A Multi-Ship Following Model for Icebreaker Escort Operations in the Baltic Sea

Ordinary ships cannot safely sail in areas with sea ice. The presence of sea ice in the North Baltic Sea area requires icebreaking ships to open up sea ice areas for use by ordinary ships. In this environment there is an increasing number of ships. Hence, ice-breaking escort operations and navigation safety have become increasingly important. In this paper, icebreaker escort operations are investigated and a multi-ship following model is proposed that is based on a car following model. In sea ice scenarios, the speed and stable navigation of ships following escorts are critical, and require close crew attention. This paper also analyses the characteristics of icebreaker sailing and proposes a multi-ship following model under continuous ice-breaking conditions. The model parameters are calibrated using data from actual icebreaker escort operations. The model determines ice resistance according to ice thickness, type, and bending strength, and icebreaker mass, length, width, and draught. The effect of ice conditions on the speed of icebreakers is determined according to Newton's second law. The maximum safe navigable speed is used to show ships’ ability to sail in sea ice. The multi-ship following simulation results were found to be in good agreement with actual data. The main contribution of this paper is a new, safe, and stable multi-ship following model for use in sea ice conditions. It can provide a theoretical reference for escort operations involving multiple icebreakers and following ships.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AW040 Standing Committee on Marine Safety and Human Factors.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  ,    
• Authors:
  • Zou, Ziyao
  • Zhang, Weibin
  • Qi, Yong
  • Wang, Yinhai
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 98th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2019-1-13 to 2019-1-17
• Date: 2019

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 23p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Following distance; Icebreaking; Maritime safety; Sea ice; Ships; Speed; Vessel operations
• Geographic Terms: Baltic Sea
• Subject Areas: Marine Transportation; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01697477
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 19-04327
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 1 2019 3:51PM