Hull Structure Research Articles

End-to-end deep learning method to reconstruct full-field stress distribution for ship hull structure with stress concentrations

An image-based deep learning framework is developed to reconstruct full-field stress distribution of ship hull structure from discrete measurements in this paper. The work is motivated by the lack of data to assess the strength state of vessel. The proposed deep learning framework is based on a conditional generative adversarial network (cGAN) which contains a generator and a discriminator. They are mutually trained in a supervised manner based on an adversarial mechanism. The hull structure of interest is selected to be an opening deck of a bulk carrier. A novel image encoding algorithm is also designed to fuse global stress distribution and high gradient stresses at hatch corner regions into an image. A total of 3400 stress fields are generated and simulated using finite element method (FEM) to provide a sufficiently large dataset for training and testing the network. It is shown that the proposed deep learning approach can efficiently reconstruct the full-field stress distribution of hull structure. Furtherly, the influence of measurement noise on reconstruction accuracy is discussed. The results demonstrate that the well-trained network can directly generate robust solutions to full-field stress distribution under given discrete measurements.

A Quasi Time-Domain Method for Fatigue Analysis of Reactor Pressure Vessels in Floating Nuclear Power Plants in Marine Environments

The reactor pressure vessel (RPV) in onshore nuclear power plants is typically analysed for fatigue life by considering the temperature, internal pressure, and seismic effects using a simplified time-domain fatigue analysis. In contrast, the frequency-domain fatigue analysis method is commonly employed to assess the fatigue life of ship structures. The RPV of a floating nuclear power plant (FNPP) is subjected to a combination of temperature, internal pressure, and wave loads in the marine environment. Consequently, it is essential to effectively integrate the frequency-domain fatigue analysis method used for hull structures with the time-domain fatigue analysis method for RPVs in FNPPs or, alternatively, to develop a suitable method that effectively accounts for the temperature, internal pressure, and wave loads. In this study, a quasi-time-domain method is proposed for the fatigue analysis of RPVs in FNPPs. In this method, secondary components of marine environmental loads are filtered out using principal component analysis. Subsequently, the stress spectrum induced by waves is transformed into a stress time history. Fatigue stress under the combined influence of temperature, internal pressure, and wave loads is then obtained through a stress component superposition method. Finally, the accuracy of the quasi-time-domain method was validated through three numerical examples. The results indicate that the calculated values obtained by the quasi-time-domain method are slightly higher than those obtained by the traditional time-domain method, with a maximum deviation of no more than 24%. Additionally, the computation time of the quasi-time-domain method is reduced by 98.67% compared to the traditional time-domain method.

Vulnerability Assessment for Naval Ships against Air-Explosive Impulses: Modified Damage-Extent Method Incorporating Structural Capacity

Abstract This study introduces an enhanced damage-extent method that incorporates the structural load-bearing capacity of the hull to assess the vulnerability of naval ships to explosive loads. This vulnerability assessment predicts the area of damage to the hull structure and calculates the probability of onboard equipment experiencing functional losses due to the explosive load, thus allowing various design alternatives to be evaluated. The proposed methodology improves upon traditional damage-volume-based approaches, such as damage-radius and ellipsoid methods, by considering the hull's structural stiffness and intrinsic damage resistance. It integrates the hull's structural resistance to the load, enhancing the damage assessment process for both the hull and equipment. This approach facilitates damage prediction for different hull designs by comparing the allowable impulse with the explosive pressure. In assessing the functionality loss and vulnerability of the equipment within the damaged hull, the network of equipment functions is considered. An anti-ship cruise missile with a sea-skimming trajectory is investigated as the explosive charge, with procedures established to simulate its trajectory and impact location on the hull. Hundreds of potential internal and external explosion points are generated, predicting the explosive pressure at each location. The shock wave, including incident overpressure, reflection pressure, and quasi-static gas pressure, is converted into impulses, taking into account the configuration of hull compartments to accurately predict these pressures and equivalent impulse. The resulting impulse is compared with the intrinsic damage capacity of each compartment's structure to assess potential damage. System network and fault tree analysis evaluate the loss of function and vulnerability of equipment within the damaged hull. Finally, the proposed capacity-based damage extent method demonstrates more accurate damage assessment compared to traditional methods, overcoming the limitations of damage-radius and ellipsoid approaches by considering hull strength

