Vortex-induced vibration of a tension leg platform tendon: Multi-mode limit cycle oscillations

This paper studies the application of mathematical models to analyze the vortex-induced vibrations of the tendons of a given TLP along the Indian coastline, by using an analytical approach, analyzed using MATLAB. The tendon is subjected to a steady current load, which causes vortex-shedding downstream, leading to cross-flow vibrations. The magnitude of the excitation (lift and drag coefficients) depends on the vortex-shedding frequency. The resulting vibration is studied for possible resonant behavior. The excitation force is quantified empirically, the added mass by potential flow hydrodynamics, and the vibration by normal mode summation method. Non-linear viscous damping of the water is considered. The non-linear oscillations are studied by the phase-plane method, investigating the limit-cycle oscillations. The stable/unstable regions of the dynamic behavior are demarcated. The modal contribution to the total deflection is studied to establish the possibility of resonance of one of the wet modes with the vortex-shedding frequency.     

Rapid first-stage tests of on-ship infection

Protection against on-ship infectious disease—whether due to mishap or to harmful purpose—faces special situational problems. Sometimes, when infection levels on board have reached threshold levels, emergency actions are required. Often, the most thorough strategies for responding to threat are not feasible. A rapid first-stage test (RFT) is a fast, minimally invasive procedure used to rule out from possible infection a large percentage of an infection-threatened group. Prevention and control of on-ship infection need to combine various interconnected tactics. When timely criterion tests are not possible, the medical team must adopt fast alternative measures. The methods used to summarize protection against on-ship infectious agents included a scientific literature review and a web search. The fields of the review were maritime, health, and technology sources. Special attention was paid to material dealing with risks and threats of on-ship penetration by infectious agents, on-ship infection prevalence thresholds, and rapid diagnostic screens. The Bayes rule and the law of large numbers were applied to the analysis, for large on-ship populations, of RFT indications of crossing of an infection prevalence threshold. The increasing risk of serious on-ship infection—either accidental or purposeful—calls for a multi-layered protection approach. RFTs are a key part of the outer layer of such a defense. Well-designed and well-administered RFTs provide several advantages for defense against on-ship infection: low-cost, non-invasive, fast, and focuses on a drastically smaller number of infection possibilities.     

Evaluating air emission inventories and indicators from cruise vessels at ports

This paper provides an estimation of air emissions (CO₂, NO_X, SO_X and PM) released by cruise vessels at the port level. The methodology is based on the “full bottom-up” approach and starts by evaluating the fuel consumed by each vessel on the basis of its individual port activities (manoeuvring, berthing and hoteling). The Port of Barcelona was selected as the site at which to perform the analysis, in which 125 calls of 30 cruise vessels were monitored. Real-time data from the automatic identification system (AIS), factor emissions from engine certificates and vessel characteristics from IHS Sea-web database were also collected for the analysis. The research findings show that the most appropriate indicators are inventory emissions per “port-time gross tonnage”, “port-time passenger” and “port time”. These emission indicators improve our understanding of cruise emissions and will facilitate the work that aims to estimate reliably and quickly the in-port ship emission inventories of cruise ports.     

Shared pilot passage plan and navigational safety during pilotage

Navigating in confined waters with a pilot aboard requires that the pilot’s intention and plan is understood by all present on the bridge. The present study investigates the effect of having a detailed route plan and monitoring it in the context of pilotage. The aim was to see how the presence of a shared pilot passage plan in the Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS) affects the identification and recovery from navigational errors made by a pilot. Twenty participants, 10 with a shared route plan and 10 without, participated as navigators in a simulator scenario involving pilotage in the Oslofjord. Participants were bachelor students in nautical science. The navigation scenarios involved the intentional error by the pilot just before a predefined way point. Three measurements of relevance to navigational safety were recorded: (1) the time it took the participant to express concern, (2) the time it took the participant to correct the error (‘time to recovery’), and (3) the number of groundings. The study revealed that time to express concern and time to recovery were significantly much shorter for the group with a shared pilot passage plan presented in ECDIS than for the group without such a plan. Providing a bridge team with a shared pilot passage plan in ECDIS during pilotage might improve the ability to identify and correct navigational errors.     

