Nonlinear dynamic analysis of deep water risers

The paper presents a theoretical and numerical approach to the dynamical behaviour of risers in deep water which takes into account two types of nonlinearity; that due to viscous drag forces and that due to the large displacements of the riser when submitted to strong axial loads. As the second nonlinearity may have a significant influence upon the behaviour of risers in deep water, a method for automatically updating the structural geometry during the dynamic analysis is given. A computer programme has been written for this purpose.     

The Effect of Internal Fluid on the Response of Vortex-Induced Vibration of Marine Risers

Based on Iwan‘s wake oseillator model developed with the classical van der Pol equalion, the differential equation for the response of the vortex-induced vihration (VIV) of the riser considering the effect of the internal flowing fluid and the external marine environmental condition is derived. The effect of the intermal flowing fluid on the response of VIV of the riser is studied by means of the Finite Element Method. The results show that the effect of the internal fluid velocity on the VIV of the riser is strong when the natural frequency of the riser is close to the vortex shedding frequency. In addition, the increase of the top tension can decrease the sensitivity of the riser to the internal fluid velocity.     

海洋环境荷载下输液立管的静、动力特性研究

考虑管内流动流体和管外海洋环境荷载共同作用 ,建立海洋立管侧向运动微分方程。用Hermite插值函数离散 ,在微机上编写海洋立管静、动力分析程序 ,通过计算分析研究管内流体对立管侧向变形和应力的作用 ;另外 ,探讨管内流体的流动速度和立管顶端的预张力对立管动力特性的影响。结果表明 ,立管变形和应力均随管内流体流动速度增加而增大 ,同时内流速度的增大会降低立管的固有频率 ,但适当增大立管顶端预张力会抵消内流流速增加引起的固有频率下降。     

Nonlinear Static Finite Element Stress Analysis of Pipe-in-Pipe Risers

Owing to the complexity of the pipe-in-pipe (PIP) riser system in structure, load and restraint, many problems arise in the structural analysis of the system. This paper presents a new method for nonlinear static finite element stress analysis of the PIP riser system. The finite element (FE) model of the PIP riser system is built via software AutoPIPE 6.1. According to the specialties of a variety of components in the PIP riser system, different elements are used so as to model the system accurately. Allowing for the complication in modeling the effects of seabed restraint, a technique based on the bilinear spring concept is developed to calculate the soil properties. Then, based on a pipeline project, the entire procedure of stress analysis is discussed in detail, including creation of an FE model, processing of input data and analysis of results. A wide range of loading schemes is investigated to ascertain that the stresses remain within the acceptable range of the pipe material strength. Finally, the effects of the location of flanges, the thermal expansion of submarine pipelines and the seabed restraint on stress distribution in the riser and expansion loop are studied, which are valuable for pipeline designers.     

Critical Top Tension for Static Equilibrium Configuration of A Steel Catenary Riser

This paper aims to present the critical top tension for static equilibrium configurations of a steel catenary riser（SCR） by using the finite element method. The critical top tension is the minimum top tension that can maintain the equilibrium of the SCR. If the top tension is smaller than the critical value, the equilibrium of the SCR does not exist. If the top tension is larger than the critical value, there are two possible equilibrium configurations. These two configurations exhibit the nonlinear large displacement. The configuration with the smaller displacement is stable, while the one with larger displacement is unstable. The numerical results show that the increases in the riser＇s vertical distances, horizontal offsets, riser＇s weights, internal flow velocities, and current velocities increase the critical top tensions of the SCR. In addition, the parametric studies are also performed in order to investigate the limit states for the analysis and design of the SCR.     

Marine riser emergency disconnection analysis using scalar elements for tensioner modelling

This work proposes nonlinear parallel spring-damper scalar elements in series with a rigid beam element to represent drilling riser tensioner behavior during an emergency disconnection scenario in global riser analysis. The software package used was Orcaflex. This is a simpler approach than the more complex, full hydraulic-pneumatic-mechanic dynamic simulation modelling of the tensioning system, commonly used in literature, which can be time consuming and numerically more sensitive. The model can also be used to represent top tension variation in global riser analysis, allowing for more complex and precise simulations, especially for fatigue life and overpull estimations. The results show adequate agreement with the researched bibliography.     

