Working with nature: retrofitting solutions for reducing mooring line loads.
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This paper explores the usage of hydrofoil in offshore floating platforms to reduce the wave induced loads on the mooring lines. Inspired by the nature, thrust can be generated in the wake of flapping foil by reversed von Karman streets, which is mostly used in ocean propulsion systems. It presents preliminary experiments with a hydrofoil retrofitted in a semi-sub model structure exposed to regular and irregular waves. Although still at a very early stage, the preliminary results presented here show that retrofitting a hydrofoil in a floating platform can lead in positive gains at, primarily, the surge forces acting (in these cases) at the model structure’s centre of mass. Video Recording here