Ships
MU-MI 22-meter Flume Tank
Sometimes a towing tank is simply not long enough. The Marine Institute’s Flume Tank is the
largest re-circulating water channel in the world. With the model fixed and the water
flowing past it, run length is no longer an experiment limitation. With the added benefit
of full length and depth viewing windows, the facility offers unparalleled flow visualization
capability. Oceanic has used the Flume Tank to study the vortex induced motion (VIM) of spars
and tension leg platforms. Because of minimal turbulence, unlimited run lengths, and excellent
flow visualization characteristics, the Flume Tank offers the possibility of evaluating
long-term phenomena that cannot be achieved in a towing tank. Using the Flume Tank to model
realistic current flows and to examine the effects of squat in very shallow water allows
Oceanic to study articulated tug and barge (ATB) directional stability in effecting safer
operations. Offshore towed seismic arrays are limited by the lift characteristics of the
vanes drawn off each side of a seismic vessel; Oceanic has studied vane models in the Flume
Tank to increase the capacity of three-dimensional seismic surveys.
- Hydrodynamic interaction of seismic vanes and streamers
- Evaluate motion characteristics of towed underwater bodies at surface, mid-water column, and sea floor
- Evaluate multiple underwater vehicle dynamics
- Improve catch selectivity of fishing gear
- Study directional stability of towed and pushed barges
- Evaluate directional stability of offshore platforms under tow
- Improve vortex induced motion (VIM) characteristics of spars, tension leg platforms, and novel deep-water production concepts
- Understand multi-mode vortex induced vibration (VIM) characteristics of deep-water risers in uniform and sheared flow
 |
Specification Sheet (735 KB) |
|
Particulars/Layout (0.78MB) |