As weight is added to a ship, it submerges. Maximum DWT is the amount of weight a ship can carry without riding dangerously low in the water.
Deadweight tonnage (also known as deadweight and variously abbreviated as DWT, D.W.T., d.w.t., or dwt) is a measure of how much mass or weight of cargo or burden a ship can safely carry.[1][2][3] Deadweight tonnage was historically expressed in long tons[4] but is now largely replaced internationally by tonnes.[5] Deadweight tonnage is not a measure of the ship's displacement and should not be confused with terms such as gross register tonnage, net tonnage, or displacement.
Scale for a 6000 tonne DWT ship.
Deadweight tonnage at any given time is defined as the sum of the weights or masses of cargo, fuel, fresh water, ballast water, provisions, passengers and crew.[1]
The term is often used to denote maximum deadweight to. This is the deadweight tonnage when the ship is fully loaded, such that its Plimsoll line is at the point of submersion.
^ One long ton is 2240 pounds (1016.0469088 kg exactly).
^ In U.S. law the tonne is referred to as a metric ton.
References
Gilmer, Thomas C. (1975). Modern Ship Design. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-399-1.
Hayler, William B. (2003). American Merchant Seaman's Manual. Centreville, Maryland: Cornell Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87033-549-9.
Turpin, Edward A.; William A. McEwen (1980). Merchant Marine Officers' Handbook, 4th edition. Centreville, Maryland: Cornell Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87038-056-X.
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