ICE FORCES ON CONICAL STRUCTURES

In some Arctic offshore areas, the principal design loads for a fixed offshore structure will be those associated with the impingement of relatively uniform sheets of ice. There are many uncertainties and approximations associated with analytical treatments of this complex phenomenon. Since 1970 Chevron Oil Field Research Company has been operating an experimental ice force model tank to investigate ice forces on various model structures due to uniform ice sheets with various characteristics. This paper describes this facility and the procedures used in it to carry out determinations of ice forces on conical structures. Also described are the utilization of an appropriately weakened model ice, and the determination of its mechanical properties. Included are descriptions of experiments conducted on 45 deg and 60 deg model cones, as well as experiments on a multiangle conical structure. This latter structure consists of two cones, with the lower cone having a shallower slope angle than the upper. Qualitative aspects of the ice sheet properties and of the horizontal and vertical force time histories for these experiments are also included. A principal conclusion is that small-scale modeling of ice-structure interaction can be carried out on a routine basis.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual OTC held in Houston, Texas April 30-May 3 1979, Volume 4.
• Corporate Authors:

  Offshore Technology Conference

  6200 North Central Expressway
  Dallas, TX  United States  45206
• Authors:
  • Pearce, J C
  • Strickland, G E
• Publication Date: 1979

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 2407-14
• Serial:
  • Publication of: Offshore Technology Conference
  • Publisher: Offshore Technology Conference

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Force; Ice; Loads; Offshore structures; Physical properties
• Uncontrolled Terms: Ice properties
• Geographic Terms: Arctic Regions
• Old TRIS Terms: Ice forces on structures; Ice loads; Ice models; Model testing
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00195810
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Offshore Technology Conference
• Report/Paper Numbers: Volume 4 Proceeding
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 31 1979 12:00AM