Marine Engineering

The International Load Line or water line (positioned amidships), indicates the draft of the ship and the legal limit to which a ship may be loaded for specific water types and temperatures in order to safely maintain buoyancy, particularly with regard to the hazard of waves that may arise. Temperature affects the level of load line because warm water provides less buoyancy, being less dense than cold water, as does salinity because fresh water is less dense than salty seawater. The purpose of a load line is to ensure that a ship has sufficient freeboard (the height from the water line to the main deck) and thus sufficient reserve buoyancy, indisputable seen from the outside.  Subdivision load line marks Passenger ships having spaces which are adapted for the accommodation of passengers and the carriage of cargo alternatively may have one or more additional load line marks corresponding to the subdivision drafts approved for the alternative conditions. These marks ...