The objective of this study is to develop a new formulation for predicting the permanent local denting damage of steel ring and/or stringer-stiffened cylinders under dynamic lateral mass impact. The considered scenarios could represent the collisions of offshore cylindrical structures with bow or stern of service vessels or floating objects. Before deriving the formulations, the numerical methods were developed using ABAQUS/Explicit to determine the deformation of these stiffened cylinder structures subjected to dynamic lateral mass impact. Next, rigorous parametric studies were performed on the actual design full-scaled stiffened cylinder examples using the developed numerical method. Based on the rigorous numerical results, new simple design formulations to predict the maximum permanent local dent depth of a stiffened cylinder are derived through a regression study as the function of a non-dimensional energy parameter. The accuracy and reliability of the derived formulations are confirmed by comparison with the available test results, nonlinear FEA and existing analytical, and empirical equations in the literature. A good agreement with existing test data for ship-offshore structure collisions was achieved.

A robust ultimate strength formulation is proposed for stiffened plates subjected to combined axial compression, transverse compression, shear force and lateral pressure loadings. Before deriving the formulation, a simplified numerical method was developed to trace the structural behaviour of stiffened plates under combined loadings. A rigorous parametric study was then performed using the developed numerical method to predict the ultimate strength of various stiffened plates under various combinations of loadings. The formulation was derived by a regression study using the parametric study results. The accuracy and reliability of the proposed formulation were compared with those of commercial packages, such as ABAQUS and DNV PULS, and experimental results.

The residual strength of denting- and fracture-damaged box girders were experimentally and numerically investigated. The experiments were conducted under a pure bending moment using the four-point bending test method. The load, deflection, and strain were measured. The strains of the extension structures were also measured, and the frictional forces between the model and the supported round bar were estimated. Test models consisting of two groups were fabricated. These groups were designed to estimate the residual strength of denting- and fracture-damaged models. The damage was induced by releasing a striker using a drop-testing machine to consider the dynamic effect. Additionally, numerical analyses were performed via a nonlinear finite element analysis, where the measured initial imperfection data and welding residual stresses were considered. The ultimate longitudinal moments that considered the frictional force of the round bars were reduced by 12% (on average) compared with those obtained by neglecting the frictional forces.

Experimental Investigations on Slamming Impacts by Drop Tests Slamming phenomenon;Amplitude of peak pressure;Width of peak pressure;Variation of impact; When ships are sailing with large motions in rough waves, the slamming phenomenon occurs and the ships suffer from impulsive pressure loadings. Recently, ships are becoming lager and faster than before and it becomes more possible that the ships experience larger impacts on their bows and sterns. Many researchers have been performing the investigations on slamming experimentally and theoretically for a long time. Most of the research reported in the open literature focused on how to accurately estimate the amplitude of the peak pressure of slamming. According to the results of a recently published work, not only the amplitude of peak pressure but also the width of the peak may play an important role in predicting the extents of damage of impacted structures. The uncertainty of impulsive pressure loadings due to slamming has been indicated by many researchers. However, probabilistic treatments of the impulsive pressure loadings are few. In this study, drop tests were conducted on wedges having dead-rise angles of $0^{\circ}$ and $10^{\circ}$. Not only the amplitude of peak pressure but also the width of peak pressure were measured. Furthermore, the variations of those values are also provided for the probabilistic approach of the slamming problem.