Experimental investigation of the effects of the coverage of helical strakes on the vortex-induced vibration response of a flexible riser

The effects of different helical strake coverage on the vortex-induced vibration (VIV) of a model flexible riser were studied experimentally, with the aim of further improving the understanding of VIV responses. Uniform and linearly sheared currents were simulated to study response parameters such as non-dimensional displacement, fatigue damage, suppression efficiency, and the comprehensive evaluation is further studied. Test results of the bare model for a uniform current showed that the behavior of both the standing wave and traveling wave dominated VIV displacement. However, for a linearly sheared current, traveling wave behavior dominated VIV displacement in the high-velocity range. The results of the straked model tests indicated that the response was strongly dependent upon the amount of coverage of helical strakes. The flexible riser with 75% strake coverage gave the best comprehensive evaluation in a uniform current, and 50% strake coverage gave the best comprehensive evaluation in a linearly sheared current.     

Experimental Study on Coupled Cross-Flow and in-Line Vortex-Induced Vibration of Flexible Risers

In this work, we study the coupled cross-flow and in-line vortex-induced vibration （VIV） of a fixedly mounted flexible pipe, which is free to move in cross-flow （ Y- ） and in-line （ X- ） direction in a fluid flow where the mass and natural frequencies are precisely the same in both X- and Y-direction. The fluid speed varies from low to high with the corresponding vortex shedding frequency varying from below the first natural frequency to above the second natural frequency of the flexible pipe. Particular emphasis was placed on the investigation of the relationship between in-line and cross-flow vibration. The experimental results analyzed by using these measurements exhibits several valuable features.     

Feedback control system for blow-out preventer positioning

During the drilling of ultra-deep-water subsea petroleum wells, a blow-out preventer (BOP), a piece of safety equipment, must be assembled on the wellhead. The BOP is suspended using the drilling riser during the wellhead approach operation, and the riser's top end is connected to the floating platform rig. This article presents a feedback control system for the automatic approach of the BOP to the wellhead. Compared to state-of-the-art controls, ours does not require ancillary thrusters installed alongside the riser nor inclination sensors atop of the drilling riser. Additionally, our proposed control embeds a closed-loop dynamic positioning system, thus retaining the characteristics of the original control system and adding an extra closed-loop. This eases implementation of the BOP approach control to an existing platform. To calculate the optimal gains for the BOP controller, we assume a linear system for the riser, including only the pendulum-shape. The simulation is carried out using nonlinear models for both riser and floating platform. We assume an International Towing Tank Conference standard semi-submersible platform, coupled with a 3000-m free-hanging vertical riser for the time-domain simulation. The results show the BOP tracking to be a step-shaped input signal under current and wave loads. A discussion of the performance of feedback control under different environmental loads is also included.     

复杂载荷作用下立管触地段损伤管道的动力响应

触地段(Touchdown zone, TDZ)是在役钢悬链线立管(Steel catenary riser, SCR)的关键部位,在复杂载荷作用下,极易形成损伤缺陷,其载荷寿命的评估是深海结构工程中的一个关键问题。本文以大型有限元软件ABAQUS为平台,运用损伤管道实体单元与土弹簧阻尼单元相互作用的模型模拟触地段损伤海底管道在复杂载荷作用下的动力响应,数值计算考虑了管-土相互作用过程中的材料非线性、几何非线性以及接触非线性。讨论了单一环向体积损伤位于触地段管道的不同位置时,触地段损伤管道在不同载荷作用下的动力特性及特征点的动力响应。结果表明,管道所受内外压力以及管道提升端的竖向位移载荷会影响结构的自振频率;体积损伤部位的动力响应较完好部位更剧烈;体积损伤的位置和动力载荷频率对管道动力放大系数的影响很大;当动力载荷的激励频率越接近结构基频时,损伤管道的动力响应及动力放大系数越大。