Drag Coefficients of Vertically-Mounted Full-Scale Blue Mussel Dropper Lines

Developments in marine aquaculture in the last 30 years indicate that the bivalve-related industry is feasible offshore and that opportunities for large-scale, industrious production of shellfish stock exists. The objective of the project “CAWX1607” is to develop, model and test such systems. However, the forces acting on suspension cultures, the most likely form of marine farm systems are unknown. Here, drag coefficients provide an efficient approach for the calculation of arbitrary complex structures by using the Morison equation. The CD-coefficients take into account vortex shedding effects as well as the surface roughness of the structure. This paper reports on developed and conducted tests at the medium wave and towing tank “Schneiderberg” (WKS) at the Ludwig-Franzius-Institute for Hydraulic, Estuarine and Coastal Engineering of the Leibniz University Hanover, Germany. The tests were conducted for current velocities between 0.25–1.0 m/s for three samples of blue-lipped mussel specimens. During physical testing the forces and moments in x-, y- and z-direction, the elevation of the water surface, a velocity profile in the vicinity of the live-blue mussels, as well as the velocities of the towing carriage were recorded. The developed methodology, data treatment as well as the resulting CD-coefficients are presented. Further, the CD-coefficients obtained are presented in the context of natural variation of living structures and discussed in comparison to CD—curve characteristics of offshore structures, e.g. rough cylinders.

Numerical Study on the Effect of a Submerged Breakwater Seaward of an Existing Breakwater for Climate Change Adaptation

In coastal areas, climate change is causing mean sea level rise and more frequent storm surge events. This means the breakwaters are expected to withstand the action of more severe incident waves and larger overtopping rates than they were designed for. Therefore, these impacts may have a negative effect on the functionality such as overtopping above the acceptable limits, in addition to stability of these structures. A breakwater which has been partly damaged by a storm stronger than the design storm has weak spots that can easily be damaged further. One way of protecting these breakwaters subjected to climate change is to build a submerged breakwater on the seaward side. This study focuses on the use of numerical model for optimal dimension of a submerged breakwater to be used as a protective measure for an existing structure. Comparisons are made between transmission coefficient predicted in the numerical model and those calculated from different formulae in literature. The variation in transmission coefficient due to different relative submergence and relative width parameters for waves with different steepness is studied and curves showing the dependence of these parameters on wave transmission are made. These results are then used for a test case in Kiberg, Norway where a submerged breakwater is proposed in front of a existing damaged rubble mound breakwater. The optimal geometry generated on the basis of curves is then implemented in the local-scale finite element wave prediction model, CGWAVE.

Numerical Simulations of Ship Bow and Shoulder Wave Breaking in Different Advancing Speeds

The KCS model is employed for the numerical simulations to investigate the wave breaking phenomena of the bow and shoulder wave. RANS approach coupled with high resolution VOF technique is used to resolve the free surface. In order to study the speed effects on the phenomena of ship wave breaking, four different speeds, i.e. Fr = 0.26, 0.30, 0.32, 0.35, are investigated in calm water. Predicted resistance and wave patterns under Fr = 0.26 are validated with the available experiment data, and good agreement is achieved. For the Fr = 0.26 case, the wave pattern is steady, and the alternate variation of vorticity appear near the free surface is associated with the wake field. The breaking wave phenomena can be observed when the Froude number is over 0.32 and the Fr = 0.35 case shows most violent breaking bow wave. For the Fr = 0.35 case, the process of overturning and breaking of bow wave is observed clearly, and at the tail of bow wave, some breaking features of free surface are also captured. The reconnection of the initial plunger with the free surface results in a pair of counter-rotating vortex that is responsible for the second plunger and scar.

The SWARMs Approach to Integration of Underwater and Overwater Communication Sub-Networks and Integration of Heterogeneous Underwater Communication Systems

The management of a heterogeneous mix of underwater vehicles needs a robust and reliable communication network, able to connect the remote command and control station (typically ashore or on board of a support ship) with nodes and vehicles in the deep sea. On the basis of this scenario, the infrastructure shall satisfy requirements such as: medium to extremely long distances between the control room and the area of operation; management of a variable number and type of nodes and vehicles (mobile, fixed, underwater, surfaced); a guaranteed bandwidth to send commands and receive platform status and tasks execution information with minimum latency; a high bitrate to transfer sensor data, pictures and videos in “near real time”; etc. Compared to the available solutions used nowadays for radio communication systems, the underwater environment imposes several constraints on the maximum achievable bandwidth and distance, drastically reducing data transfer rates. This means that the full communication network is a trade-off between different requirements and performances. The SWARMs project approach to this problem is to select, combine and integrate different and heterogeneous communication technologies, components and solutions, in order to obtain the best performances for the management and control of underwater vehicles during the execution of different missions and tasks. The network is mainly based on commercial components, but specific adaptations were made in order to fulfil the requirements of ad hoc underwater and overwater sub networks in maritime specific scenarios. Several experiments and sea trials have allowed the verification of the performance of the full network and the optimization of its configuration according to the mission needs.

Semi-Submersible Floater’s VIM Simulation Method for Mooring Line Safety Assessment

The author proposed the Vortex-induced Motion (VIM) simulation method of a semi-submersible type offshore floating structure using the wake oscillator model based on the potential theory and model test data. This method is easy to use for the time-domain simulation of the VIM amplitude, that is in-line, transverse and yaw motions, of the semi-submersible floater in case of being demented mooring safety assessment of that. The simulation method presented in this paper was modified the single circular floater simulation method with the wake oscillator model for a semi-submersible floater. Some empirical parameters, obtained from the systematic model tests used many semi-submersible floaters, are only decided from external form of the semi-submersible floaters, that is the column / lower hull ratio etc. This simulation method is able to indicate general VIM trend and to be used for the assessment of mooring lines safety in the design stage. Using the VIM amplitude simulation, fatigue damage of mooring lines on one sample semi-submersible floater was investigated as an example.

