USNS COMFORT Departure

[Ski in NC]

Steam turbine. Still a steam engine, but your question is understood. Built in the 1970's as a tanker.

 

[OldDan1943]

Steam turbine. Still a steam engine, but your question is understood. Built in the 1970's as a tanker.

I do hope it was never used as a tanker. It may have cost more to remove all traces of petroleum than the ship was worth.

Not a thing wrong with a steam turbine.... They are still used in nuclear powered submarines and I suspect in many large ships of the line.

The US did commission one nuclear powered merchant ship, the NS Savannah. I saw it entering the harbor at Rota Spain. Some place I have slides of it. Taking those slides involved .... well, that's a story for another time. I will mention I was standing topsides of a nuc sub, ignoring the commands of armed marines. I felt safe for I was standing next to the CO as we both were busy taking pictures. LOL
FYI
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NS_Savannah

Take some time to read about it. Very interesting read.

Basically it was designed and built to prove it could be done. It was never profitable for many reasons. It was poorly designed to handle its limited cargo and limited number of passengers. The crew demanded pay than union scale. The engineering crew were trained at great expense so maybe they should have been paid more. SHRUG

 

[Nickair]

Steam Engine? How old is the ship?

Don’t nuclear ships operate on steam??

 

[BruceK]

Don’t nuclear ships operate on steam??

No idea, why don`t you search it and see.

 

[Nickair]

OK, here we are:

Nuclear marine propulsion is propulsion of a ship or submarine with heat provided by a nuclear power plant. The power plant heats water to produce steam for a turbine used to turn the ship's propeller through a gearbox or through an electric generator and motor. Naval nuclear propulsion is used specifically within naval warships such as supercarriers. A small number of experimental civil nuclear ships have been built.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_marine_propulsion



.

 

[Northern Spy]

Don’t nuclear ships operate on steam??

Yes. Saturated steam run through a HP and LP turbine.

Contrary to popular belief, steam still powers a lot of the world by generating electricity.

 

[BruceK]

Aussie ignorance(at least on this issue) may come from our Govt instructing the French submarine builder designing our next subs to delete the standard nuclear powerplant and replace it with diesels. Akin to taking a front engine car, removing the engine and gearbox and installing a horse between the fenders.

 

[OldDan1943]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_marine_propulsion

.

Yes, another very interesting read.
Makes the time pass when locked in the house.

 

[johnrupp]

Aussie ignorance(at least on this issue) may come from our Govt instructing the French submarine builder designing our next subs to delete the standard nuclear powerplant and replace it with diesels. Akin to taking a front engine car, removing the engine and gearbox and installing a horse between the fenders.

Did they give an explanation for this decision?

John

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Regarding submarines: I may be displaying my complete ignorance on the matter BUT I vaguely seem to recall reading that some diesel/electric subs are the quietest boats around. I have no idea if this is true or why it may be but perhaps some sub-mariners can enlighten me of the facts (without giving away ANY classified information).

 

[OldDan1943]

Did they give an explanation for this decision?

John

Some are going to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air-independent_propulsion

Less expensive than nuclear reactors but, more prone to explode They use compressed oxygen for the diesels.

 

[johnrupp]

Some are going to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air-independent_propulsion

Less expensive than nuclear reactors but, more prone to explode They use compressed oxygen for the diesels.

Interesting read.

John

 

[OldDan1943]

Greetings,
Regarding submarines: I may be displaying my complete ignorance on the matter BUT I vaguely seem to recall reading that some diesel/electric subs are the quietest boats around. I have no idea if this is true or why it may be but perhaps some sub-mariners can enlighten me of the facts (without giving away ANY classified information).

They are constantly making nuc subs quieter. Cant tell you anymore.

 

[rgano]

There are two of these converted tankers in service as USN hospital ships. My last Nvy boss was in charge of overseeing the conversion, and I heard a lot about it as it went along. A truly inspired idea for a large capacity hospital ship. Not certain of the propulsion, but I would think in keeping with the usual practices of the day (1989), it was a diesel powered vessel and remained so in the conversion.

 

[Steve DAntonio]

I do hope it was never used as a tanker. It may have cost more to remove all traces of petroleum than the ship was worth.

Not a thing wrong with a steam turbine.... They are still used in nuclear powered submarines and I suspect in many large ships of the line.

