Dynamic Response of Inflatable Offshore Fender Barrier Structures under Impact Loading

Numerical study of the dynamic response of Inflatable Offshore Fender Barrier Structures using the Coupled Eulerian–Lagrangian discretization technique

“…This paper extends the work reported by Aboshio et al [15] by explaining the state of the art being addressed and the governing equations for which the numerical results were obtained. Detail description of the FSI model used and numerical implementation of the model for analysis and simulation of the barrier under impact is also presented.…”

“…Experimental (uniaxial) test carried out on the composites indicates that the composites demonstrate anisotropic mechanical properties with dissimilar results obtained for specimens oriented in the warp and weft directions [1,4,5]. Table 1 presents properties of the composite material considered in this study.…”

“…IOFBS are traditionally installed on sea site with support conditions provided by mooring systems anchored at the sea bed at predetermined intervals based on environmental weather conditions of the site. Study of the current design under impact [21], following validation of numerical results of the physical tests [5,22] has identified short fall in the level of performance of the enclosed fluid after impact-a key parameter in ensuring desirable dynamic response of the structure in maintaining both its shape, stiffness and strength. Among other important parameters obtained from the study, the results indicated that only 17% increase of initial inflation pressure in the structure was obtained as the maximum initial surge in pressure following impact of a typical vessel whose physical characteristics are defined in the body of this work.…”

“…Figure 2 presents the coupling scenario where the Lagrangian domain Г, can be solved in the Lagrangian step and Eulerian domain К, solved during the Eulerian step. Here the enclosed fluid (air) behaviour is described using the ideal gas law for computational efficiency as when compared to description of the fluid behaviour using the Euler or Navier stokes equations [5,7]. Pressure from the enclosed fluid at the fluid-structure interface can be analytically computed using the relation in Equation 12.…”

“…Numerical technique for achieving this involves embedding the Lagrangian structure in the void region of the Eulerian mesh. Contact between the Lagrange structure and the Eulerian material interface can be enforced using the 'penalty' method as described in [5,13,19]. From this, the structure imposes displacement or velocity boundary condition on the fluid (water), while the fluid imposes traction boundary condition on the structure.…”