- Yamato 1
"Yamato 1", is a boat built in the early 1990s by Japanese conglomerate "
The Mitsubishi Group " through their subsidiary company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd at Wadasaki-cho Hyogo-ku, Kobe. It uses amagnetohydrodynamic drive , driven by aliquid helium -cooledsuperconductor , and can travel at 15km/h (8 knots).The "Yamato 1" was the first working prototype of its kind. It was completed in
Japan in 1991, by theShip & Ocean Foundation (later known as theOcean Policy Research Foundation ). The ship was first successfully propelled inKobe harbour in June 1992. Yamato 1 is propelled by two MHD thrusters that run without any moving parts.MHD works by applying a magnetic field to an electrically conducting fluid. The electrically conducting fluid used in the MHD thruster of the Yamato 1 is seawater. [ [http://www.sciencecareersweb.net/PSU2DE/Newsletter/Sept2002.pdf#page=5 "Silent Running"] - Penn State Science newsletter]
In the 1990s,
Mitsubishi built several prototypes of ships propelled by an MHD system. These ships were only able to reach speeds of 15 km/h, despite higher projections.References
* [http://www.mesj.or.jp/mesj_e/english/pub/english/pdf/mv23n011995p46.pdf Operation of the Thruster for Superconducting Electromagnetohydrodynamic propulsion Ship "YAMATO 1"]
* [http://www.sof.or.jp/ship/nf/yamato_1/ Development of a Super-Conducting Propulsion Ship (1985-1998)]External links
* [http://www.skewsme.com/mhd.html Magnetohydrodynamic and the Mitsubishi Yamato]
* [http://www.sanu.ac.yu/English/Shipbuilding/Tema4.htm MHD Propulsion]
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