An experimental study on the motion response of OTEC platforms

Abstract

In this study, the motion characteristics of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) platforms are investigated by experimental and numerical methods. A series of model tests for octagon-shaped Sevan OTEC platforms were carried out in Ocean Engineering Basin of KRISO(68.8m × 37m × 4.5m, Experimental area: 56m × 28m × 3.2m). Two experimental models such as the OTEC platforms with and without damper were considered to check the performance of the designed damper. The motion performances of OTEC platforms are evaluated under regular and irregular wave conditions. It is found that the resonances of heave and pitch are shifted to the longer period due to the effect of damper. In addition, it is observed that the peak motion amplitude is significantly reduced. The motion responses of the OTEC platforms from experiments are compared with numerical results by using HOBEM(Higher-Order Boundary Element Method). The agreement between experiments and calculations is fairly good. Copyright ？ 2015 by the International Society of Offshore and Polar Engineers (ISOPE).