Hydrodynamic Coefficients of Vertical Cylinders of Arbitrary Section

Abstract

The calculation of added masses and damping coefficients of a large surface-piercing vertical cylinder of arbitrary section extending to the seabed and undergoing harmonic oscillations is described. The linear radiation problem in three dimensions is reduced to a series of two-dimensional problems in the horizontal plane by the use of appropriate eigenfunctions that represent the variation of the velocity potential in the vertical direction. Each of these is solved by a numerical approach based on the method of integral equations. Comparisons are made with an analytic solution available for the case of a circular cylinder. Results are also provided for square cylinders, and the application to typical offshore structures subject to base motions is discussed.