Study on Hydroelastic Responses of Membrane-Type LNG Cargo Containment Structure under Impulsive Sloshing Loads of Different Media

Owing to the increasing g lobal demand for natural gas, the construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers has become a key trend in the shipbuilding market. In the design of membrane-type LNG carriers, a sloshing analysis is crucial for cargo containment systems (CCSs). In this study, structural responses due to impulsive sloshing loads were observed, including the effects of hydroelasticity and the test medium. To this end, the structural responses were first observed with and without hydroelastic coupling between the liquid and structure. When fluid–structure coupling is considered, a finite element analysis is performed for the integrated structure of the hull and CCS. This method was then applied to evaluate the capacity and safety of the inner hull structures of actual LNG vessels in cases where different sloshing pressures occurred owing to the different liquid–gas media. The structural capacity was evaluated using the utilization factor (UT). The results confirm that the effects of the hydroelasticity, density ratio, and phase transition of the experimental medium are essential for the evaluation of the structural responses of LNG CCSs.

Accuracy verification of the 2D spectral AIS method by the hull monitoring data

Accuracy validation of the 2D spectral AIS method (AIS method using two-dimensional wave spectrum; 2D-AIS method) using hull monitoring data of a large ore carrier is discussed. The AIS method predicts the response of actual ships using AIS-based ship position data, hindcast wave data, and response characteristics data. The conventional AIS method uses representative parameters(H, T, θ) from wave spectrum modeling. The modeling involves many uncertainties. By using the 2D wave spectrum as it is, the effect of uncertainties associated with wave spectrum modeling is investigated. Compared to the analysis of the monitoring data conducted in this study, it was found that the 2D-AIS method improves the accuracy to about 15 %, while the conventional AIS method shows an error of up to about 35 % compared to the actual measurements in the long-term maximum expected values. This enhancement is attributed to the inability of the modeled wave spectrum to accurately represent the two-peak wave spectrum observed in extreme sea states, leading to a deficiency in reproducing wave frequency components corresponding to peak frequencies of the response. The findings underscore the effectiveness of the 2D-AIS method in refining long-term hull stress estimations, thus offering valuable insights for enhancing the safety and performance of hull structures.

Experimental study of the transmission of vibrations and noise of an hydrofoil excited by cavitation in a hydrodynamic tunnel

Ship propellers are responsible for radiated noise in the near and far environment. One of the main sources of noise from propellers is due to the cavitation phenomenon that occurs on each blade. This phenomenon produces strong pressure fluctuations, which in turn generate noise that propagates in the ocean but also inside the boat. The strong wall pressure fluctuations excite the hull structure, which then transmits the noise inside the ship. The transmission is problematic for passenger ships and cruise liners, for whom silence is synonymous with quality. Efforts are being made to improve sound absorption and insulation, but the phenomenon of noise transmission from propellers to the hull via strong pressure fluctuations is still poorly understood. The aim of the paper is to simplify the problem studying a hydrofoil excited by a controlled flow and subjected to different states of cavitation. Vibration and acoustic measurements will be carried out to study the transmission of noise and vibration through the tunnel wall in order to be correlated to the different states of cavitation.

