Advanced backbone deployed to measure bending modes of ultralarge container vessels

MARIN carried out a series of model tests on behalf of the Marine Designand Research Institute of China (MARIC) to assess the flexural responseof an ultra-large container ship (ULCS). A 10-segmented model wasmounted on an advanced backbone to replicate the vertical andhorizontal bending modes and tested in a range of wave conditions.

The demand for cutting operational costs in the maritime industry has led to a substantial increase in containership size over the past 50 years. Operational costs are dominated by fuel costs, thus carrying more containers whilst burning the same amount of fuel, makes the operational costs per transported container decrease. This hopefully leads to a higher profit and better competitiveness.

Although ULCS do represent a substantial reduction in operational costs, the downside of these vessels - of nearly 400 m in length - is the impact of ship motions and slamming on the construction of the vessel. These ULCS need to withstand enormous forces acting on the hull, which are the result of slamming impacts on the bow and aft body, and these cause whipping and springing effects.

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