Lovro Maglić

Ballast water sediment elemental analysis.

Sediment samples from the ballast water tanks of ships calling at the port of Rijeka in the Northern Adriatic were analysed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) using caesium, argon and oxygen ion beams. The research was carried out in order to determine the sediment composition and relative abundance of the dominant elements. The results indicate that the sediment samples mostly consisted of compounds that originated from the deterioration of tank plates, tank coating residues and ballast operations such as clay, silt, sand and organic materials. No significant heavy metals or highly toxic elements were found. The research revealed some advantages and significant drawbacks of using XPS and SIMS for the routine analysis of sediment composition as a decision supporting tool for ballast water and sediment management.

Model of the Adaptive Information System on a Navigational Bridge

Adaptive Information Systems (AdIS) are systems responsive to environmental changes or changes in a ship’s systems. In this paper the potential of shipboard AdIS to decrease an officer’s excessive workload are examined. The workload of the Officer Of the Watch (OOW) consists of tasks being initiated by the OOW and by external inputs. Sometimes the external inputs, particularly those requiring low priority actions, actually distract the OOW and increase the workload. Consequently an overload may be reduced by delaying low priority information, thus delaying the actions they could initiate. To estimate the applicability of AdIS, a model has been developed using a discrete event simulation software, consisting of three main modules: environment, AdIS and the OOW. The simulation has been run with a traffic environment comparable to those existing in the Dover Strait. A comparison between the OOW workload with and without AdIS has been estimated, indicating that during demanding navigation AdIS can significantly reduce the overload time. In areas similar to the Dover Strait the overload time can be reduced by a third.