Ship collision model tests in a water tank

Abstract

This paper investigates the dynamic responses and energy distribution in perpendicular collisions using model tests, in which the three primary elements are involved simultaneously: fluid effects, global ship motions, and local elastoplastic responses. A novel in-tank ship collision testing system has been developed to simulate perpendicular ship collisions, where the struck ship is impacted at its central section. The dynamic process of ship motions, structural deformation, energy dissipation, and added mass during collision are analyzed. Three collision scenarios are examined: Perpendicular Collision (PC), Planar Perpendicular Collision (PPC), and Central Perpendicular Collision (CPC). The calculation of energy loss during collision based on PC gives a good fit to the experimental results. It is found that the energy dissipation in the collision test is approximately linearly correlated with the initial energy input to the system. On average, about 51% of the initial kinetic energy is dissipated in the collision, mainly absorbed by the side structure through plastic deformation. These experimental data can be used for benchmarking the theoretical and numerical methods, and useful insight is provided for assessing collision scenarios.