The BRO plant will test alloy 1581 for the shipbuilding industry

27.01.2023 - Aluminium Association

At the BRO company's plant in Rostov-on-Don, a project is starting to test the new 1581 alloy in small boat construction.The alloy, developed at the Institute of Light Materials and Technologies (ILMiT), contains up to 0.03% scandium, the introduction of which improves mechanical properties without loss of corrosion resistance of structures.

The project, overseen by the Aluminium Association, involves the manufacture of three 4.7m boats.The first one will be built of classic alloy 5083, which BRO has been using for many years, and the other two will be of the new alloy 1581 (foreign marking: 5181) — one with the same thickness of hull elements as the classic BRO boat, and the other one being a lighter version due to the use of thinner rolled stock.

Usually, the bottom of a 4.7-metre boat at BRO is made from a 3 mm sheet of 5083 aluminium alloy, but the introduction of the 1581 alloy will allow this thickness to be reduced to 2.5 mm and for some structural elements even to 2 mm.This in turn will make it possible to reduce the weight of the vessel by 40kg, and with it the fuel consumption.This is therefore a promising direction, also considering the trend towards more environmentally friendly transport.In addition, a vessel with the same motor will be able to demonstrate better performance because the ratio of engine power per unit weight will change - there will be no need to spend on more powerful motors.It goes without saying, and a car trailer to transport such a boat may be easier and cheaper.These are all obvious poles - for both the private owner and the shipbuilding company.

When all three test specimens are ready, BRO specialists will carry out a comprehensive test directly on the water.The sea trials will allow to find out how the boats behave in the doldrums and on the wave.To test the vessels for stability and unsinkability, they will be completely submerged in water, recording roll tolerances under different loads.The most spectacular will be the strength tests - the boat will be dropped from a three-metre height with a load inside. The result of the tests will be the proposal of lightweight designs of small vessels using rolled products made of the new aluminium alloy 1581 with improved performance and environmental friendliness.

REFERENCE
The BRO water transport plant (broboats.ru) was founded in Rostov-on-Don in 2019.The company, which has a team of 35 people, produces 15 boats per month and 4 catamarans.BRO sees its mission in the development of the shipbuilding industry and the creation of affordable modern water transport.