Numerical simulation of ship performance in level ice : A framework and a model

Ship performance in level ice involves problems such as attainable speed and maneuverability under different ice thickness. As the alternative to analytical methods, numerical simulation models have been proposed in recent years to improve the accuracy and to analyze more complex operations. However, current numerical models use quite diverse approaches to model the icebreaking components, and focus on rather different aspects, while the choices need more justification. The primary aim of this paper is to propose a framework for the development of effective and efficient numerical models to simulate ship performance in level ice, based on state-of-the-art knowledge of ship-ice interaction. This covers a discussion of modelling purposes and a hierarchical decomposition of the problem, followed by a strategy and two methods which could be applied to improve accuracy and credibility, as well as methodology of validation. Following the proposed framework, a numerical model is proposed as a prototype model, which simulates ship performance in level ice, and can be developed further in future. The numerical simulation results are compared with full-scale measurement results of a ship on the Baltic Sea, indicating reasonable estimation of ship turning. This implies the validity of the model as a prototype of the proposed framework.