of these courses must be chosen.

Track: Sustainable Development

Shipping is, and will continue to be, one very important driving force in the development of most parts of the world and will therefore also be a part of development of new technologies to reach a sustainable global usage of the limited resources of the earth. The Sustainable Development track is based on the concept of Industrial Ecology with focus on the understanding of interactions between technical, economical, social and ecological systems and processes, a very important aspect for the shipping, on global, national and company level.

The track will lead to understanding of the concepts of sustainable development from an environmental, social and economical viewpoint as well as the ecological prerequisites .The track studies will include strategies for sustainable development and the role of technology, ecosystems’ long-term sustainability, material and energy flows within industry and society, tools and methods to work with sustainable development in industry and society with an emphasis on systems analysis methods.

The compulsory courses are:

* Environmental Management
* Technology and Sustainable Development
* Risk Management

Master Thesis

All students in the program must perform an independent study in the form of a thesis project corresponding to 30 university credits. To begin the thesis project, a student must have completed at least 60 university credits of the total course work including at least two of the three compulsory courses in the chosen profile. The purpose of the thesis project is that the student should demonstrate the ability to perform independent project work, using and developing the knowledge and skills obtained from the courses in the program.

The thesis project can either be performed at a university or, more commonly, at a company in the naval architecture sector or in the sector of the chosen profile with suitable infrastructure to provide sufficient supervision and resources for the project. The student must actively search for a suitable thesis project in industry; however KTH will provide some assistance with information on suitable points of contact. Exchange students are recommended to find a thesis project in their country of permanent residence or in the country where they intend to start their professional careers. In the list of previous and ongoing thesis projects you might find inspiration.