New approach to the fire risk and firefighting in small ships, as consequence of latest developments in Industry 4.0 for the use of hybrid propulsion.

The hybrid propulsion is a reality now, increasing her diffusion more and more. The basic concept of Hybrid propulsion is the use of battery packs to store energy and consequentially operate the propulsion system of the ship, in order to have zero emission navigation, especially in areas of environmental interest. Especially this propulsion is spreading in passenger ships, such as small passenger ferries or yacht, due to the importance of carrying people in a clean way. This propulsion makes extensive use of Li-Ion or Li-Po batteries, storing high quantities of energy, (MWh) to provide the propulsion, furthermore, the propulsion systems are usually operating with high voltage (660 V or more) to guarantee adequate efficiency at the system. As well know, the Lithium based batteries offer a good capability storing energy , but there is also a problem of risk of explosion in case of overheating. The author will investigate in the paper, the consequences of the hybrid propulsion in small ships, considering the case study of small passenger ships , examining the interaction among the industrial solutions adopted for the realization of the hybrid propulsion system[1] and the specific requirements of the marine rules in terms of changes to the project, to increase the safety of the ship, The paper will examine the aspects of fire protection not only from the point of view of the passive fireprotection but also from the point of view of the containment of problem of overheating, underlining the need of a smart and combined use of manufacturing solutions and remote control systems. The paper will show how the use of the hybrid propulsion is for sure interesting in terms of environment protection, but at the same time, it requires some important changes to the project approach that cannot be underestimated.