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The Return of Sail Power: Cargo Ships Are Turning Back to the Wind

193 points · 136 comments · gumby

  1. calmbonsai · · focus · HN ↗
    No, they’re really not.

    Turns out, sail-power scales sublinearly and, shocker, the wind isn’t a reliable source of power for the logistics demands of today’s supply chains.

    We’re never going back to wind, but we will be de-carbonizing shipping either with ammonia combustion, fuel cells, or both.

    1. vintermann · · focus · HN ↗
      We're not going "back" to wind, but there are vessels with modern sails already deployed to save a couple of % fuel costs. There were 9 in 2020 and are 64 now, according to Sintef. Of course kinks are still getting ironed out, but it seems likely it will continue to grow.
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