Three-dimensional poro-elasto-plastic model for wave-induced seabed response around submarine pipeline

Abstract

The evaluation of the wave-induced excess pore pressure around a buried pipeline is particularly important for pipeline engineers involved in the design of offshore pipelines. Existing models for the wave-induced seabed response around submarine pipeline have been limited to poro-elastic soil behavior and de-coupled oscillatory and residual mechanisms for the rise in excess pore water pressure. To overcome the shortcoming of the existing models, in this study a three-dimensional poro-elasto-plastic soil model with submarine pipeline is established, in which both oscillatory and residual mechanisms can be simulated simultaneously. With the proposed model, a parametric study is conducted to investigate the relative differences of the predictions of the wave-induced pore pressure with poro-elasto-plastic model. Based on numerical examples, it can be concluded that the poro-elasto-plastic behaviors of soil have more significant influence on wave-induced pore pressure of seabed around submarine pipeline. As the seabed depth increases, the normalized pore pressures decrease rapidly at the upper part of seabed, and then change slightly at the lower part of the seabed. Soil permeability and wave period have obvious influence on the wave-induced normalized pore pressure.