A CFD Application of NewWave Theory to Wave-in-Deck Simulation

Abstract

For existing offshore fixed platforms it is often the case that the air gap between the deck and the sea surface is not adequate and the extreme waves will encroach on the deck resulting in large wave-in-deck loads. Factors that result in inadequate air gap are seabed subsidence, sea-level increasing due to climate change and more onerous predictions of extreme crest heights. In this paper, a numerical approach based on NewWave theory [Tromans et al. (1991), Proc. 1st Int. Offshore and Polar Engineering Conf., Vol. 3, Edinburgh, UK, pp. 64–71] has been developed to represent the extreme wave conditions and implemented into the framework of an open source software, OpenFOAM, to predict the wave-in-deck loading. The results have been compared with published FLOW-3D simulations using Stoke’s 5th order wave theory for a simple box representing the Ekofisk platform deck in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea [Iwanowski et al. (2002), Proc. 21st Int. Conf. Offshore Mechanics and Artic Engineering, June 23–28, 2002, Oslo, Norway].