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Dynamic compression and buckling are critical issues in the viability analysis of rigid and flexible risers developed for offshore applications, especially concerning deep-water operations. Those subjects have been addressed both numerically and analytically. However, few experimental data for validation purposes is found in literature. This paper presents a set of experimental results on the dynamic compression of rigid and flexible risers in catenary configurations, obtained by means of towing-tank tests. Two small-scale models have been built, the first one emulating the dynamic behavior of a steel catenary riser (SCR) and the other representing a much more flexible line. Uniform circular motion has been applied to the top of the models, emulating the floating system first-order oscillations. Different amplitudes of top motion have been considered, each one of them imposed with different frequencies of oscillation. Tension has been measured at the top of the models. The influence of current velocity has also been evaluated. Dynamic tension estimations obtained through finite element analysis are compared to the experimental results. Tension amplitude and critical compression load values are evaluated and compared for both, the steel catenary (SCR) and the flexible models. Comparisons show, in general, a fair agreement between simulations and experiments, reassuring the reliability of numerical models. Results also demonstrate that finite element code provides good predictions of maximum tension loads even when the risers are subjected to high levels of dynamic compression and buckle. Nevertheless, it is clearly noted that difficulties arise in the treatment of flexible structures under severe buckling and torsion. The accuracy of analytical methods proposed for the estimation of critical compression loads is also discussed, based on the experimental results.

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The flow around circular smooth fixed cylinder in a large range of Reynolds numbers is considered in this paper. In order to investigate this canonical case, we perform CFD calculations and apply verification & validation (V&V) procedures to draw conclusions regarding numerical error and, afterwards, assess the modeling errors and capabilities of this (U)RANS method to solve the problem. Eight Reynolds numbers between Re = 10 and Re=5×105 will be presented with, at least, four geometrically similar grids and five discretization in time for each case (when unsteady), together with strict control of iterative and round-off errors, allowing a consistent verification analysis with uncertainty estimation. Two-dimensional RANS, steady or unsteady, laminar or turbulent calculations are performed. The original 1994 k-ω SST turbulence model by Menter is used to model turbulence. The validation procedure is performed by comparing the numerical results with an extensive set of experimental results compiled from the literature.

A great deal of works has been developed on the spar vortex-induced motion (VIM) issue. There are, however, very few published works concerning VIM of monocolumn platforms, partly due to the fact that the concept is fairly recent and the first unit was only installed last year. In this context, a meticulous study on VIM for this type of platform concept is presented here. Model test experiments were performed to check the influence of many factors on VIM, such as different headings, wave/current coexistence, different drafts, suppression elements, and the presence of risers. The results of the experiments presented here are motion amplitudes in both in-line and transverse directions, forces and added-mass coefficients, ratios of actual oscillation and natural periods, and motions in the XY plane. This is, therefore, a very extensive and important data set for comparisons and validations of theoretical and numerical models for VIM prediction.

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