Comparative Evaluation of AC and DC Power Distribution Systems for Underwater Vehicles Based on Multiobjective Optimization Techniques

This paper presents a multiobjective optimization technique for the submarine cables of high-power remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). A detailed design flowchart with integrated electrical and mechanical designs of the ROV submarine cables is provided to quantitatively compare AC and DC-based power distribution systems and identify the optimal design from multiple standpoints, prioritizing electrical loss and cable weight. The electromechanical cable design optimization plays a vital role in the ROV industry and in all those applications where the power distribution system is employed vertically from the support platform/vessel. The entire procedure is exemplified by carrying out a particular case study; for an ROV power hub with rated power of 5 MW and operational depth of 6000 m, the DC submarine cable design with distribution voltage of 33 kV results in an electrical loss reduction of 54.3% compared to the AC submarine cable design with distribution voltage of 22 kV at similar cable weights of 63 ton. Additionally, the proposed method can be widely applied to any type of AC-DC comparison to achieve the optimal ROV submarine cable design with a considerably short process time in comparison to the approaches with finite element analysis.