Investigation of motion response and force characteristics of twin-barge floatover installation in the continuous load transfer process

Abstract

The numerical simulation method with individual stages cannot accurately describe the mechanical characteristics of barge movement and buffer device in a continuous mating procedure of twin-barge floatover installation. In this paper, a novel method with time-varying mass points has been adopted to simulate the ballasting process of barge installation. A numerical simulation method, which is capable of considering the effect of continuous load transfer, has also been proposed. With this numerical simulation method, the motion response of barges, impact load on leg mating unit (LMU), and deck support unit (DSU) have been investigated. The proposed continuous load transfer numerical simulation method can accurately simulate the complete mating stage between the topside and jacket platform. Furthermore, the trim of the barge in the continuous ballasting process can lead to inconsistent impact loads on different LMUs, which may result in different load transfer rates. Additionally, the motion response of the barge and impact loads on DSU change suddenly when the topside makes contact with the jacket platform or is separated from the barges. This special phenomenon did not appear in staged numerical simulations or model tests.