Understanding Different Operational Modes Of Shaft Generator On Ships

The shaft generator on a ship is an excellent example of a waste heat recovery system, which not only utilizes the waste energy from the engine but also supplies the additional work to the propeller shaft when the main engine is underperforming.

The shaft generator has two modes of operation:

1. Power Take Off (PTO): The additional energy generated in the main engine is taken off by the shaft generator to produce electricity as an alternative to the four-stroke gen-sets; hence this mode is called PTO or Shaft generator mode.

*PTO can improve ship EEDI figures

2. Power Take In (PTI): Power Take in (PTI) mode