Structural modeling for global response analysis of VLFS

Abstract

For the structural design of very large floating structures (VLFS) of several thousand meters long, a hierarchical system of structural analysis must be developed, in which an idealized structural modeling is employed for the global response analysis while the local structural response is analyzed using a zooming technique. In this study, two types of grillage beam models, a plane grillage model and a sandwich grillage model, are considered and their applicability to the global response analysis of a pontoon-type VLFS in waves is examined. The influence of structural modeling on the buckling strength evaluation of VLFS is also studied.