Algeria Democratic And Popular Republic

Ministry Of Public Works And Transport

National Naval High School

The Ice Breaker Ship

Presented by: Etudiants Master SN1

Mr. Bendjenni Koussaila Teacher:

Mr. Rouag Housseme Eddine Mr. M. FARES
Mr. Belloufi Mohamed Oussama
Mr. Bellil Djalal

Année universitaire: 2019/2020

What is an icebreaker ship ?
• Icebreaker ships are a special class of ships that are designed to break even
thickest of the ice and make some of the most inhospitable paths accessible
to the world, navigating through the ice-covered waters, especially in the
Polar Regions. and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships
• The prime functions of an icebreaker ship nowadays include clearing the
trade routes in the icy waters, especially during winters. Though the vessels
taking these trade routes- such as the Baltic Sea, the Saint Lawrence
Seaway, the Great Lakes and, and the Northern Sea Route- are designed to
navigate through the icy waters, the seasonal ice conditions make it difficult
for the vessels to manage themselves.
• Thus, the icebreakers escort commercials vessel while crossing these areas
to make sure the easy navigation of the vessels. In addition to clearing a
passage for the other vessels.
Major Characteristics
of an Icebreaker ship
For a ship to be considered an
icebreaker, it requires three traits
most normal ships lack:
The hull
•The significant features that make the ice-breakers different from other
vessels are its strengthened hull to resist ice water, and capable of
performing different maneuvers according to requirements is extremely
significant . a specially designed ice-clearing shape to make a path
forward and extreme power to navigate through sea ice.
•The hull will be built with more thickness compared to other vessels and
the steel used as a material for the construction will have the strength to
resist low temperatures
•Smooth hull design helps push this ice out of the ship’s way, preventing it
from entering ship’s parts and causing damage. The double hull structure
ensures the integrity of the hull even under harshest conditions. The outer
hull is reinforced with additional materials and hull polymer paints that
provide it more strength and reduces damage due to friction.
• Featuring a double hull, the icebreakers have two layers of the water-tight
surface at the vessels’ bottom and the sides
• The hull will be built with more thickness compared to other vessels and the
steel used as a material for the construction will have the strength to resist low
temperatures
• While old icebreakers featured up to 50 millimetres thick shell plating, the
modern vessels use high strength steel that has a yield strength of as much as
500 MPa, offering enhanced strength with less steel weight and thickness. The
steel used on the vessels is also efficient to resist brittle fracture in low ambient
temperatures as well as high loading conditions.
• One of the other significant features of the modern icebreakers compared to
other vessels is the power it brings to make ways for other vessels through the
icy waters. Be it the coal- or oil-fired steamships used in an earlier period,
diesel-electric icebreakers or even the nuclear-powered icebreakers, the
icebreakers feature a significantly enhanced power
An ice-clearing shape
• In cases of very thick ice, an icebreaker can drive its bow onto the ice
to break it under the weight of the ship. A buildup of broken ice in
front of a ship can slow it down much more than the breaking of the
ice itself, so icebreakers have a specially designed hull to direct the
broken ice around or under the vessel. The external components of the
ship's propulsion system (propellers, propeller shafts, etc.) are at
greater risk of damage than the vessel's hull, so the ability of an
icebreaker to propel itself onto the ice, break it, and clear the debris
from its path successfully is essential for its safety
The power to
push through 
sea ice :
A nuclear-powered icebreaker
(Russian)
• is a nuclear-powered ship
• The only country constructing nuclear-powered icebreakers is Russia.
• Nuclear-powered icebreakers have been constructed by the Soviet Union.
• Nuclear-powered icebreakers are much more powerful than their diesel-powered
counterparts, and although nuclear propulsion is expensive to install and maintain,
very heavy fuel demands and limitations on range, compounded with the difficulty
of refueling in arctic region, can make diesel vessels less practical and economical
overall for these ice-breaking duties.
• During the winter, the ice along the Northern Sea Route varies in thickness from
1.2 to 2.0 metres . The ice in central parts of the Arctic Ocean is on average 2.5
metres thick. Nuclear-powered icebreakers can force through this ice at speeds up
to 10 knots (19 km/h).
• In ice-free waters, the maximum speed of the nuclear-powered icebreakers is as
much as 21 knots (39 km/h).
Other characteristics
Thank you for your attention