The effect of hydrodynamics on the interaction between floating structures and flexible ice floes: A study based on potential theory

• Main Author: Keijdener, C. (author)
• Other Authors: Hendrikse, H. (promotor), Metrikine, A. (promotor), Delft University of Technology (degree granting institution)
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: Hydrodynamics; Hydroelasticity; Ice engineering; Level ice; Bending failure; Arctic; Sea ice
• Online Access: http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a66b84b9-6c66-4c9c-a2e1-87163244ae07; https://doi.org/10.4233/uuid:a66b84b9-6c66-4c9c-a2e1-87163244ae07

The Arctic presents a great opportunity for two major industries. First, since the region is expected to contain a significant amount of hydrocarbon reserves, it is very attractive for the oil and gas industry. Second, the receding extent of sea ice is making the region more accessible for shipping and, therefore, an opportunity is emerging for the shipping industry. In order to exploit both economic opportunities in a safe and sustainable manner, a thorough understanding of the interaction between ice and floating structures is needed. The most common method for studying ice-floater interaction (IFI) is via numerical modeling, which the fluid is a major component of. As fluid-ice interaction is challenging to model, a wide range of simplified and sophisticated models are employed to meet the challenge. A literature study was performed on the usage of fluid models employed in IFI and it was found that they can be divided into four categories: hydrostatic models, models based on potential flow, models based on Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes or a similarly advanced method, and effective fluid models. The hydrostatic models are by far the most prevalent despite only accounting for buoyancy. Most IFI models that account for hydrodynamics make use of potential theory. These models account for fluid flow and surface waves, which together alter the dynamic behavior of floating ice, resulting in hydroelastic effects. The surface-wave-based coupling between ice and floater has not been studied before and there are still open questions regarding the effects of hydroelasticity on the bending failure of ice. The advanced fluid models are a recent trend in IFI and, consequently, most of those are still under development. These models are very promising and may be the future of IFI modeling. Finally, the effective models avoid the practical issues associated with hydrodynamic models in terms of development and calculation time by capturing hydrodynamics in an effective manner, employing, for instance, added mass and damping ...