Assessment of Ice Accretion on Offshore Structures

• Main Author: Minsk, L D
• Other Authors: COLD REGIONS RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING LAB HANOVER NH
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1984
• Subjects: Snow; Ice and Permafrost; *ICE FORMATION; *OFFSHORE STRUCTURES; ACCUMULATION; ICE; METEOROLOGICAL PHENOMENA; OCEANS; SPRAYS; Ice; permafrost
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA141996; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA141996

The literature on sea spray (superstructure) icing is almost entirely based on observations on moving ships. However, icing on stationary offshore platforms with their fixed vertical columns will differ significantly from ship icing, which is influenced by ship movement and wind and wave directions. An observation program on offshore drilling vessels is proposed, using 1-in.-diam x 8-in.-long cylinders in arrays as a standard measuring technique for spray icing. Atmospheric icing may be a source of ice accretion on derricks in some locations, and the best commercial device currently available for measuring it is the Rosemount detector. Improved devices for both spray and atmospheric ice accretion measurements should be developed. Icephobic coatings have the potential for reducing ice accretion, and testing of candidate materials should be undertaken. Well-documented icing reports by all types of ships or platforms should be made and collected at a central clearinghouse.