Conceptual Design of an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Powered by a Direct Methanol Fuel Cell to Enlarge Endurance

Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are versatile machines capable of more and more complex missions including the offshore industry. The ability to carry out some missions relies on the endurance the vehicle is provided with. In this sense, fuel cells are found to be very adequate devices to enlarge AUVs endurance because of the high energy density and specific energy they can achieve, but the application of fuel cell technology to AUVs faces specific challenges that need to be overcome. The present work describes the conceptual design process of a typical AUV powered by a direct methanol fuel cell. Methanol is a high available fuel and its handling system is simple. The obtained results indicate that the manufacturing of such a vehicle is possible within several constrains, being the carbon dioxide treatment system the most critical component of the energy plant. The projected vehicle is compared to current vehicles on the market showing the improved endurance.

Estimation of Residual Stresses in Steel Welded Joints Using Three Dimensional Finite Element Analysis

Welding is one of the most used joining methods in the ship industry. However, residual stresses are induced in the welded joints due to the rapid heating and cooling leading to inhomogenously distributed dimensional changes and non-uniform plastic and thermal strains. A number of factors, such as welding speed, boundary conditions, weld geometry, weld thickness, welding current/voltage, number of weld passes, pre-/post-heating etc, influence the residual stress distribution. The main aim of this work is to estimate the residual stresses in welded joints through finite element analysis and to investigate the effects of boundary conditions, welding speed and plate thickness on through the thickness/surface distributions of residual stresses. The welding process is simulated using 3D Finite element model in ABAQUS FE software in two steps: 1. Transient thermal analysis and 2. Quasi-static thermo-elasto-plastic analysis. The normal residual stresses along and across the weld in the weld tow region are found to be significant with nonlinear distribution. The residual stresses increase with the increase in the thickness of the plates being welded. The nature of the normal residual stress along the weld is found to be tensile-compressive-tensile and the nature of normal residual stress across the weld is found to be tensile along the thickness direction.

Characteristics of Bragg Reflection of Water Waves by Multiple Vertical Flexible Membranes

Bragg reflection of water waves by multiple vertical flexible membranes in water of uniform depth is investigated based on the assumption of linear wave theory and small membrane deflection. The multiple vertical flexible membranes consist of several floating vertical flexible membranes which are installed with both ends fixed. First, a single vertical flexible membrane in water waves is considered, and the reflection and transmission coefficients are obtained based on the eigenfunction expansion method and the least square method. Then the interaction of water waves with the multiple vertical flexible membranes is studied. Using the reflection and transmission coefficients obtained for the single flexible membrane, the reflection and transmission coefficients of the multiple vertical flexible membranes are obtained based on the wide spacing approximation. The proposed method is proved to be efficient by comparing the calculated coefficients with the results published in literature. The characteristics of Bragg reflection, such as the occurring condition, the primary amplitude and the effective bandwidth, are systematically investigated under various factors including the number, the tension, the draft and the spacing of membranes. The results of the present study have certain reference value for design of multiple vertical flexible membranes as effective floating breakwaters.

Optimization of Heave Motions for a Four Column Semi-Submersible Based on Genetic Algorithm

Semi-submersible is designed with low heave motions compared with conventional ships by utilizing the cancelation effects between pontoons and columns. During the past years, continuous efforts have been devoted to reducing the heave amplitudes considering utilizing dry-tree system. Different concepts of semi-submersible have been proposed with favorable heave response. Deep draft semi-submersibles have been proved to be efficient in reducing the heave motions, and the damper structures under the pontoon may also reduce the heave responses significantly. Those concepts are beyond the conventional semi-submersible design, which may bring high costs for fabrication and installations. During computer-aided design and analysis, optimization algorithms are used to search for the optimal hull configuration. However, due to the restrictions of computer capacities, the global optimization algorithm, in some cases, have difficulties in finding out the optimal solutions without the aid from engineering experience. In this paper, the geometry of a ring-pontoon four-column semi-submersible is generated by parametric modelling. The heave transfer functions at center of gravity are calculated using WADAM. Genetic algorithm is used to find the most favorable heave responses. In the end, the parameters that influence the heave motions are summarized and discussed.

Comparison of Wave-Induced Loads on a Near Surface Slender Body From Inviscid Flow Linear Solution and an Experimental Model Test

The wave-induced loads experienced by a fully-submerged vehicle, but operating near the surface, play an important role in the design and operation of the vehicle. For an inviscid fluid with a monochromatic wave field, the first-order loads on a slender body of revolution can be solved for analytically using the method of singularities. The solution involves an integral expression dependent on the cross-sectional geometry of the body. For the canonical shape of a circular cylinder with hemispheric end caps, the integrals can be directly evaluated piecewise and a closed-form solution determined. This allows the rapid and easy calculation of wave-induced loads in any simple wave environment and at any operating depth. However, the use of potential flow ignores any viscous effects and effects due to changes to the wave as it passes over the vehicle. These effects may be important for smaller man-portable unmanned underwater vehicles. To determine the usefulness of this closed-form solution for small diameter bodies, an experimental model test was conducted to measure the loads where both potential and viscous effects are present. Experiments were performed for various wavelengths, at two model depths, and for one wave height while measuring the drag and vertical force along with the pitch moment on a 4.5 inch diameter model. These experimental loads are then compared to predicted loads from the analytic solution to assess their accuracy. This allows the determination of the importance of viscous effects and passing wave modification for wave-induced loads of small diameter underwater vehicles.