A design method for planing hulls, considering hydro-elasticity and nonlinear dynamic structural response

Typically, the dominant load for the structural design of a planing hull is slamming, while sailing at high speed in head seas. Applied rules assess the strength of the members of the hull by applying beam theory and a static design pressure, which represents the slamming load. Actually, the slamming is a violent fluid structure interaction, where dynamics, hydro-elasticity, and nonlinear structural effects may be important. This paper presents a design method for planing hulls, which considers hydro-elasticity and nonlinear dynamic structural analysis. The method combines rules calculations with analysis of fluid–structure interaction to a practical design procedure. Furthermore, a parametric analysis is applied to provide a database of 225 cases that may be used by designers for a preliminary assessment in a practical range of geometrical parameters and service conditions. Finally, a design example demonstrates a saving of 20% of the bottom plates thickness, relative to design by rules.