Experimental investigations on extreme bow-flare slamming loads of 10,000-TEU containership

Bow-flare slamming is issue that must be considered in ship design because it affects the local strength and fatigue life of a ship. In this paper, the experimental study of the spatial distribution of slamming load was conducted, which acts on the bow flares of ultra-large containerships. For a model test, 10,000 TEU container ship model with 1/60-scale ratio divided into six segments was applied. Fifteen force sensors were placed on the bow flare surface to measure slamming load. The slamming loads were measured in regular and irregular waves at various ship speeds, wave lengths, wave heights, and heading angles. In a regular wave test, the slamming load was larger in oblique sea than in head sea because the relative angle of the wave and bow flare is smaller in oblique sea. In an irregular wave test, extremely large slamming loads were measured at the centre line at the bow, which is influenced by the horizontal relative velocity such as the ship speed and surge. In an analysis of the slamming load of the ship, the direction of wave and forward speed of the ship should be carefully considered. These are difficult to consider in 2D analysis.