Physical Model Study of the Behaviour of an Oil Tanker Moored at a Jetty

Abstract

Operational and security conditions in a port terminal are closely related with the behaviour of the moored ships, namely with the ship motions amplitude and the magnitude of the forces on the mooring lines and fenders. A physical model study of the behaviour of an oil tanker moored at the Berth "A" Oil Terminal of the Port of Leix˜oes, Portugal, will be presented after a brief description of the local environmental conditions and the existing operational conditions. This physical model study is part of an R&D project which also includes numerical simulations and prototype measurements. The paper will focus on the comparative analysis of the mooring layout presently most used by the largest oil tankers using Berth "A", with an alternative symmetrical mooring layout. The analysis is based on the maximum loads on the mooring lines and fenders, as well as on the significant amplitude of the moored ship motions. In this study, two water levels at Berth "A" were considered, namely the mean sea level and the high tide water level.Keywords: Physical modelling; Oil terminal; Behaviour of moored ships; Mooring layout; Operational conditions; Port engineering.