Advances in the prediction of spudcan punch-through in double-layered soils

Punch-through failure of jack-up spudcan foundations occurs in active oil and gas drilling exploration regions, where relatively stiff soil overlies soft marine layer. Therefore, installation of spudcan foundations in such seabed formations threatens the stability of the jack-up rig. A site-specific assessment of the potential and severity of failure must be completed before the commencement of the installation. However, the accuracy of the prediction is limited by the validity of the design method currently in use. This paper presents advances in the prediction of punch-through failure of jack-up platforms in sand/stiff clay over soft clay soils. New analytical models for spudcan installation in double-layered soils are reviewed and compared to the existing methods in the ISO 19905-1 standard and SNAME standard. The capabilities and limitations of each method are summarised and recommendations are drawn for the theoretical predictions of spudcan punch-through in double-layered soils.     

The undrained bearing capacity of a spudcan foundation under combined loading in soft clay

Mobile jack-up drilling rigs are typically supported by individual, large diameter spudcan foundations. Before deployment, the suitability of a jack-up to a location must be shown in a site-specific assessment under loads associated with a 50-year return period storm, which ultimately need to be resisted by the foundations. The capacity of the spudcans under combined vertical, horizontal and moment loading is therefore integral to the overall site-specific assessment of the jack-up.In soft clays, spudcans can penetrate deeply into the seabed, sometimes up to several footing diameters, with soil flowing around the downward penetrating footing, sealing the cavity. Although this is generally believed to provide some additional bearing capacity to the footing, no detailed study or formal guidance is available to date. This study, therefore, investigates the influence of soil back-flow on the failure mechanisms and quantifies the effect on the capacity of a spudcan under general loading through finite element analyses. A closed-form analytical expression is developed that describes the capacity envelope under combined loading, applicable to embedment depths ranging from shallow to deep.     

Assessing appropriate stiffness levels for spudcan foundations on dense sand

Before a jack-up can operate at a given location, a site-specific assessment of its ability to withstand a design storm during operation must be performed. During this assessment, the complex state of stress and strain under a spudcan is usually simplified to a value of foundation stiffness that is integrated as a boundary condition into the structural analysis. Soil stiffness is a critical parameter affecting the foundation and structural load distribution and displacements, and the jack-up natural period and dynamic response. The level of spudcan stiffness is an area of intense interest and debate. This paper assesses appropriate stiffness levels for numerical simulation. Utilising results from a detailed “pushover” experiment of a three-legged model jack-up on dense sand, the paper compares the experimental pushover loads and displacements on the hull and spudcans to numerical simulations using different assumptions of spudcan stiffness. These include pinned and encastré footings, linear springs and a force-resultant model based on displacement-hardening plasticity theory. Constant stiffness levels are shown to be inadequate in simulating the experimental pushover test. The non-linear degradation of stiffness associated with the latter force-resultant model is critical.     

自升式平台层状地基条件下插桩过程数值模拟研究

对于采用独立式桩靴结构的自升式平台,桩靴的入泥深度是保障平台安全作业的关键问题之一。采用ABAQUS软件的Explicit求解器,以位移增量步方式计算地基极限承载力;在施加初始地应力场的前提下,引入无限元边界处理方法,考虑了土壤无限大边界条件的影响,并使用ALE自适应网格技术有效地解决了土壤模型的大变形问题;最后,将有限元计算与经验公式计算进行比对分析。结果表明,在一定预压载荷条件下,有限元计算结果能较全面精确地反映插桩结果,弥补经验公式考虑参数单一、无法解决层状土承载力之间不连续问题以及无法动态模拟插桩过程的不足。     

风电安装平台插桩过程的试验与理论研究

针对风电安装平台在多层土中的插桩过程,通过现场取样测试获取土壤的物理参数,并通过插桩试验得到其平均插桩深度,以此建立插桩过程的数值模型,对插桩阻力与深度的变化规律以及土壤的流动失效机制进行了研究。结果表明,经验法选取土壤弹性模量与实际相差较大,试验测出的平均插桩深度为7.3m;数值结果与试验结果吻合良好,证明了理论模型的正确性;土壤发生了表面隆起、空腔形成、壁面坍塌和土壤回流四种失效模式。     

自升式服务平台桩靴结构优化设计

桩靴作为自升式平台的重要结构之一,在整个平台的就位和作业等方面发挥着重要作用。针对350ft自升式多功能服务平台的2种桩靴结构形式,应用MSC Patran和Nastran建立有限元模型,依据美国船级社相关规范对不同工况下2种不同形式桩靴的强度进行评估,并分别对2种桩靴的质量进行统计。对计算结果进行分析比较,并提出一些可行性建议。     

