Background

The last few years the importance of current for the behaviour of offshore structures has become evident. The strong loop current in the Gulf of Mexico delayed installation projects and resulted in Vortex Induced Motions (VIM) of offshore platforms.

It is important to note that different phases in the design require different levels of accuracy in the determination of the current induced loads and motions. In the initial design semiempirical methods (such as WINDOS) can be used, in further stages complex CFD and model tests are justified. The ‘Current Affairs’ JIP wants to understand and quantify the possibilities and limitations of all these methods. The main focus of the project will be on the practical application of the available current assessment methods.

Objectives

The objective of the ‘Current Affairs’ JIP is defined as follows: To develop tools and guidelines to assist engineers in the assessment of current effects in the different design stages.

It is important to note that different phases in the design require different levels of accuracy in the determination of the current induced loads and motions. In the initial design semi-empirical methods (such as WINDOS) can be used, in further stages complex CFD and model tests are justified. The ‘Current Affairs’ JIP wants to understand and quantify the possibilities and limitations of all these methods. The main focus of the project will be on the practical application of the current assessment methods.