A double hull is a ship hull design and construction method where the bottom and sides of the ship have two complete layers of watertight hull surface: one outer layer forming the normal hull of the ship, and a second inner hull which is some distance inboard, typically by a few feet, which forms a redundant barrier to seawater in case the outer hull is damaged and leaks.
The space between the two hulls is sometimes used for storage of ballast water.
Double hulls are a more extensive safety measure than double bottoms, which have two hull layers only in the bottom of the ship but not the sides. In low-energy collisions, double hulls can prevent flooding beyond the penetrated compartment. In high-energy collisions, however, the distance to the inner hull is not sufficient and the inner compartment is penetrated as well.
Double hulls or double bottoms have been required in all passenger ships for decades as part of the Safety Of Life At Sea or SOLAS Convention.[1]
- ^ "Chapter II-1: Construction - Structure, subdivision and stability, machinery and electrical installations, Regulation 12: Double bottoms in passenger ships" (PDF), International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), International Maritime Organization (IMO), 2004 [1974], p. 51, archived from the original (PDF) on 28 July 2012, retrieved 17 July 2012