121.92m（400ft）自升式钻井船极限水深条件下插桩预测

根据南海121.92 m（400 ft）水深海域的海底土质特性,利用静力触探试验测试结果预测海底土的承载力,进而确定自升式钻井船插桩深度范围。结合理论计算和现场实际,得出南海121.92 m（400 ft）水深海域的自升式钻井船桩腿入泥深度数据库。     

自升式钻井平台桩靴结构强度分析

桩靴是钻井平台的重要支撑构件,其结构强度对整个钻井平台的安全起着至关重要的作用。以某自升式钻井平台桩靴为研究对象,根据ABS(美国船级社)规范要求,建立桩靴结构强度的力学模型,并合理简化,分析了预压载和自存两种工况下的设计载荷。利用有限元软件MSC.Patran/Nastran对两种工况下桩靴的强度进行分析,研究得到桩靴强度工程化分析流程以及结构强度特性,分析结果为自升式钻井平台的桩靴设计提供参考。     

自升式平台桩靴/地基承载力的数值分析

桩靴/地基承载力的准确预报是确保自升式平台进行海上插桩作业安全性的重要前提,常规的规范算法在处理复杂地基条件时存在困难。基于非线性数值分析方法,在对加载点位置、网格尺寸、地基边界等关键技术进行研究的基础上,以某400ft水深自升式平台为例,分别对海底均质土和成层土的承载力进行了研究。同时,对各土层参数的影响进行了详细分析,为探索插桩过程中地基破坏原理和承载力计算提供了一些参考。     

自升式钻井平台桩靴裂纹分析、处理及修复研究

桩靴是自升式平台的重要组成部分,主要作用是支撑整个平台,将平台所受的载荷传递到海床.一旦桩靴失效,将导致桩腿下沉,平台无法保持水平.文章利用有限元方法研究了自升式平台桩靴在出现裂纹后的应力水平,并研究相关的应对措施与修复方法.     

Advances in the three-dimensional fluid–structure–soil interaction analysis of offshore jack-up structures

The operation of mobile jack-up drilling rigs in harsher ocean environments requires enhanced understanding of their behaviour in storm loading conditions and suitable numerical simulation tools for the assessment of their suitability for a particular site. This paper introduces the numerical program SOS_3D, which incorporates appropriate models for the three components of the structure, the soil and the environmental loading of offshore structures like jack-ups. The program is formulated for three-dimensional (3D) analysis and provides an integrated approach to the inter-related aspects of fluid–structure–soil interaction analysis. In applying the program, results of an example jack-up subjected to both symmetric and asymmetric loading situations are compared and discussed. Quasistatic push-over analyses are used to illustrate aspects of jack-up behaviour in three dimensions. Furthermore, jack-up response to storm loading conditions is predicted in dynamic wave loading analyses, demonstrating the necessity of 3D dynamic simulations and emphasising the benefit of using a force-resultant foundation model based on plasticity theory.     

Determination of limiting cavity depths for offshore spudcan foundations in a spatially varying seabed

The importance of accurate prediction of limiting cavity depths during offshore spudcan foundations installation has been variously highlighted in the literature. Nonetheless, most of the previous research is deterministic in nature and confined to homogenous soils. Since offshore clayey soils can be highly spatially variable, there is a practical need to take proper account of the spatial variability in the prediction of limiting cavity depths. In a bid to remedy this situation, large deformation finite element calculations combined with three-dimensional random fields were repeatedly conducted in this study within a Monte-Carlo framework. The continuous penetration of a spudcan initiated from surface was explicitly modeled until a full-localized flow-around mechanism was observed. Spatial variability was found to clearly affect the soil back-flow and thereby the limiting cavity depth, the latter of which takes a range of values that can be approximately modeled as a log-normal distribution. Characteristic limiting cavity depths at various probability levels were ascertained. An algebraic expression was proposed to explicitly predict the characteristic limiting cavity depths in random soils from the fractile. Particular attention was paid to the lower and upper 5% characteristic values, which are likely to be useful for reliability-based design.     

Research on the calculation method of penetration resistance of bucket foundation for offshore wind turbines

The cost of foundations for offshore wind turbines constitutes approximately 35% of the total cost of an offshore wind farm. The bucket foundations show significant potential due to their superior transportation and installation efficiencies compared to pile foundations, leading to potential cost savings for the foundation of up to 30%. For a bucket foundation to be installed successfully, the penetration resistance must be predicted. However, there is currently a lack of clarity on how to select a suitable calculation method for penetration resistance based on known geological parameters to guide construction. In order to evaluate the current methods of calculation for bucket foundation penetration resistance, this study combines theoretical calculation methods with two sets of practical measurement data from the field. The calculation methods of penetration resistance for bucket foundation are first reviewed and categorized. The applicability range of each method and the parameters needed for calculation are given. Next, according to the measured data in the process of penetration of bucket foundation on site, the evolution of compartment pressure, tilt angle, resistance and required suction in the process of penetration are analyzed. Finally, the reviewed methods are compared to the results of two practical projects in order to analyze the differences between them and make recommendations for the calculation technique. The findings can be used as a guide for calculating the bucket foundation's penetration resistance in complex geological conditions.     

