Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270

www.elsevier.com/locate/oceaneng
Finite element modeling of net panels using a
consistent net element
Igor Tsukrov

, Oleg Eroshkin, David Fredriksson,
M. Robinson Swift, Barbaros Celikkol
Mechanical Engineering Department, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Received 10 September 2001; accepted 3 January 2002
Abstract
A consistent nite element is proposed to model the hydrodynamic response of net panels
to environmental loading. This equivalent net element is constructed to reproduce the drag,
buoyancy, inertial and elastic forces exerted on the netting by current and waves. To evaluate
the accuracy of the proposed nite element modeling, numerical predictions have been com-
pared with the experimental observations and (simplied) analytical results of other authors.
This new modeling technique has been applied to evaluate the performance of a tension leg
sh cage in the open ocean environment. 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Net modeling; Finite element analysis; Open ocean aquaculture
1. Introduction
Netting is a basic functional and structural component of shing nets, offshore
aquaculture net pens and various sh enclosures. Advancements in the engineering
analysis of nets are needed to improve design, performance and reliability of such
structures. Research into the mechanical performance of nets has a long history (see
Terada et al. (1914); and Milne, 1972). It progresses along two major lines: experi-
mental studies (sometimes combined with in-situ observations) and
analytical/numerical predictions. This paper contributes to the latter area of the analy-

Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 (603) 862-2086; fax: +1 (603) 862-1865..

E-mail address: igor.tsukrov@unh.edu (I. Tsukrov).
0029-8018/02/$ - see front matter 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S0029- 8018( 02) 00021- 5
252 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
sis of nets. We propose a consistent net element to be used in a highly effective
computer-based numerical procedure the nite element method to model the
dynamic response of net panels to open ocean environmental loading. In the follow-
ing text, net panel refers to a section of netting between supports. Note that the
analysis of the modes of net failure, though important, is not included into this study.
Instead, the focus is centered on the numerical modeling of deformation and overall
dynamic behavior of nets subjected to wave and current loading.
Direct nite element modeling of all the strands comprising the net is impractical
because it requires the enormously large number of nite elements. For example,
according to Bessonneau and Marichal (1998), the number of cells in a shing net
can be more than 3 million. It is also impossible to exactly represent a net panel by
an equivalent structural element, as shown in Section 2.2. That is why we develop
a special element that consistently models all hydrodynamic, hydrostatic and inertial
forces acting on a portion of netting. Our approach is based on the observation that
drag and inertia components of the hydrodynamic forces [eq. (1)] uncouple. Below,
we discuss some previous work relevant to our studies.
Simple analytical formulae to evaluate the resistance of nets to currents were pro-
posed by Kawakami (1959, 1964). Aarsnes et al. (1990) performed a series of tests
and proposed an analytical method to calculate the forces produced on arrays of sh
cages by a constant current. An algorithm based on the introduction of a mapping
coefcient was proposed and successfully applied by Gignoux and Messier (1999)
to model aquaculture nets using Abaqus/Aqua with beam elements. This algorithm
was validated using experimental data of Mannuzza (1995). Our results are compared
against predictions of Kawakami and Aarsnes et al. in Section 4.
Bessonneau and Marichal (1998) used rigid cylindrical bar elements to investigate
the dynamics of submerged supple nets (trawls). The strong point of their approach
was the inclusion of all hydrostatic, hydrodynamic, gravitational and linking forces
into the analysis. They proposed the mesh grouping method in which several actual
meshes are grouped into a ctitious equivalent mesh having the same specic mass,
apparent weight and approximately the same drag resistance. The nite difference
scheme was used for time discretization, and several examples of the trawl towing
were considered.
Lee and Pei-Wen (2000) investigated the dynamic behavior of a tension leg plat-
form with a netcage system and obtained an analytical solution (in an innite series)
for motion of the two-dimensional model of such a platform. They subdivided the
area occupied by the system into four regions and formulated the scattering and
radiation problems for each region. To obtain the analytical solutions, assumptions
of small motion and of inviscid, incompressible and irrotational ow had to be used.
Information on the net mesh geometry was taken into account through the solidity
ratio and the equivalent net-tether diameter. The Morison equation (Morison et al.,
1950) was linearized using the Lorentz hypothesis of equivalent work (Solliitt and
Cross, 1972).
Tsukrov et al. (1999, 2000) analyzed open ocean aquaculture sh cages using the
equivalent truss approach. In nite element simulations, a deformable truss structure
was used to represent each net panel. This truss had the same drag force, buoyancy,
253 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
gravity and stiffness as the original net panel, but the condition of the same inertia
was not satised. The necessity to improve the model was one of the motivations
of the current work.
In our paper, hydrodynamic forces on the structural elements are calculated using
the Morison equation modied to account for relative motion between the structural
element and the surrounding uid. Following Haritos and He (1992), the uid force
per unit length acting on a cylindrical element is represented as
f C
1
V
Rn
C
2
V
Rt
C
3
V

n
C
4
V

Rn
, (1)
where V
Rn
and V
Rt
are the normal and tangential components of the uid velocity
relative to the structural element, V

n
is the normal component of total uid acceler-
ation and V

n
is the normal component of uid acceleration relative to the structural
element (see Fig. 1). Bold is used to denote vectors and matrices. The coefcients
in the formula above are given by C
1

