OMAE

The 41st edition of OMAE will take place in Hamburg, Germany. VIsit the conference (June 5-10) and exhibition (June 5-6). For more information or to plan a meeting contact Olaf Waals at offshore@marin.nl

During the conference MARIN will present a paper on 'Urans predictions of drift loads on a semi submersible in steep waves'. For more information contact Frédérick Jaouën.

Urans predictions of drift loads on a semi submersible in steep waves
In this paper, the motions and loads applied on the Stena Don semi-submersible in head-on waves are calculated using MARIN’s CFD code ReFRESCO. The objective is to assess whether the motions and the mean drift loads can be correctly predicted using CFD for regular waves of different steepness. The horizontal drift loads are focused on in this paper. In order to assess the accuracy of the results and the capability of CFD, a stepwise approach has been followed. First, the wave generation and propagation is investigated without any floater present. Then, the soft-moored semi-submersible is simulated in regular waves, with and without current, and the vessel motions and mean drift loads are analyzed. Finally, the CFD results are compared to results from potential flow based linear diffraction calculations, and to results from the wave basin. This study confirms that CFD is able to calculate the drift loads accurately in various regular waves. Furthermore, it can be observed that linear potential flow theory severely underpredicts the mean drift loads for steep waves with or without current.