Spudcan penetration on a sloped seabed: Model tests in clay
Spudcan penetration on a sloped seabed: Model tests in clay
The installation of offshore wind turbines frequently relies on jack-up vessels equipped with spudcan foundations. As offshore renewable energy projects expand into deeper waters and more complex seabed conditions, encounters with sloped seabeds are becoming increasingly common. These conditions introduce challenges in accurately estimating reaction loads during spudcan penetration, as the asymmetric contact area between the spudcan and the sloped seabed generates eccentric and inclined loads that may compromise stability. This study investigates these challenges through 1g laboratory model tests, focusing on spudcan penetration into sloped seabeds of non-homogeneous kaolin clay. An instrumented spudcan model was used to measure combined vertical, horizontal, and moment loads under varying slope angles. Results reveal that vertical bearing capacity decreases with increasing slope angle, while horizontal and moment loads peak at higher magnitudes and greater depths for steeper slopes, ultimately diminishing to negligible levels as the spudcan becomes fully embedded.
Yifa Wang; Mark Jason Cassidy
5th International Symposium on Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG2025)
14 - Spudcans: penetration, extraction, interactions
https://doi.org/10.53243/ISFOG2025-553
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