A case of unconventional use of finite element method in ship hydrostatic calculation

Abstract

The pontoon bridge, or so called The Bridge on the Barges, consisting of longitudinally connected standard inland barges, was to be built on the river Danube. The first step of the structural design was to evaluate vertical displacements and forces at the points of hinge connection of the barges, for various cases of traffic load distribution along the bridge. Instead of performing standard hydrostatic calculations of immersion and trim of the vessels, whole structure was modeled as a chain of rigid beams elastically supported by buoyancy - and analyzed using the finite element method.