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Leaderboard FD July August September 2023

Five facts and figures to know about the Manta

by The Sea Cleaners 1 Mar 2021 16:02 AEDT

Three years of research and development and tens of thousands of hours of work were necessary to conceive the final design of the Manta and integrate all its technological innovations.

The result?

A one-of-a-kind sailboat that removes pollution from the oceans:

  • reconciling performance and energy sobriety,
  • intervening on both the corrective and preventive levels,
  • providing a complete and versatile response to the scourge of plastic pollution.

This ambassador boat will also aim to change the way people consider plastic pollution, by showing that solutions exist in the face of this ecological disaster, and that collection and recovery technologies are effective, affordable and economically viable.

A giant sailboat on the attack of oceanic plastic pollution

The first concentrated ecology and technology factory ship capable of collecting, processing and recovering large quantities of marine plastic waste.

Key figures of the Manta

Length: 56,5 meters
Width: 26 meters
Height: 62,5 meters
Total weight:
1,600 tons empty
1,900 tons loaded with food and equipment needed for an expedition
Draught: 3,1 meters
Transit speed:
6 knots on average (maximum speed)
8 knots (maximum speed)
12 knots (top speed)
Collection speed: 2 to 3 knots
Number of people abord:
34 people abord
22 crew members including 3 operators for waste sorting and 2 operators for the waste to-energy conversion unit
12 passengers (including 6 to 10 scientists)
Collection system span: 46 meters (with outrigging deployed)
Collection capacity per hour: 1 to 3 tons per hour
Collection target per year: From 5,000 to 10,000 tons per year
Size of waste collected: From 10 millimeters
Collection depth: 1 meter below the surface
Average duration of a collection campaign: 3 weeks
Days operational per year: 300 days per year
Capacity to repurpose waste (% pyrolyzed waste and energy produce): 95 to 100%
Storage capacity (all waste combined): 206 m3
Boat autonomy: 75% autonomous (without consuming fossil energy)
Area on-board dedicated to events raising awareness: Approximately 200 m"
Area on-board dedicated to scientific research: Approximately 50 m"
Sails surface area: 1 500 m"
Mobility: 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km) the equivalent of a transatlantic crossing
Number of people and entities working on the development of the Manta:
5 research laboratories
17 external partners or subcontractors
58 engineers, technicians and researchers
3 years of research and development

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