Abstract
The device under investigation in this paper consists of a float used to capture tidal energy, which is tethered by multiple flexible cables to a large barge-like reactor. The proposed float is made of a continuously wound glass-reinforced composite shell with stainless steel bolting plates integrated into the float walls to allow the connection of 5 stainless steel cables. Numerical computations are required to assess whether a delamination of the composite layers in the float is likely. The manufacturing of the device has various potential uncertainties that should be investigated, such as the number of the plies, the bond strength between the composite layers, and the fibre orientations of the composite material relative to the applied load. This paper provides a multi-level strategy to optimise the composite float system, which is manufactured from glass-reinforced plastic (GRP). In contrast to previous publications on the topic, the current work uses an efficient link between ANSYS Workbench and MATLAB through an in-house code that has been developed over 3 years. This allowed the whole process to be fully automated and to reduce the time and cost of the simulations. Previously, ANSYS APDL was linked to MATLAB, but limitations in terms of the geometry and boundary conditions made it impractical when compared to ANSYS Workbench for the simulation of complex features. This makes the current approach unique and rare when compared to the published work in the field. This approach allows the use of a huge number of trials and is able to reduce the number of parameters to be studied by selecting the most sensitive ones. Additionally, the developed tools may be used for the efficient, robust optimisation of the proposed structure. The current study has focused on exploring the effects of the fibre orientations and the optimum number of plies on the overall performance of the structure.
Highlights
The device under investigation consists of a float that is tethered by multiple flexible cables to a large barge-like reactor to harvest tidal energy
This study has provided a full-scale investigation of the proposed MPS float system, which is to
This study has provided a full-scaleplastic investigation of the proposed float system, which is to be manufactured from glass-reinforced (GRP)
Summary
The device under investigation consists of a float that is tethered by multiple flexible cables to a large barge-like reactor to harvest tidal energy. The barge thehosts energy devices devices that on depend on the variation of theloads tension loads in the to the constrained float that depend the variation of the tension in the cables duecables to the due constrained float movement. The process wraps a band of continuous resin-impregnated rotating mandrel, which is cured at room temperature or in an oven under prescribed pressure. The mechanical properties of the final product depend the product onangle, the material, winding angle, fibre strength, resin cycles chemistry, andfilament curing cycles [2]. Composite are highly direction-dependent the direction-dependent the fibresof may laid in the directionloading of the expected loading to fibres may be laid in and the direction thebe expected significant to ensuresignificant high integrity of the ensure high of winding the structure [3].(see.
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