Arctic offshore engineering

There is an increasing need to construct engineering structures in the Arctic seas. The requirement is principally generated by the oil and gas industry, because of the substantial reserves that are known to exist offshore in the Beaufort Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Barents Sea, the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Sakhalin, the Canadian Arctic, and almost certainly elsewhere. Structures have to withstand the severe environmental forces generated by sea ice, a subject that is developing rapidly but is still far from being completely understood. Underwater pipelines have to be safe against ice gouging and strudel scour, but also have to be constructed safely and economically. The social and human environment has to be understood and respected. This important book intentionally takes a broad view, and vividly accounts for the many and often subtle interactions between the different factors. It is illustrated by case studies of actual projects.

1. The human context. 1.1. Introduction. 1.2. The peoples native to the Arctic. 1.3. Explorers. 1.4. Developers. 1.5. Outsiders -- 2. The physical and biological environment. 2.1. Climate. 2.2. Permafrost and land ice. 2.3. Sea ice. 2.4. Gathering data about sea ice. 2.5. Biology -- 3. Ice mechanics. 3.1. Introduction. 3.2. Creep. 3.3. Fracture. 3.4. Elasticity. 3.5. Plasticity. 3.6. Broken ice. 3.7. In-situ rubble tests. 3.8. Model ice -- 4. Ice forces on structures in the sea. 4.1. Introduction. 4.2. Alternative design concepts. 4.3. Ice forces. 4.4. Ice forces on vertical-sided structures. 4.5. Sloping-sided structures. 4.6. Local ice pressures. 4.7. Ice encroachment. 4.8. Model tests. 4.9. Ice-induced vibrations. 4.10. Ice load measurements on platforms -- 5. Broken ice, pressure ridges and ice rubble. 5.1. Introduction. 5.2. Formation of ridges. 5.3. Limit- force calculations. 5.4. Multi-year ridges. 5.5. Loads due to first-year ridges. 5.6. Structures in shallow water. 5.7. Multi-leg and multi-hulled platforms. 5.8. Limit momentum (limit energy) ice loads -- 6. Ice forces on floating platforms. 6.1. Introduction. 6.2. Background to use of floaters in sea ice. 6.3. Loads on f…