Experimental Study on Influencing Factors of Motion Responses for Air-Floating Tetrapod Bucket Foundation

Air floating transport is one of the key construction technologies of bucket foundation.The influences of draft,water depth and bucket spacing on the motion response characteristics of tetrapod bucket foundation(TBF)during air-floating transportation were studied by models tests.The results showed that with the increase of draft,the natural periods of heave motion increased,while the maximum amplitudes of oscillating motion decreased.The maximum amplitudes of heave motion decreased while pitch motion increased with the increasing of water depth;further,the period range of oscillating amplitude close to the maximum amplitude was expanded due to shallow water effect.With increasing bucket spacing,the maximum amplitudes of heave motion first increase and then decreased,whereas the maximum amplitudes of pitch motion decreased.Therefore,the favorable air-floating transportation performance can be achieved by choosing a larger bucket spacing under the condition of meeting the design requirements and reducing the draft under shallower water.

Experimental Study on the Influencing Factors of Motion Responses on an Air-Floating Caisson with Multiple Compartments

The structure of an air-floating caisson is suitable for the major structure of caisson-type artificial islands.Thus,it has been rapidly developed and widely used in the exploration and development of oil and gas fields in shallow sea and intertidal zones.Air-floating transportation technology is one of the key technologies employed in this structure.In this paper,the factors influencing the dynamic response characteristics of air-floating caisson with multi-compartments(AFCMC)were studied using model tests.The length and the height of each air-floating structure in the model were 1.0 and 0.1 m,respectively.In addition,the 1:100 models with 6,8,and 10 compartments under regular waves were tested in the wave flume,respectively.In the experiments,the respective water depths were set at 0.2,0.3,and 0.4 m,and the corresponding drafts were 0.05,0.06,and 0.07 m.Results show that with the increase of draft,the heave natural period increased and the maximum amplitude of the heave motion decreased.Meanwhile,the pitch motion decreased at 6 and 8 compartments and increased at 10 compartments.As the water depth increased,the maximum amplitude and amplitude change of heave and pitch motions first increased and then decreased.However,several amplitudes close to the maximum amplitude appeared in the measured period at shallower water depth,thereby indicating the vertical movements of the structure enhanced under shallow water.The increase in the number of compartments reduced the vertical movements under 6.0 m draft,but it increased the vertical movements under 5.0 and 7.0 m draft.Thus,increasing the number of compartments has a limited capacity to improve the motion performance of the structure.

Investigation of Pitch Motion Portion in Vertical Response at Sides of a Tension-Leg Platform

Tendons vertically moor Tension-Leg Platforms （TLPs）, thus, a deep understanding of physical tendon stresses requires the determination of the total axial deformation of the tendons, which is a combination of the heave, pitch, and surging responses. The vertical motion of the lateral sides of the TLP is coupled with surge and constitutes a portion of the pitch motion. Tendons are connected to the sides of the TLP; hence, the total displacement of the lateral sides is related to the total deformation of the tendons and the total axial stress. Therefore, investigating the total vertical response at the sides of the TLP is essential. The coupling between various degrees of freedom is not considered in the Response Amplitude Operator （RAO）. Therefore, in frequency domain analysis, the estimated vertical RAO is incomplete. Also, in the time domain, only the heave motion at the center of TLP is typically studied; this problem needs to be addressed. In this paper, we investigate the portion of the pitch motion in the vertical response at the sides of the TLP in both the frequency and time domains. Numerical results demonstrate a significant effect of the pitch motion in the vertical motion of the edges of the TLP in some period ranges.

Nonlinear Coupled Analysis of a Single Point Mooring System

Coupled effects on a single point mooring(SPM) system subjected to the combined action of wind,waves and current are studied in this paper. Due to the complicatedness of the sea state and the huge size of the vessel,physical experimental study is both time consuming and uneconomical,whereas the numerical study is cost-effective and DNV software provides powerful SESAM software in solving the issues. This paper focuses on the modeling process of the SPM system,catenary equilibrium calculation,static analysis of the vessel in three different scenarios,and dynamic response simulation of the SPM system under environmental excitations. The three scenarios in study are as follows:the SPM is under the combined function of(a) wind,waves and current,(b) wind and waves,(c) current and waves. They are so set that one can compare the contributions of different types of loads in both static and dynamic studies. Numerical study shows that wind and current are the two major factors contributing to the mooring line tension,and surge and sway are the two dominant motions of the moored vessel subjected to environmental excitations.

