The Impact of Green Water on FPSO Design

For weather-vaning turret moored FPSO's in survival conditions the bow is always exposed to the wave action. When the waves come above the freeboard, this can result in considerable amounts of green water on the deck. This can cause damage to the sensitive equipment at the bow, like the fluid swivel, piping, turret structure and chemical stores. Taking also into account the tendency in several new designs to place the accommodation superstructure forward of the turret at the bow, the impact of green water on FPSO design will become more important in the future.Based on a series of model tests this paper presents an orientation into the various aspects which play a role in the green water loading on FPSO units. First the occurring phenomena are described. Second the effect of the environmental conditions, such as the wave height, wave period and current velocity, are highlighted. Finally several design aspects are considered. The influence of the bow shape, the position of the equipment on the deck and the shape of breakwaters will be discussed.


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