A new similarity method for the ultimate strength of box girders subjected to the combined load of bending and lateral pressure

The ultimate strength is an important property for hull structures nowadays. For large-scale structures, scale models are needed to perform physical model tests. Therefore, similarity methods are especially important. Traditional similarity methods consider similarity criteria of cross-section properties, and modern similarity methods introduce some strength-related similarity criteria to consider the nonlinear collapse procedure. However, these two kinds of criteria may be conflicting and are hard to meet simultaneously. Most existing works concentrated on simple structures, like stiffened plates, due to the difficulty in meeting all the similarity criteria. In this paper, a new similarity method is proposed for box girders subjected to the combined load of bending moment and lateral pressure. The proposed method considers only the strength-related similarity criteria, ignoring the criteria of cross-section properties. The column slenderness, the plate slenderness, and the torsional slenderness are selected as the similarity parameters for every stiffened plate in the box girder. The new similarity relations of the ultimate moment and the applied lateral pressure are derived according to the proposed criteria. A structured step-by-step scale model design procedure is proposed to design corresponding scale models. 4 numerical examples are presented to show the correctness and advantages of the proposed method.

Feasibility study on additive-manufactured honeycomb sandwich structural solutions for a Fast Patrol Vessel

This work represents a significant step toward integrating additive-manufactured honeycomb sandwiches into ship hull structures. The sandwich structure consists of two continuous fibre-reinforced thermoplastic faces and a regular honeycomb core made of chopped fibre-reinforced thermoplastic. The primary goal is to create optimal manufacturing and design methods to determine to which extent the sandwich solution that has been analysed may be used as a structural component of a fast patrol vessel. The core of the design procedure is a purposely developed evolutionary multiobjective optimisation routine suited to evaluate the flexural response of the structure under investigation. The analytical formulations utilised to predict the structural response of an additive-manufactured honeycomb sandwich subjected to 3-point bending have been derived using a combined analytical and experimental approach. A fast patrol vessel made of steel has been taken as a reference to demonstrate the capabilities of the proposed solution. A steel primary stiffener and its associated plate have been extracted from the midship section and replaced by an additively manufactured honeycomb sandwich. By maintaining the same structural encumbrances, it has been found that a pseudo-optimal combination of the mechanical properties of the sandwich base materials can accomplish an exceptional weight reduction of three times.

Ship Hull Hybrid Structural Design Accounting for Reliability

The optimum ship hull design solution has always been a concern, and in recent years, genetic algorithms to optimise the ship hull structure have been developed. The genetic algorithm’s fundaments generate alternative solutions and compare them with pre-defined constants and objectives. The development of design solutions evolves through competition and controlled variations. Minimising the ship hull structure weight is essential in reducing the ship’s capital (construction) expenditure and increasing the cargo capacity. The risk of the ship is associated with the loss of the ship, cargo, human life, environmental pollution, etc. It is a governing factor impacted by the chosen structural design solution and the measures taken to reduce the structural weight. A genetic algorithm will be employed to study the weight minimisation of a multi-purpose ship hull structure, controlling the associated risk by accounting for several structural design variables. The risk and best design solution are defined by the probability of compressive collapse of the stiffened plates, integral ship hull structure, and the associated cost due to failure. The Pareto frontier solutions, calculated by the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm, NSGA-II, will be employed to determine feasible solutions for the design variables. The first-order reliability method will estimate the Beta reliability index based on the topology of the stiffened plates and ship hull structure as a part of the Pareto frontier solutions. The algorithm employed will not account for any manufacturing constraints and consequences due to the encountered optimal design solution.

Analysis of Wave Load Characteristics of Hovercraft Based on Model Test

The prediction of the wave load on a hovercraft is essential for the design of the hull structure and safety. However, theoretical methods for the prediction of wave loads are still not mature enough due to the unique and complex nature of the air cushion structure, and numerical modeling and simulation are challenging due to the complexity of the gas-solid-liquid three-phase coupling, so the study of wave loads on hovercrafts still relies on experimentation. In this study, we aim to analyze the wave load response characteristics of a four-chamber hovercraft by conducting a wave load model test under medium/low sea states. The load components and amplitude-frequency response characteristics were thoroughly analyzed based on the acquired data of the cushion pressure, acceleration, and bending moment. The main characteristics of the wave-induced response of the hovercraft were described in detail, and an analytical relationship between the cushion pressure and hull acceleration was derived. The reliability of the experimental results was confirmed through a comparison with the derived results. The relationship between the cushion pressure and cushion volume was investigated in terms of the observed geometric volume of the air chamber, and the relationship between the cushion pressure and flow rate was analyzed to validate the derivation of the theory of wave loads on hovercrafts.

