Ship operation in brash ice: results of investigations

The paper gives a review of the studies concerned with operation of vessels in brash ice. Recently, the ice conditions have received an ever increasing attention of the researchers related to the fact that shipping in the Arctic regions and freezing seas, as well as in inland waterways has been scaled up. One of the important fields of brash ice studies is specifics of sailing under these conditions and primarily determination of the ship ice resistance. The paper shows that theoretical methods combined with physical modeling in ice basins are used for determination of the ship ice resistance under brash ice conditions. The paper traces the evolution of theoretical models utilized for calculations. It is mentioned that the models are mainly based on loose material mechanics. A rapidly developing computer modeling of ship motion in brash ice based on discrete element method is considered. Physical modeling techniques used for modeling brash ice in ice basin are described, and challenges of experimental investigations are discussed. It is pointed out that experimental studies in ice basin can provide valuable data not only about ship ice resistance but also about the mechanisms giving rise to ice channels filled with brash ice. The paper describes the methods for studying operation of ship propellers in brash ice conditions. It is concluded that further research into brash ice is needed.

Effect of water resistance on predictions of ship ice resistance using towing tests in ice basin

Object and purpose of research. The object under study is a method to determine ice resistance using towing tests of ship models. The purpose of the work is to develop a method that takes into account the water resistance effect on predictions of full-scale ship ice resistance. Materials and methods. The materials for development are model test data and earlier methods for determination of ice resistance on models, as well as recommendations of the International Towing Tank Conference (ITTC). Main results. The method is suggested to take into account the water resistance in analyzing the towing test data obtained in the ice basin, as well as the method for extrapolating the ice resistance due to hydrodynamic interaction of ice floes with underwater hull, including the scale effect. Conclusions. The methods that take into account the water resistance effect on predictions of ship ice resistance based on towing test data obtained in ice basins are reviewed and analyzed. An improved method to include the water resistance effect in a more correct way is suggested. For better comparison of test results in ice basin it is required to introduce a common method of including the water resistance effect using the method suggested in this work.

Models to predict the parameters of ship voyages in the Arctic: existing approaches and possible ways of development

Any information support system for Arctic shipping requires a ship transit model as one of the key elements that allows for strategic analysis, operational planning of vessel voyages, and ice routing of a ship. At the same time, there is no single recognized approach to develop such a model, due to the complexity of ice cover in terms of its impact on shipping. In this article, we have identified and analyzed three principal approaches to predict the parameters of vessel voyages in the Arctic. They are (1) semi-empirical models to estimate the vessel resistance in ice and then calculate propulsion performance, (2) numerical methods to model ship-ice interaction and calculate ice resistance, (3) statistical models to assess the ship speed based on regression equations or neural networks. Analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach allowed us to propose a concept to develop the ship transit model for practical application.

Research on the Influences of Broken Ice Parameters on Maneuverable Forces of Ice-Going Ship Oblique Sailing

The broken ice is one of the most common ice conditions for ice-going ships, and the research of ship maneuvering movement in broken ice field can improve sailing safety. In this paper, the discrete element method (DEM) was adopted to study the maneuverable forces, including resistance and transverse force, of ice-going ship oblique sailing in broken ice fields. First, the Araon model tests data of Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology (KIOST) was used to verify the ice resistance of direct sailing under different ice sizes and model speeds, and the numerical results are in good agreement with the test results. Second, the influences of broken ice parameters (including concentration, thickness, and shape) on ship-ice interaction and maneuverable forces distribution were researched. The maneuverable forces on the ice-going ships are mainly from the ship-ice interaction. The time history curves of maneuverable forces were analyzed from the average value of maneuverable forces, the average value of peak maneuverable forces, and the number of peaks. Besides, the parameters of broken ice have a heavy influence on the movement of broken ice around the hull, such as accumulating and sliding. The analysis of the broken ice movement contributes to understanding the influences of broken ice parameters on ice-going ships.