Assessment of the Total Ship’s Hull Girder Bending Stresses When Unified Model of Sagging and Hogging Bending Moments is Used

A method is proposed for calculating the hull girder bending stresses following the procedure in the class rules but in probabilistic terms, i.e. the still water and the wave-induced bending moments; the total hull girder bending moment; the hull girder section modulus and the hull girder bending stresses are treated as random variables with corresponding probabilistic distributions. The still water and wave-induced hull girder hogging and sagging loads are presented in probabilistic format as one phenomenon, i.e. using bi-modal probability density functions. The probabilistic distribution of the total hull girder load is calculated using the rules of the composition of the distribution laws of the constituent variables. After that, the hull girder geometric properties are presented in probabilistic format as annual distributions and distributions for any given life-span. Thus, it becomes possible to calculate both the annual probabilistic distributions and the probabilistic distribution for any given ship’s life span of the hull girder stresses. Individual amplitudes statistical analysis and extreme value statistics are used. Then, the probability of exceeding the permissible hull girder bending stresses in the class rules is calculated. An example is given for 25K DWT bulk carrier.Copyright © 2009 by ASME