The US did commission one nuclear powered merchant ship, the NS Savannah. I saw it entering the harbor at Rota Spain. Some place I have slides of it. Taking those slides involved .... well, that's a story for another time. I will mention I was standing topsides of a nuc sub, ignoring the commands of armed marines. I felt safe for I was standing next to the CO as we both were busy taking pictures. LOL
FYI
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NS_Savannah

Take some time to read about it. Very interesting read.

Basically it was designed and built to prove it could be done. It was never profitable for many reasons. It was poorly designed to handle its limited cargo and limited number of passengers. The crew demanded pay than union scale. The engineering crew were trained at great expense so maybe they should have been paid more. SHRUG

The US Maritime Administration Reserve Fleet operates some steam turbine vessels, I was aboard one, "SS GOPHER STATE" in Newport News a few months ago.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Gopher_State_(T-ACS-4)

I've also been aboard the NS SAVANNAH (and USNS COMFORT a few years ago), last year. Some photos attached. An amazing piece of history . I'm pretty sure she was never designed to be run at a profit, she was part of Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace", more waving the nuke flag than commerce, initiative. She is a well-preserved time capsule in many ways. Sadly not open tot he public for now.

While I was aboard I heard some very interesting stories from her curator, in one case they intentionally sailed her into a hurricane off Bermuda because she was a test bed, they wanted to know how she would react. The hydraulics that control the reactor control rods malfunctioned, and scrammed the reactor, so they lost power. The chief engineer restarted it in a fraction of the official time, breaking a bunch of rules in the process. The NRC promptly fired him from that job, then hired him for themselves.

 

[Fletcher500]

The engine room of a steam ship is a work of art IMO.

I also thought these converted tankers were diesels.

Regardless, It’s great to see these two hospital ships deployed. Thank you to the crews and personnel who make it happen.

 

[Steve DAntonio]

The engine room of a steam ship is a work of art IMO.

I also thought these converted tankers were diesels.

Regardless, It’s great to see these two hospital ships deployed. Thank you to the crews and personnel who make it happen.

Agreed, if you've never seen it, or haven't seen it recently, watch the movie "Sand Pebbles" with Steve McQueen, the engine room scenes were filmed aboard the USS Olympia, a WWI era battleship. The steam ship used in the movie was actually built for the movie. The propulsion and shipboard details, navy slang and superstition aspects of the movie are very accurate for the era. It's a great book too. Perfect time to do this if you are stuck in.

 

[ghost]

One of my favorite movies. Think I’ll try the book!

 

[danderer]

I've also been aboard the NS SAVANNAH (and USNS COMFORT a few years ago), last year. Some photos attached. An amazing piece of history . I'm pretty sure she was never designed to be run at a profit, she was part of Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace", more waving the nuke flag than commerce, initiative. She is a well-preserved time capsule in many ways. Sadly not open tot he public for now.

SAVANNAH hasn't been open to the public generally but for the past few years she has been open for tours around National Maritime Day. A great opportunity if you're in the Baltimore area. You can wander the ship on a self-guided tour and also visit the reactor control room with a docent.

As Steve says, a real time capsule.

 

[Northern Spy]

The US Maritime Administration Reserve Fleet operates some steam turbine vessels, I was aboard one, "SS GOPHER STATE" in Newport News a few months ago.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Gopher_State_(T-ACS-4)

I've also been aboard the NS SAVANNAH (and USNS COMFORT a few years ago), last year. Some photos attached. An amazing piece of history . I'm pretty sure she was never designed to be run at a profit, she was part of Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace", more waving the nuke flag than commerce, initiative. She is a well-preserved time capsule in many ways. Sadly not open tot he public for now.

While I was aboard I heard some very interesting stories from her curator, in one case they intentionally sailed her into a hurricane off Bermuda because she was a test bed, they wanted to know how she would react. The hydraulics that control the reactor control rods malfunctioned, and scrammed the reactor, so they lost power. The chief engineer restarted it in a fraction of the official time, breaking a bunch of rules in the process. The NRC promptly fired him from that job, then hired him for themselves.

Thanks for the post. I would have never known she was still around.

The prettiest commercial vessel ever built. Actually, one of the prettiest ships ever; right up there with SS United States.

When I was a kid, my Dad had the book "Atoms Afloat" about NS Savannah which I read a few times.

Not sure if that unconsciously prompted me to join the Merchant Marine, or naval nuclear power (I did both).