A computational study on buckling strength of pressurised submarine pressure hull structures under combined static load and asymmetric impact load

Through the reconstructed kernel particle method (RKPM), the dynamic buckling characteristics of submarine pressure hull under hydrostatic pressure and impact load is investigated in this study. First, a large deformation buckling calculation model for stiffened shell structures was established using RKPM and elastic–plastic constitutive models. To study the influence of load asymmetry on the buckling strength of the structure and provide fundamental technical support for submarine structural design, the dynamic buckling phenomenon of the structure was studied under three conditions: hydrostatic pressure acting alone, hydrostatic pressure and impact load acting simultaneously, and hydrostatic pressure and uniformly distributed impact load acting simultaneously. The starting time of buckling was used as the criterion for determining the critical load of dynamic buckling. The results indicate that under the combined action of static and dynamic loads, asymmetric dynamic loads can seriously affect the buckling strength of the structure.

An improved similarity method for stiffened plates subjected to combined loads of longitudinal compression and lateral pressure

Structures’ ultimate strength has been increasingly valued in the past few decades. The model test is an important and reliable way to estimate the ultimate strength. For large and complex structures, like ship hull structures, the test subject is usually scale models due to the limitation of loading capacity and space of laboratories. Therefore, the similarity method and the design of scale models are of great importance. The stiffened plate is the minimum unit that makes up thin-walled structures. The similarity method of the ultimate strength of stiffened plates is the base of the similarity method of large and complex structures. This paper is a further study of an existing similarity method proposed in our previous work. A stiffened plate from a real ship is taken as the subject. 22 combinations of scale ratios are used to design scale models. The 23 models (including the original model) are subjected to a combined load of longitudinal compression and lateral pressure. The non-linear finite element method is used to analyze these models. The results revealed that the previous method is only suitable for scale models with small degrees of geometrical distortion. It didn't consider the effect of geometrical distortions. An improved similarity method and scale model design method are proposed to solve these problems. The improved methods consider the geometrical distortion of scale models and are applicable to more geometrically distorted scale models. More numerical examples are performed to verify the correctness and advantage of the improved methods.

A CFD-DEM-FEM coupling method for the ice-induced fatigue damage assessment of ships in brash ice channels

Polar transport ships frequently traverse in the brash ice channel opened by icebreakers. Although the substantial ice resistance caused by direct collisions with the level ice is avoided, the hull still encounters collisions with the brash ice, leading to periodic damage and exacerbating the fatigue issues of the hull structure. To address the fatigue challenges faced by ships sailing in the brash ice channels, this paper proposes an ice-induced fatigue damage assessment method based on the CFD-DEM-FEM. Referring to the brash ice model test conducted at the Hamburg Ship Model Basin (HSVA), a discrete element ice model and a numerical brash ice tank are established using the CFD-DEM coupling method. The simulated ship-ice interaction is compared with HSVA’s experimental results to validate the reliability of the numerical brash ice tank and ice load. The ice load time history resulting from the ship-brash ice collision is applied to the hull, and the hot spot stress time history under each fatigue sub-condition is calculated using the FEM. The improved rain-flow counting method is employed to determine the stress level of the hot spot stress time history, and the S-N curve method based on the linear cumulative damage criterion is used to calculate the total fatigue damage of hot spots. Finally, the results of the proposed method are compared with those of the LR method. This study can serve as a valuable reference for the ice-induced fatigue assessment of ships navigating in brash ice channels.

