Numerical investigation of an ice-breaking LNGC cargo containment system based on experimental verification

In recent years, the international situation becomes serious, which causes a shortage of energy supply. This trend makes the ice-breaking LNGC become potential because of the short transportation advantage of Arctic route. The new ship type brings a demand for the comprehensive safety assessment of LNGC cargo containment system (CCS), where the ice load should be further considered. The traditional CCS model with single insulation box and simply support condition may not accurately reflect the energy transfer mechanism and the dynamic response. In this study, the full-scale experiment is conducted and a refined CCS numerical model in the range of 3 × 3 insulation boxes is proposed. Firstly, the support structure from the inner hull is taken as the flexible boundary condition and the connection form between each component is taken into consideration. Subsequently, the numerical model is verified by the full-scale impact and modal experiment. The verification results show that the 3 × 3 analysis model has a larger effective response range and higher calculation accuracy. Finally, some simplified ship-ice collision scenarios are conducted to study the responses of CCS. The results show that the transverse girder plate is the main support structure of CCS under ship-ice collision. Then the insulation box is subjected to the ice load transferred from the inner hull structure via mastic rope, while being constrained by the coupler. The ice loads have a greater effect on the response of CCS than the structural design of insulation box.