Efecto de la carga sumergida en la respuesta hidrodinámica de buques tipo catamarán que operan en los canales del sur de Chile

Resumen

The aquaculture industry has seen a remarkable growth in recent decades, driven by increasing demand for aquatic products and increased awareness of the sustainability of marine resources. Within the industry, catamarans play a vital role as support vessels for various aquaculture activities, such as the transport and installation of mooring equipment. Items such as gravity anchors are usually carried submerged, suspended from the vessel. However, operating conditions, within unpredictable and often challenging environmental conditions, raise questions about the safety and efficiency of these operations.

The current research focuses on understanding the operational limits of submerged loads on small catamarans through tests in regular waves in a wave tank under multiple encounter angles and loading conditions. A model of the vessel was built, considering the same mass distribution to replicate the hydrodynamic response of the prototype vessel. Using regular tests, the RAO of the vessel are obtained and, using a wave spectrum with parameters corresponding to inland sea condition in southern Chile, a hydrodynamic analysis is carried out, obtaining a series of response parameters of interest comparing the hydrodynamic response without cargo, with cargo on deck, and submerged, while being suspended from different locations along the length of the vessel.

The results show a significant reduction of heave and pitch responses for the suspended load case, decreasing the safety of operations and increasing the probability of water embarkment.