Development of submarine cable hydrodynamic loads calculation program using MATLAB

Seif Bayoumi,Mohamed Hamdy,Mohamed Fahmy M Shehadeh,Mohamed M Abo Elazm

doi:10.1177/1687814020906080

Abstract

A MATLAB program was developed to estimate the hydrodynamic forces due to wave and current on an un-trenched submarine cable of diameter 9 in resting at the bottom of a 14-m depth sea, utilizing the Fourier decomposition method. The aim of this part of the research is to provide an accurate estimation of the hydrodynamic forces acting on the cable and to present a comparison between the Morison force model and Fourier decomposition force model. In addition, investigating the methods of fixation for submarine pipes and cables as the commonly used methods is of high cost for both manufacturing and installation and maintenance processes has many drawbacks. This research is concerned with the ability of the cable to be stable on the seabed using its own weight and, if required, estimating extra chain weight to be added helping stabilize the cable on the seabed. A validation of the developed program with UWAHYDRO program developed in the Western Australia University is introduced in this article.

Highlights

There is a need to utilize 70% of undiscovered land under seas and oceans to connect continents through power and communication cables, establish renewable energy farms in the open seas, or even excavate for offshore sources of hydrocarbon fossil fuels
Pumps and compressors are placed at the bottom of the sea on the submarine pipelines for transferring fossil fuels and natural gas from offshore wells to onshore facilities
A MATLAB program was developed to estimate the hydrodynamic forces due to combined effect of waves and current per unit length acting on a 9-in cable in diameter, resting on a calcareous sand seabed with 14 m depth

Summary

Introduction

There is a need to utilize 70% of undiscovered land under seas and oceans to connect continents through power and communication cables, establish renewable energy farms in the open seas, or even excavate for offshore sources of hydrocarbon fossil fuels. Keywords Submarine cable, wave and current forces, hydrodynamic forces, MATLAB computations, marine engineering

Results

Conclusion