Session: 15-05-01 Mooring, Riser and Pipelines

Submission Number: 181781

Numerical Investigation of Vortex-Induced Vibrations of Subsea Pipelines Considering Seabed Gap Effects 

With the aging of offshore drilling platforms worldwide, many subsea pipelines are approaching the end of their service life.To ensure the safety of the marine environment, it is necessary to continue conducting safety assessments of submarine pipelines. Under long-term ocean current scouring, subsea pipelines may become locally exposed and experience vortex-induced vibration (VIV), leading to structural strength degradation, fatigue damage, and premature failure. However, existing studies on the VIV of near-bed pipelines remain limited, particularly in elucidating the complex unsteady flow characteristics induced by the dynamic evolution of erodible seabed constraints. In this work, numerical analyses are conducted to investigate the motion characteristics of subsea pipelines under different local scour conditions, based on the typical environmental parameters of the Bohai Bay Shengli Oilfield. The pipeline motion equation is solved using the Newmark–β time integration method, which is implemented into a CFD solver through a C-based User-Defined Function (UDF) to establish a hydrodynamic response analysis model for the pipeline. Moreover, a combined overset and dynamic mesh technique is employed to simulate large-amplitude pipeline vibrations without causing mesh distortion, thereby significantly enhancing numerical stability and robustness. The results reveal the dynamic response behavior of pipeline VIV under local scour effects, providing theoretical insights and computational support for the safety assessment and integrity management of subsea pipeline systems.

Presenting Author: Yongjie Yu ‌School of Civil Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology

Presenting Author Biography: Yongjie Yu, a Ph.D. candidate at Harbin Institute of Technology. His research focuses on marine structural dynamics and the ultimate strength and failure mechanisms of marine structures. The studies emphasize multi-physics coupling analysis involving fluid–structure interactions, aiming to enhance the reliability and safety of offshore engineering systems. Research findings have been published in journals such as Ocean Engineering, and several industry–academia collaborative projects have been undertaken. The research primarily addresses critical scientific and engineering issues concerning the long-term integrity and operational safety of offshore pipeline systems under complex marine environments, including strong currents, temperature fluctuations, and corrosion.

Authors:

Yongjie Yu ‌School of Civil Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology
Changli Yu School of Civil Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology;School of Marine Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Weihai
Shuo Yang School of Marine Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Weihai