Experimental and numerical study on dynamic responses of floating bridge under the shielding effect of a floating platform

A floating bridge and a floating platform can serve as a transport channel between land and sea. They will interact with each other in the wave environment. In this paper, the dynamic response characteristics of a floating bridge under irregular waves and regular waves are studied by means of model tests and numerical calculations. The results of model test and numerical calculation based on potential flow theory are basically consistent and can be mutually verified. By comparing and analyzing the dynamic response results of the floating bridge under the condition of “with floating platform” and “without floating platform”, some conclusions are drawn. The floating platform will have a shielding effect on waves coming from the sea. Due to the shielding effect of the floating platform, the motions in heave, surge and pitch of the floating bridge are evidently diminished. Among them, the motion response of the pontoon near the floating platform decreases most obviously. The floating platform provides a relatively stable marine environment for the floating bridge, thereby improving the survival state of the floating bridge.