Structural cracks can change the frequency response function (FRF) of an offshore platform. Thus, FRF shifts can be used to detect cracks. When a crack at a specific location and magnitude occurs in an offshore structure, changes in the FRF can be measured. In this way, shifts in FRF can be used to detect cracks. An experimental model was constructed to verify the FRF method. The relationship between FRF and cracks was found to be non-linear. The effect of multiple cracks on FRF was analyzed, and the shift due to multiple cracks was found to be much more than the summation of FRF shifts due to each of the cracks. Then the effects of noise and changes in the mass of the jacket on FRF were evaluated. The results show that significant damage to a beam can be detected by dramatic changes in the FRF, even when 10% random noise exists. FRF can also be used to approximately locate the breakage, but it can neither be efficiently used to predict the location of breakage nor the existence of small hairline cracks. The FRF shift caused by a 7% mass change is much less than the FRF shift caused by the breakage of any beam, but is larger than that caused by any early cracks.
Mathematical models simulating steep waves at a focus point are presented in this paper. Simulations of extreme waves in a model basin were used to determine the loads on floating structures induced by the waves. Based on a new wave theory, numerical test results show that the simulation procedure is effective and the induced motion of water particles in the front of waves is an important factor influencing impact loads on floating bodies.
L-shaped plates have become an important focuses in structural vibration research. To determine their vibration characteristics, this paper applied a mobility power flow method. Firstly, the L-shaped plate was divided into two substructures to simplify analysis. The coupled bending moment was then deduced by applying a continuous vibration property on the common edge. Next, the response on any point of the plate and the input and transmitted power flow formulas were calculated. Numerical simulations showed the distribution of the coupled bending moment and the response of the whole structure. The validity of this method was verified by the SEA approach.
To meet the needs of those exploiting deepwater resources, TLP and SPAR platforms are used in some areas and are considered excellent platforms in deep water. However, many problems remain to be resolved. The design of mooring systems is a key issue for deep water platforms. Environmental loads in deep water effect the physical characteristics of mooring line materials. The configuration and analysis of mooring systems involve nonlinearity due to this fluid-solid coupling, nonlinear hydrodynamic forces, and their effects on stability of motion. In this paper, some pivotal theories and technical questions are presented, including modeling of mooring lines, the theory and method of coupled dynamics analysis on the mooring system, and the development of methodologies for the study of nonlinear dynamics of mooring systems. Further study on mooring systems in deep water are recommended based on current knowledge, particularly dynamic parameters of different materials and cable configuration, interactions between seabed and cable, mechanisms of mooring system response induced by taut/slack mooring cables, discontinuous stiffness due to system materials, mooring construction, and motion instability, etc.
Improving the efficiency of ship optimization is crucial for modern ship design. Compared with traditional methods, multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) is a more promising approach. For this reason, Collaborative Optimization (CO) is discussed and analyzed in this paper. As one of the most frequently applied MDO methods, CO promotes autonomy of disciplines while providing a coordinating mechanism guaranteeing progress toward an optimum and maintaining interdisciplinary compatibility. However, there are some difficulties in applying the conventional CO method, such as difficulties in choosing an initial point and tremendous computational requirements. For the purpose of overcoming these problems, optimal Latin hypercube design and Radial basis function network were applied to CO. Optimal Latin hypercube design is a modified Latin Hypercube design. Radial basis function network approximates the optimization model, and is updated during the optimization process to improve accuracy. It is shown by examples that the computing efficiency and robustness of this CO method are higher than with the conventional CO method.
Because ring-stiffened cylindrical shell structures have many merits, they are widely used in many areas. However, as the strength of steel increase continuously, ensuring of the structure stability is becoming more and more important. Therefore, it is necessary to carry on a more particular analysis. Based on the understanding and analysis of the characteristics of stability for a ring-stiffened cylindrical shell under uniform external pressure and under external single pressure, the characteristics under different cross uniform external pressures are analyzed, and the regularity of it is also gotten. The curve of stability given various geometrical parameters under different cross uniform external pressures is protracted by the analysis of the theory. The conclusion not only improves the theory structural mechanics, it also was important effects on engineering calculation and design.
A new method improves prediction of the motion of a hybrid monohull in regular waves. Stem section hydrodynamic coefficients of a hybrid monohull with harmonic oscillation were computed using the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes Equations (RANSE). The governing equations were solved using the finite volume method. The VOF method was used for free surface treatment, and RNGK-ɛ turbulence model was employed in viscous flow calculation. The whole computational domain was divided into many blocks each with structured grids, and the dynamic process was treated with moving grids. Using a 2-D strip method and 2.5D theory with the correction hydrodynamic coefficients allows consideration of the viscous effect when predicting longitudinal motion of a hybrid monohull in regular waves. The method is effective at predicting motion of a hybrid monohull, showing that the viscous effect on a semi-submerged body cannot be ignored.
Reliable evaluations of a noise jammer’s effectiveness are necessary to properly design, manufacture, and operate one, so it is important to have an evaluation model. Based on their characteristics and principles, relevant factors were classified in terms of their contribution to a unit’s effectiveness. In this way an evaluation index system was established. In the proposed mathematical model a noise jammer is analyzed by combining the model of system effectiveness with the method of analytic hierarchical process. A simulation of underwater acoustic countermeasures was used to test the rationality and feasibility of the model. The results showed that this model is an effective way to solve the challenge of evaluating the effectiveness of non-offensive weapons under single working phase.
The frequency stability of a marine power system is determined by the dynamic characteristic of the diesel engine speed regulation system in a marine power station. In order to reduce the effect of load disturbances and improve the dynamic precision of a diesel engine speed governor, a controller was designed for a diesel engine speed regulation system using H2 control theory. This transforms the specifications of the system into a standard H2 control problem. Firstly, the mathematical model of a diesel engine speed regulation system using an H2 speed governor is presented. To counter external disturbances and model uncertainty, the design of an H2 speed governor rests on the problem of mixed sensitivity. Computer simulation verified that the H2 speed governor improves the dynamic precision of a system and the ability to adapt to load disturbances, thus enhancing the frequency stability of marine power systems.
Many recent studies have confirmed the existence of liquid slip over particular types of solid surfaces, and these so-called super-hydrophobic surfaces have been shown to generate effective liquid slip because of the air trapped between the surface structures. In this paper, based on boundary layer theory, the microscopic structure of the super-hydrophobic surface is analyzed. The liquid slip effect on friction-reduction over super-hydrophobic surfaces under various flow conditions is investigated by experiments with a flume and water tunnel. The experimental results show that the greatest amount of drag-reduction that can be achieved is 8.76% at a low Re.
Given the uncertainty of parameters and the random nature of disturbances that effect a ships course, a robust course controller should be designed on the basis of rudder/flap vector control. This paper analyzes system uncertainty, and the choice of weighting functions is also discussed. When sea waves operate on a ship, the energy-concentrating frequency varies with the angle of encounter. For different angles of encounter, different weighting functions are designed. For the pole of a nominal model existing in an imaginary axis, the bilinear-transform method is used. The “2-Riccati” equation is adopted to solve the H∞ controller. A system simulation is given, and the results show that, compared with a PID controller, this system has higher course precision and more robust performance. This research has significant engineering value.
The recursive least-square (RLS) algorithm has been extensively used in adaptive identification, prediction, filtering, and many other fields. This paper proposes adding a second-difference term to the standard recurrent formula to create a novel method for improving tracing capabilities. Test results show that this can greatly improve the convergence capability of RLS algorithms.