UK-based maritime technology company Armada Technologies has installed its Passive Air Lubrication System (PALS) on a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier using a 3D printed component, as part of its effort to reduce the ecological impact of maritime operations.
The LNG carrier is now operating with the component integrated into a critical subassembly of the system’s venturi ejector. The purpose of the installation is to cut friction between the hull and the surrounding water. It does so by releasing microbubbles that form a layer of aerated water, reducing drag and, in turn, lowering fuel consumption and associated emissions.
Unlike conventional hull air lubrication designs, PALS does not rely on air compressors. Instead, it uses the ship’s forward motion to move water through a venturi assembly in the double bottom. Under those flow conditions, air is drawn in from above deck and the air-water mixture is then discharged along the hull. According to Armada, the same arrangement can be applied to both newbuild vessels and retrofits.
Solving a constrained manufacturing problem
A key part of the system is the venturi ejector component, which sits at the center of the air and water mixing process. The maritime company describes it as being engineered to maintain the required pressure drop across the venturi while limiting back pressure to ensure stable air intake. In service, the part runs under continuous flow and must withstand fluctuating pressure and corrosive seawater.
Requirements like these also shaped the manufacturing approach. According to the company, the internal geometry needed to achieve the required fluid behavior could not be produced using traditional processes. That led Armada to select industrial AM for both prototyping and production, with vapor smoothing specified to improve the surface quality of the internal flow paths where the fluid interface is critical.
For this purpose, Armada partnered with 3D printing service provider 3D People, which supported the company in finalizing the design and handling production and finishing of the component for use in the system.
Manufacturing was carried out using PA12 nylon, as the material is well-suited for its mechanical strength and durability in a marine environment. “We selected 3D People based on their attention to detail and their rapid grasp of what we needed,” said Roger Armson, COO of Armada Technologies.
“Once the prototype passed our inspections and compliance testing,” deliveries were made in four batches between February and March last year, in line with Armada’s schedule.
So far, the component appears to be holding up. After roughly eight months of near-continuous operation, the operator reported no signs of degradation or performance-related issues in the 3D printed parts.
Taken as a whole, the project points to a narrow, constraint-driven use of additive manufacturing rather than any broader change in production strategy. Here, the technology is used to make a single, performance-critical component whose geometry and operating demands could not be met through conventional means.
AM supports maritime decarbonisation
Beyond this single project, the wider maritime sector is under growing pressure to decarbonise. Under the UK Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy, the government is targeting a 30% reduction in shipping emissions by 2030 and an 80% reduction by 2040, with policy and funding increasingly focused on efficiency improvements, retrofit-ready technologies, and new approaches to vessel design and construction.
While alternative fuels and propulsion systems tend to dominate the debate, a parallel track of innovation is taking place around hull efficiency, lightweighting, and hydrodynamics, areas where digital design and AM are beginning to play a more visible enabling role.
In this context, 3D printing enables performance-driven, sustainability-focused components and structures manufacturable in practice, from specialised subsystems to larger structural and modular elements.
A related example is the MariLight 2.0 project led by Malin Marine Consultants (MMC) with the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS). The programme used large-scale metal AM to produce a redesigned tapping ring, achieving a 13% weight reduction, a 10% cut in greenhouse gas emissions, and 90% shorter lead times, while passing hydrostatic and leak tests witnessed by Lloyd’s Register.
Funded through the UK’s Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, the project shows how additive manufacturing is being used to support lightweighting and emissions reduction in shipbuilding.
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Featured image shows Armada’s PALS venturi pod system close-up. Image via Armada Technologies.
