8 Biggest Ship Propellers in the World
While most of the time, gigantic ships take our breath away with their sheer size, it is the engineering marvel behind them that makes them truly remarkable.
Propellers that move ships forth are of a size to bear the weight of such a huge ship. Hence, it’s only fair some credit be given to them and their size. Here is a list of the biggest ship propellers the marine world has seen.
1. Â Emma Maersk
The marine propeller made by German company Mecklenburger Metallguss GmbH can easily be called the biggest marine propeller with its 131 tons weight.
Emma Maersk itself is the largest container ship around today. Justifiably so, it is the largest ship propeller ever built, providing the ship maximum speed of 27 knots. The engineering that went into making and ensuing sustenance of such a large propeller is certainly something to wonder about, along with its size.
2. Â Hapag Lloyd owned a container vessel
This container vessel contains probably one of the largest ship propellers ever built. The six-bladed propeller is about 9.1 meters in diameter and weighs 101.5 tons.
Its height can be compared to the height of a three-storey building, making it easily contender for the biggest ship propellers in the world.
3. Oasis of the seas
Today’s biggest passenger ship also has one of the biggest ship propellers in the world.
ABB manufactured six-meter propellers to run the massive ship. The propellers are rotatable and provide greater manoeuvrability to the ship.
4. Â Titanic
The Titanic was one of the biggest ships of its time. Proportionately, its propellers were just as huge, too. This passenger vessel featured three propellers.
These propellers measured 23 feet and 6 inches and weighed 38 tons each. The propellers were made of bronze. Each propeller was powered by a separate engine, creating a total power of 30,000 hp. It has been argued that the Titanic’s propellers were the largest ever to be built.
5. Â Queen Elizabeth 2
QE 2 is another huge ship that flaunts huge propellers. It holds a pair of propellers, each 22 feet in diameter and weighing about 43 tons.
This makes them one of the largest ship propellers. The blades are specialized to provide propellers with a longer life. This ship carries spare blades on its foredecks all the time.
6. Palmer
The Antarctic icebreaker ship- Palmer flaunts a rather huge marine propeller. The ship holds two propellers, each about four meters long with four blades.
The propellers have been made from a sturdy alloy to give them extra strength. Norway manufacturers have pulled a feat with these propellers that can provide the ship with a speed of even three knots in thick ice cover.
7. Elation
This carnival cruise features one of the biggest ship propellers in the marine industry.
The Azipod propulsion system is just as efficient as it is gigantic.
8. Â Bismark
Bismark was one of the most important German battleships launched in 1939. One of the reasons making it so important was its propulsion system that included three propellers, each 4.7 meters in size.
These propellers were huge structures made of manganese bronze alloy. These huge propellers could move at a speed of 270 revolutions per minute and displace a volume of 2.4 cubic meters per revolution.
References darkroastedblend , oasisoftheseas , titanicstation , qe2 , usap , bismarck-class
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nice web site and ofc.very good and interesting article…but with one little error,on Titanic you say it was 3 blade propellers and You put on picture with 4bladed propeller..
Astounding, but I think that Titanic had three propellers, not two,
Cheers!
The Titantic had 3 propellers but the middle one was smaller and 4 blades hence the 2 Giant 3 Bladed Propellers mentioned in the article.
Dear Sir,
Kindly advise me the name of worldwide big size marine Propeller manufacturers
for my academic study.
As the undersigned developed multi-thrusting Propeller System for ships, Air Crafts, Helicopters
and Stream Power Generators.
seeking for Cooperator throu your good end . Tks & All the Best Capt. Jaxon Tseng(Taiwan)
Kamewa in Sweden (currently Rolls-Royce) is the most sophisticated propeller supplier today. Onboard all the major yachts, cruise and naval vessels around the world.
This has been very interesting to read. I google this subject looking for information on a very large propeller I’ve seen in Butte Montana. This is a four blade propeller, It is approximately 34’ ft from tip to tip and all brass, it has serial numbers on it, also has a remanufacture notation on it that was done in Japan in 1942, during ww2. I would love to know the history propeller. Can anybody tell me where I can get help. My email jimdarlington@rocketmail.com
I am in a debate over Titanic’s center propeller. An author that I am acquainted with purports that the propeller was a three bladed as were the other two, although of smaller diameter. I maintain that Titanic went to sea with a four bladed propeller. There are few photos available (that I have found); most are of Olympic. Even the ones from the wreck do not show the center prop.
Very nice study please update then and there
what in the world is going on here