RESIDUAL STRENGTH ASSESSMENT OF SHIPS AFTER COLLISION AND GROUNDING

The aim of this study is to develop a fast and reasonably accurate method for assessing collapse of the hull girder in the damaged condition. Location and amount of collision and grounding damage are prescribed. The possibility of hull collapse is explored by a comparison of the applied extreme bending moment and the ultimate hull strength which are estimated using design oriented methods and formulas. Two types of residual strength index, namely the section modulus based residual strength index and the ultimate bending strength based residual strength index, are defined. The method developed in this paper should be useful for preliminary structural design of a ship hull in accidental situations. It should also be potentially useful as one element of a decision making process related to salvage and rescue.