Study of the Effect Launching System using Airbags on the Hull Structures of Pinisi Ship

Using airbags for ship launching is a technological innovation with promising implications for the shipbuilding industry. Considering the inefficiency and time consumption of the traditional Pinisi ship launching method, an airbags system is considered an alternative technology. This research involves a simulation of applying airbag technology for ship launch on the Pinisi Ship to assess stress concentration and magnitude. The Pinisi ship, airbags, and skates are designed in three dimensions on a real-size scale for analysis and then analysed using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) in ANSYS software. During the launch, the keel of the ship and airbags were subjected to a compressive force with a 3-millisecond analysis time. The stress and stress concentration levels in the Pinisi ship's structure vary between using airbags and the traditional launch method during launch. The ship's engine room bulkhead and the bow collision bulkhead structure underwent considerable tensile and compressive stresses in longitudinal and transverse orientations. The average maximum compressive stress and maximum tensile stress that occur in the longitudinal direction of the ship are around 50.2 MPa and 87.3 MPa, respectively. Compared to the maximum compressive stress, which accounts for 36% of the overall maximum stress encountered, the highest tensile stress experienced by the ship's structure is 64%.

Research on ship-ice collision model and ship-bow fatigue failure Mechanism based on elastic-plastic ice constitutive relation

Collisions between sea ice and ships can damage the hull structure and pose a threat to crew safety in severe cases. The modelling of ice materials is crucial, but it is difficult to study ice-ship interactions. In this study, an ice constitutive model including the temperature factor was verified through experiments and numerical simulations of uniaxial and triaxial compression. Furthermore, the effects of salinity and porosity on the compressive strength of ice were studied using experiments and numerical simulations. The mechanical behaviour of sea ice was then simulated using the constitutive model mentioned above. A numerical model of collisions between polar ships and sea ice was established to investigate the ice-breaking processes of ships under different working conditions. The collision force and the level of structural damage were obtained. The influences of the initial pore size, hull speed, bow angle, and bow shape on the collision force and structural damage in the ship-ice collision process were analysed. Finally, fatigue damage to the bow structure at different ice thicknesses and speeds was calculated. The present results provide a reference for the structural design and optimisation of polar ships to a certain extent and improve the theory of ship-ice collisions.

Creep–fatigue life prediction of a titanium alloy deep-sea submersible using a continuum damage mechanics-informed BP neural network model

Deep-sea submersibles are subjected to trapezoidal wave loading during operation, which can cause creep–fatigue failure of pressure hull structures. To ensure structural safety, it is necessary to develop accurate and efficient creep–fatigue life prediction methods. This paper proposes a continuum damage mechanics-informed BPNN approach for predicting the creep–fatigue life of titanium alloy submersibles. To obtain a reliable sample set, the creep–fatigue life is calculated based on the titanium alloy room-temperature creep–fatigue damage model and numerical analysis methods proposed by the authors. The operating duration, operating pressure, axial stress, and circumferential stress were selected as the input variables, whereas the number of cycles and actual operating duration were chosen as the output variables. The proposed model fills the current gap of a lack of research on the creep‒fatigue life prediction of titanium alloy deep-sea submersibles via machine learning methods. The research results show that the neural network model established in this paper can quickly and accurately predict the creep–fatigue life of titanium alloy deep-sea submersibles. A sensitivity analysis of the input parameters revealed that the creep–fatigue life is more sensitive to the operational pressure than to the dwell time.