Numerical and Experimental Study on Hydrodynamic Performance of A Novel Semi-Submersible Concept

The Multiple Column Platform(MCP) semi-submersible is a newly proposed concept, which differs from the conventional semi-submersibles, featuring centre column and middle pontoon. It is paramount to ensure its structural reliability and safe operation at sea, and a rigorous investigation is conducted to examine the hydrodynamic and structural performance for the novel structure concept. In this paper, the numerical and experimental studies on the hydrodynamic performance of MCP are performed. Numerical simulations are conducted in both the frequency and time domains based on 3D potential theory. The numerical models are validated by experimental measurements obtained from extensive sets of model tests under both regular wave and irregular wave conditions. Moreover, a comparative study on MCP and two conventional semi-submersibles are carried out using numerical simulation.Specifically, the hydrodynamic characteristics, including hydrodynamic coefficients, natural periods and motion response amplitude operators(RAOs), mooring line tension are fully examined. The present study proves the feasibility of the novel MCP and demonstrates the potential possibility of optimization in the future study.

Resistance and Seakeeping Numerical Performance Analyses of a Semi-Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull at Medium to High Speeds

The hydrodynamic analysis of a new semi-small waterplane area twin hull （SWATH） suitable for various applications such as small and medium size passenger ferries is presented. This may be an attractive crossover configuration resulting from the merging of two classical shapes： a conventional SWATH and a fast catamaran. The final hull design exhibits a wedge-like waterline shape with the maximum beam at the stem; the hull ends with a very narrow entrance angle, has a prominent bulbous bow typical of SWATH vessels, and features full stern to arrange waterjet propellers. Our analysis aims to perform a preliminary assessment of the hydrodynamic performance of a hull with such a complex shape both in terms of resistance of the hull in calm water and seakeeping capability in regular head waves and compare the performance with that of a conventional SWATH. The analysis is performed using a boundary element method that was preliminarily validated on a conventional SWATH vessel.

The motion performance and mooring system of deepwater semi-submersible drilling unit

This paper analyzes the motion performance and mooring system of deepwater semi-submersible drilling unit in the district of the South China Sea using the MOSES procedure system. After the 3-D panel model of the unit was built, the 3-D diffraction-radiation theory was used to obtain the hydrodynamic loads on the wet surfaces and the response amplitude operators （RAO） of the unit. According to the environmental data, the short-term motion response to motion performance of the unit is predicted by the spectral method. Then a time-domain calculation was done to analyze the motion of the unit with its mooring system. The research results can be a reference for the model test of unit.

State of the art for dry tree semi technologies

Dry tree semi is a fast developing technology and becomes more and more appealing to the operators as a solution for producing deepwater reserves. Utilizing a dry tree semi means spending less cost on well mainte-nance and interventions,while the production platform can be integrated and commissioned at quayside. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of various technologies for dry tree semi,such as E-semi,T-semi,paired-column semi and long stroke tensioners. Each dry tree semi concept is briefed in terms of global performance,top tension riser (TTR) tensioner system,quayside integration and feasibility to environment.

Rigid‑Body Analysis of a Beveled Shape Structure in Regular Waves Using the Weakly Compressible Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics(WCSPH)Method

In many cases of wave structure interactions,three-dimensional models are used to demonstrate real-life complex environ-ments in large domain scales.In the seakeeping context,predicting the motion responses in the interaction of a long body resembling a ship structure with regular waves is crucial and can be challenging.In this work,regular waves interacting with a rigid foating structure were simulated using the open-source code based on the weakly compressible smoothed par-ticle hydrodynamics(WCSPH)method,and optimal parameters were suggested for diferent wave environments.Vertical displacements were computed,and their response amplitude operators(RAOs)were found to be in good agreement with experimental,numerical,and analytical results.Discrepancies of numerical and experimental RAOs tended to increase at low wave frequencies,particularly at amidships and near the bow.In addition,the instantaneous wave contours of the sur-rounding model were examined to reveal the efects of localized waves along the structure and wave dissipation.The results indicated that the motion response from the WCSPH responds well at the highest frequency range(ω>5.235 rad/s).

Dynamic Behaviors of a Moored Floating Structure with Flexible Skirts

A numerical model was developed by using the dual boundary element method to investigate the dynamic behavior of a moored floating structure with a pair of vertical and flexible skirts attached at its bottom in the linear wave field. Theoretical conception is based on potential theory with linear external forces. The motions of the structure were assumed to be small and linear. The flexible skirts mounted beneath the structure were assumed uniform flexural rigidity and the thickness of the skirts was negligible. Comparison between the present model and Gesraha＇s solution was made to verify the results for a moored floating structure with or without rigid skirts. The influence of the skirt rigidity on the moored floating structure, moored lines and waves is investigated in this study. The results show that, the natural frequencies of structure＇s oscillation, moored force, wave reflection and transmission tend to the region of short-period waves when the flexible rigidity gradually decreases. Positive correlation exists between the aft mooring force and the pitch motion of the floating structure.