Key Points
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Context:
- Mark Chirnside’s 2008 research suggested that Titanic’s center propeller was a three-bladed model, based on a Harland and Wolff document.
- Traditionally, researchers and modelers assumed Titanic had a four-bladed center propeller, similar to early Olympic evidence.
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Photographic Evidence:
- A fitting-out photo of Titanic shows a propeller, but it is unclear whether it is a three or four-bladed propeller, and whether it is Titanic’s center propeller.
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Propeller Dynamics:
- Fewer blades on a propeller generally mean greater efficiency, while more blades reduce vibration.
- Titanic’s three-bladed center propeller had the same blade area as Olympic’s four-bladed propeller but achieved this by increasing the diameter from 16 ft. 6 in. to 17 ft.
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Logistics and Timing:
- Olympic’s three-bladed center propeller was not installed until March 1913, after Titanic’s maiden voyage.
- This indicates that Titanic was the first to test the three-bladed center propeller, as there were no prior tests on Olympic.
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Conclusion:
- The timing of the installation on Olympic supports the conclusion that Titanic had a three-bladed center propeller.
- There is no evidence that Titanic ever had a four-bladed center propeller, making the three-bladed model the most probable configuration.
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