The Diesel Engine and the Environment - Noise

The diesel engines was invented a little more than one hundred years ago and has ever since been developed for better fuel economy, increased power and smaller size. Thanks to its fuel economy, the diesel engine is today the dominating prime mover in many applications, such as smaller power plants, commercial ships, trains, trucks, buses and all kinds of mobile construction machinery. As engine for passenger cars, the diesel engine is steadily increasing its share of the market. However, its versatility and, consequently, large prevalence have led to environmental demands to its exhaust emissions, noise and vibration. This paper deals with the noise aspects of diesel engine designs of the so-called low speed two-stroke type installed in most large ships.