The influence of welding-induced 3D residual stress and distortion on the ultimate strength of multi-stiffened thin plate structures under cyclic load

Stiffened thin plates made of high-strength steel are widely employed in ship hull structures. Their strength capacity is highly sensitive to the welding imperfections and potential extreme cyclic loading from harsh sea state. In this work, a thermal elasto-plastic finite element analysis is conducted to simulate the 3D distribution of welding-induced residual stress and distortion of stiffened thin plate structures with triple spans and triple bays varying the plate thickness and heat input. Experimental results provided by other scholars are used to validate the welding simulation. Afterwards, the ultimate strength and collapse behaviour of the welded structures under different load patterns are dealt with, including monotonic compression load, cyclic compression-tension load and cyclic compression load. Observation from numerical results indicates that, in general, the compressive strength is reduced in each considered cycle by the residual stress as the amplitude of cyclic compression-tension load approximates to the ultimate compressive strain. When this parameter is much greater than the ultimate compressive strain or the stiffened plate is subjected to cyclic compression load, the reduction in ultimate strength is significant in the first cycle, whereas the reduction is ignorable in the later cycles. Besides, if the buckling mode of initial deflection with antisymmetric configuration is superposed to the symmetric out-of-plane welding distortion, impact of the residual stress will be diminished as the asymmetry becomes notable.

Fatigue strength of welded joints of marine aluminum alloy extrusion stiffened plate considering welding effects

Due to the low stiffness of thin-plate welded structure, the influence of welding effect on fatigue evaluation of thin-plate welded structure cannot be ignored. Extruded stiffened plates are tried to be used in hull structures because of their excellent forming technology, which can greatly reduce welding deformation and defects. By carrying out fatigue tests of extruded reinforced welded joints and traditional T-shaped welded joints, the S-N curves of typical T-welded joints are obtained and compared. Furthermore, the residual stress and welding deformation of stiffened model and traditional T-model are predicted by numerical simulation. The welding effects are introduced into the calculation of hot spot stress as the initial value, and the hot spot stress class curves of extruded reinforced welded joints and traditional T-welded joints are renewed. Compared with traditional welded joints, extruded welded joints are less affected by residual stress and welding deformation. The study revealed that residual stress and welding deformation exhibited a higher sensitivity to the fatigue strength of traditional thin-plate welded structures.

Research on Collapse Testing of Nuclear Icebreaker Reactor Hull Structure Based on Distortion Similarity Theory

In this study, the finite element method combined with the model test method are used to investigate the ultimate strength of a target ship reactor hull structure under a pure bending load. Based on the distortion similarity theory and nonlinear similarity method, a scale model of the actual ship reactor hull structure is designed and the model collapse test is conducted. The ultimate bending moment obtained by the model test is transformed to the actual ship through the similarity transformation relationship and compared with the nonlinear finite element analysis result of the actual structure. The results are consistent with each other, which indicates that the collapse characteristics of the actual ship reactor hull structure can be better forecasted using the model test results when the test model is designed based on the nonlinear similarity method and distortion similarity theory.

Research on temperature distribution in container ship with Type-B LNG fuel tank based on CFD and analytical method

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel tank in a large container ship is loaded with liquid LNG at an ultra-low temperature (-163°C), there is a significant temperature difference in the cargo hold area where the entire fuel tank is located, which will have an important impact on the steel grade design and structural safety of the cargo tank in container ship. This paper develops two heat transfer models using Computational Fluid Dynamics method (CFD method) and an analytical method to analyze the temperature distribution in a large container ship equipped with Type-B LNG fuel tank. These models incorporate the arrangement and heat transfer characteristics of LNG fuel tanks. The temperature field analysis is conducted under typical the environmental conditions specified in the Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Transporting Liquefied Gas in Bulk (IGC Code) and the United States Coast Guard Code (USCG Code), based on the CFD method and the analytical method, and the results of temperature field distribution are compared. Additionally, a parametric analysis of the hull temperature field is further carried out, the results show that the thermal conductivity of the insulation layer in LNG storage tanks and the types of the loaded liquid cargo have a limited impact on the final temperature field distribution in hull structure. However, the selection of steel grade in the local structure of the cargo hold, especially in the inner hull part, may lead to significant changes.