Sweden replaces steel piping with thermoplastics in key icebreaker application

Oden [Photo: GF Piping Systems]

Built by the Götaverken Arendal AB shipyard in 1989, the Swedish Maritime Administration icebreaker Oden is one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear vessels of its type. The Oden is active throughout the Baltic Sea during winter. For the rest of the year, it serves as a research platform for Swedish polar expeditions in the Arctic. To ensure that the Oden continues to operate at the highest level, the Swedish Maritime Administration decided to replace the steel pipes of the icebreaker’s jet thrusters with a complete thermoplastic piping solution by Schaffhausen, Switzerland-headquartered GF Piping Systems.

The Oden was designed to be highly maneuverable, with features like a square bow, a specific hull shape, and oversized rudders. The jet thrusters are used to spray high-pressure water onto the ice to reduce friction at the bow, which increases the ship’s energy efficiency. Originally, the jet thrusters relied on a steel piping system to handle the high flow rates and pressures for this process. However, due to corrosion issues, replacing the system once and for all became necessary.

GF Piping Systems supplied 200 meters of DN1000 piping made of HDPE, 100 electrofusion fittings, and couplers made of PE100. Due to the tight spaces on board, using standard components was impossible, so GF Piping Systems provided engineering support to create a custom solution. In addition to the dimensioning of the thermoplastic pipes, this also required services such as a feasibility study, pipe stress analyses, hydraulic calculations, and analyses of flow characteristics and energy consumption.

Despite the tight spaces onboard the Oden and the system’s complexity, the retrofit was completed by 14 installers in 2,000 hours, making it more cost-efficient than metal. The thermoplastic pipes are corrosion-free and, therefore, have a longer expected service life compared to metal, while smooth inner surfaces allow the same flow volume as metal pipes in larger dimensions. At the same time, says GF Piping Systems, its engineering services have contributed to the safe and reliable operation of the jet thruster system.

• Read more about the GF Piping Systems solutions available for marine HERE