Vocational and academic approaches to maritime education and training (MET): Trends,challenges and opportunities

Traditional seafarer training has always focused on the acquisition and use of practical skills. The prevailing view is that, while this approach addresses a degree of cognitive skills, it focuses on and gives much more emphasis to the acquisition of hands-on practical skills for the performance of specific tasks. On the other hand, academic education has been seen to be much more focused on the development of in-depth analytical and critical thinking skills; cognitive skills that are less reliant on hands-on task-oriented training, but stress critical reading and discussion. The global trend in maritime education and training is increasingly to link an essentially vocational education that provides specific and restricted competence outcomes with more general or deeper academic components leading to an academic qualification. This trend has led to some dilemmas for curriculum development, for training legislation in a global industry, and for achieving desired learning outcomes in a professional setting (in the shipping industry). This paper discusses some of the challenges arising from this trend and the opportunities the trend offers.     

Numerical Simulation of Float-Over Installation for Offshore Platform

In this paper, a numerical investigation of a float-over installation for an offshore platform is presented to verify the feasibility of the actual installation. The hydrodynamic performance of a T-barge is investigated in the frequency domain, and the coupled motions are analyzed in the time domain. We then compare with those of the model test and determine that the response amplitude operator and the time series agree quite well. The barge exhibits favorable hydrodynamic behavior in the considered sea state, and the equipment loads are allowable. The mooring system and sway fender forces are within the permissible range. Based on these results, we can verify that the actual installation of the offshore platform is feasible. We accurately simulated many important factors and effectively reduced the risk associated with the offshore installation, which is of great importance. As such, we demonstrate that the numerical simulation of the float-over installation for offshore platforms has practical engineering significance.     

Trapped Modes in a Three-Layer Fluid

In this work, trapped mode frequencies are computed for a submerged horizontal circular cylinder with the hydrodynamic set-up involving an infinite depth three-layer incompressible fluid with layer-wise different densities. The impermeable cylinder is fully immersed in either the bottom layer or the upper layer. The effect of surface tension at the surface of separation is neglected. In this set-up, there exist three wave numbers: the lowest one on the free surface and the other two on the internal interfaces. For each wave number, there exist two modes for which trapped waves exist. The existence of these trapped modes is shown by numerical evidence. We investigate the variation of these trapped modes subject to change in the depth of the middle layer as well as the submergence depth. We show numerically that two-layer and single-layer results cannot be recovered in the double and single limiting cases of the density ratios tending to unity. The existence of trapped modes shows that in general, a radiation condition for the waves at infinity is insufficient for the uniqueness of the solution of the scattering problem.     

A Simplified Model for the Effect of Weld-Induced Residual Stresses on the Axial Ultimate Strength of Stiffened Plates

The present work investigates the compressive axial ultimate strength of fillet-welded steel-plated ship structures subjected to uniaxial compression, in which the residual stresses in the welded plates are calculated by a thermo-elasto-plastic finite element analysis that is used to fit an idealized model of residual stress distribution. The numerical results of ultimate strength based on the simplified model of residual stress show good agreement with those of various methods including the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) Common Structural Rules (CSR), leading to the conclusion that the simplified model can be effectively used to represent the distribution of residual stresses in steel-plated structures in a wide range of engineering applications. It is concluded that the widths of the tension zones in the welded plates have a quasi-linear behavior with respect to the plate slenderness. The effect of residual stress on the axial strength of the stiffened plate is analyzed and discussed.     

Spectral Wave Modeling in Very Shallow Water at Southern Coast of Caspian Sea

This study evaluates the capability of the Simulating WAves Nearshore (SWAN) wave model (version 41.01) in predicting significant wave height and spectral peak energy content for swell waves in very shallow water of surf zone during depth-induced wave breaking and dissipation. The model results were compared with field measurements at five nearshore stations. The results demonstrated that some breaker index formulations were successful for significant wave height prediction in surf zones. However, an incorrect shape of the energy spectrum and overestimated near spectral peak energy content at shallow water stations were obtained using all of the embedded depth-induced wave breaking formulations in SWAN. The dependent breaker index on relative depth (K_pd) formulation, which was successful in predicting near spectral peak energy content, resulted in an average error of 30%. Finally, this formulation was modified to enhance the model performance in reproducing the spectral peak energy content.