The weldability of steels used in jack-up drilling platforms

Weldability problems in jack-up rigs arise principally in leg construction where particularly high-strength steels (690 N mm⁻² yield) are used for chords and racks. Attainment of mechanical properties is not usually difficult, although procedural trials are advisable.

Of potential fabrication problems, hydrogen cracking (heat-affected zones or weld metal) is of greatest concern, and consideration of solidification cracking is advisable. Lamellar tearing is not generally a problem with modern steels, and the risk of stress-relief cracking will be confined to the limited number of joints which can be heat-treated.

Fatigue cracking is probably the major cause of service failure of jack-up rigs, and the use of high-strength steels, which permits higher static stress limits, can exacerbate this problem. Hydrogen-induced stress corrosion can also occur, either due to cathodic polarisation or corrosion, particularly in the presence of H₂S in foul sea-water. For this reason weld hardness limits need to be maintained.     

自升式风电安装船桩腿强度分析和优化

近年来,随着国内海上风电行业的蓬勃发展,市场对自升式风电安装船的需求日益迫切。桩腿是影响自升式风电安装船作业安全性的关键环节,桩腿设计也是自升式风电安装船的关键技术难点之一;而海上风电场的选址逐渐向离岸更远、水深更大的方向发展,客观上也对桩腿适应更恶劣海况条件的能力提出了更高要求。本文结合近年来多型自升式风电安装船桩腿设计经验,分析研究了桩腿总强度计算和优化的过程,及其与海况环境、作业条件、可变载荷等参数之间的相关性,为自升式风电安装船的桩腿设计提供了有效方法。     

海洋平台风载荷的数值分析

风载荷是海洋平台主要的设计载荷,常规的规范算法在结果上偏于保守。本文基于N-S方程(Navier-Stokes)方程对某自升式钻井平台进行了风载荷的数值分析,控制方程—RANS(Reyolds Averaged Navier-Stokes)和连续性方程使用有限体积法离散。在此基础上,对数值分析中湍流模型选择及网格划分方法进行了讨论,分别采用CFX及FLUNET软件对海洋平台整体及单个构件的风载荷和形状系数进行了研究。     

Dynamic response of a SWATH vessel for installing pre-assembled floating wind turbines

New and efficient installation concepts which can reduce the cost of developing an offshore wind farm are of particular interest. This paper explores a promising concept using the small water-plane area twin-hull vessel (SWATH) to install pre-assembled wind turbines (OWT) onto floating spar foundations. A focus is placed on the hydrodynamic performance of the SWATH and the response analysis of the coupled SWATH-spar system. Firstly, the numerically calculated difference-frequency wave force effect and damping forces of the original SWATH were verified with experimental data. Secondly, the original SWATH was modified to satisfy the criteria of weight-carrying capacity and hydrostatic stability. Thirdly, a multibody numerical model for the SWATH-spar system was developed, in which the hydrodynamic and mechanical couplings between the SWATH and a spar were considered. The SWATH is equipped with a dynamic positioning system to counteract the slow-drift wave force effects. The nonlinear time-domain simulations were carried out for the mating stage when a wind turbine is lifted above the spar foundation. Based on the analysis of statistics of the relative displacement and velocity of the tower bottom and the spar top, the installation concept with SWATH is found to be of decent performance. Finally, recommendations are provided for future research on this concept, which contributes to developing next-generation installation concepts for bottom-fixed and floating wind farms.     

超大型风机安装平台自升状态下的运动响应频域分析

针对自升自航式海上风机安装作业平台在风浪较大的海上风电场区域作业时风、浪、流载荷较大,影响安全的问题,基于SESAM软件,建立海上风机安装作业平台有限元模型,在频域内计算了波浪载荷和运动响应传递函数,并进行响应谱分析。结果表明,平台运动响应受波浪周期和浪向角的影响较大,当桩腿接近海底时,有可能对导致桩腿触底,在船舶设计以及船舶实际作业时应注意避免这种现象发生。     

Preloading of independent leg units at locations with difficult seabed conditions

This paper, based on analyses of case histories, reviews soil conditions causing sudden uncontrolled leg penetrations, together with site data needed to plan safe installations of jack-up drilling units. Punch-through-like failure in uniform clay profile is analysed. Preloading procedures aimed at minimizing potential damage to the unit are suggested and discussed.     

3600t化学品船主推进系统安装工艺

为了更合理地进行3600t化学品船主推进系统设备的安装,对轴系采用负荷法校中,使轴系各轴承负荷分配更趋合理。编制安装工艺,指导和控制各设备的安装步序以及安装质量要求,使船厂缩短了安装周期,并且通过了船东、船检的认可和验收。