Numerical and Physical Investigation on Vortex-Induced Vibrations of Marine Risers

As a project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, a model experiment on the vortex-induced vibration of practical risers transporting fluid in currents was conducted in the Physical Oceanography Laboratory of Ocean University of China in 2005. Because most of the offshore oil fields in China are in shallow water, the experiment was focused on the risers in shallow water. The similarity theory was used in the experiment to derive the experimental model from the practical model. Considering the internal flowing fluid and external marine environment, the dynamic response of the marine riser was measured. Corresponding numerical simulation was performed with the finite element method. Comparisons were made between the results from the experiment and numerical simulation.