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BS announced at the Offshore Technology
Conference (OTC) guidelines |
for the
use of composite materials on offshore structures. The ABS Guide
for Certification of FRP Hydrocarbon Production Piping Systems provides technical guidance and design procedures for using
composites or fiber reinforced plastics (FRPs) on the topsides
of offshore facilities.
As projects become more complex and move into deeper waters,
the topsides become heavier, the steel mooring systems and
risers become longer and heavier, thus presenting serious
challenges to project economics. These challenges have spurred
research into substitute materials that would do the job
of steel, but at much lighter weights.
Advantages of carbon-fiber composites over the basic production
material of steel could include higher strength-to-weight
ratios, superior fatigue performance and corrosion resistance
and better thermal insulation. Another advantage is a high
structural damping characteristic, which would make composite
risers (or tendons) immune to vortex-induced vibration, a
cause of severe fatigue damage to steel structures.
Although weight is only one component in the complex considerations
that make up an offshore production solution, no doubt weight
reduction is among the most attractive benefits of composites.
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