Global strength analysis in head waves of an FSO unit, based on user subroutines technique

Abstract

For the analysis of the FSO global strength, the modern approaches are based on FEM models developed over the ship length with equivalent wave loads. This paper presents the global strength analysis in head waves of an FSO unit for oil storage and off-loading. The head wave and FSO ship system equilibrium is obtained by own user subroutines, package Eq_Trim, implemented as API codes in the Femap program. The numerical results are assessed by the yielding stress ratio criterion, pointing out the structural parts that have to be improved in the design process.