1
2
r
w
DC
n
V
Rn
, C
2
C
t
, C
3
r
w
A and
C
4
r
w
AC
m
, where D and A are the diameter and the cross-sectional area of the
element in the deformed conguration, r
w
is the water density, C
n
and C
t
are the
normal and tangential drag coefcients, C
m
is the added mass coefcient. Note that
C
n
and C
m
are dimensionless, while C
t
has the dimension of viscosity. Equation (1)
is known to adequately predict the hydrodynamic force on a submerged cylindrical
element whose diameter is small compared to the length of the wave (Haritos and
He, 1992; Webster, 1995; Tsukrov et al., 2000).
The normal and tangential drag coefcients can be either found from physical
experiments or expressed in term of Reynolds number, Re
n
, as follows (Choo and
Casarella, 1971):
Fig. 1. Tangent and normal component of uid velocity vector.
254 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
C
n

8p
Re
n
s
(10.87s
2
) (0 Re
n
1),
1.45 8.55Re
0.90
n
(1 Re
n
30),
1.1 4Re
0.50
n
(30 Re
n
10
5
)
(2)
where Re
n
r
w
DV
Rn
/ m, s 0.077215665 ln(8/ Re
n
) and m is the water vis-
cosity.
This paper is organized as follows. In Section 2, the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic
forces acting on a net panel are quantied, and a consistent net element is developed
to model the elastodynamic performance of nets. Section 3 describes the nite
element computer program Aqua-FE used to model the dynamic response of par-
tially or completely submerged structures in an ocean enviroment. In Section 4, the
results obtained using the consistent net element are compared with the predictions
made by utilizing other approaches. Section 5 presents a practically important appli-
cation of the proposed technique analysis of dynamic performance of the tension
leg sh cage Refa used in open ocean aquaculture.
2. Consistent nite element to model net panels
In order to accurately model the dynamic performance of a net panel, it is neces-
sary to take into account the forces exerted on all strands of the netting by the uid
environment. It is not feasible to model the behavior of each strand comprising the
net separately, because of the large number of nite elements that are required for
such direct modeling. That is why a special consistent net element is proposed in
this paper. The real net is substituted by the equivalent consistent net element(s)
having the same hydrodynamic and elastic parameters.
2.1. Hydrostatic and hydrodynamic forces acting on a net panel
The action of the surrounding uid on the net is manifested by buoyancy, drag
and uid acceleration forces, where drag and uid acceleration forces are caused by
current and wave-related water motion. The weight and mass inertia of the net must
also be taken into account in the modeling process. Thus, ve parameters have to
be considered while modeling a net panel:
uid drag and inertia forces;
buoyancy;
weight;
mass inertia;
elastic forces.
The drag force acting on a net panel is assumed to be proportional to the projected
255 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
area of the panel, normal to the direction of the uid motion (this assumption neglects
the interaction between individual net strands). The projected area of the net panel
can be expressed in terms of the twine diameter d and the total strand length L
total
as follows
A
pr
L
total
d. (3)
For example, the total strand length and the projected area of a rectangular net panel
of dimensions a b with half-mesh size l and twine diameter d (see Fig. 2), are
L
total

2ab
l
, A
pr
2ab
d
l
abS, (4)
where S 2d/ l is the solidity ratio used, for example, by Aarsnes et al. (1990).The
weight and buoyancy of a net panel can be represented as
w pgrL
total
d
2
4
, (5)
f
b
pg(r
w
r)L
total
d
2
4
, (6)
where r is the mass density of net material, r
w
is the uid mass density, and g is
the acceleration of the free fall vector directed downward.
Note that even though eq. (4) assumes net cells are square shaped, the approach
presented in this section can also be applied to non-square (rectangular or rhombic)
mesh geometries.
2.2. Comment on the equivalent truss/beam approach to net modeling
In most nite element simulations, the net panels are represented by some equival-
ent structural elements, usually trusses or beams [see, for example, Gignoux and
Fig. 2. Net mesh geometry.
256 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Messier (1999); or Tsukrov et al. (2000)]. Let us show that neither truss nor beam
elements can be used to exactly reproduce the dynamics of a net panel subjected to
currents and waves, even in the assumption of non-interacting net strands.
Consider an equivalent element used to model the rectangular section of netting
with mesh parameters as shown in Fig. 2. The geometry of this truss or beam element
is characterized by its length L
el
and cross-sectional area A
el
. Assuming circular cross-
section with diameter D
el
and material mass density r
el
, the weight, buoyancy and
projected area of the element are as follows
w
el
pgr
el
L
el
D
2
el
4
(7)
f
b el
pg(r
w
r
el
)L
el
D
2
el
4
(8)
A
pr el
D
el
L
el
. (9)
To satisfy the condition of the same projected area, the diameter D
el
of the equivalent
truss/beam member must be found from equation D
el
L
el
A
pr
using eq. (4):
D
el
d
L
total
L
el
. (10)
To obtain the same total buoyancy for the equivalent truss/beam structure, the mass
density of its material, r
el
, must satisfy the following equation
pD
2
el
4
L
el
g(r
w
r
el
) f
b
. (11)
The expression for r
el
is obtained by substituting eq. (6) into eq. (11)
r
el
r
w

L
el
L
total
(r
w
r). (12)
But then the element weight (and thus, inertia) is greater than the weight of the
actual net panel:
w
el
w pgr
w
d
2
4

L
2
total
L
2
el
L
el

0.
Thus, it is impossible for a truss/beam element to reproduce the net panel exactly,
but in some cases the effect of additional weight on the overall dynamic performance
of the recticulated structure is insignicant and can be neglected (see Tsukrov
et al., 2000).
2.3. Development of net element: Morison forces
In this paper, the consistent net element is proposed. It is constructed to adequately
account for the hydrodynamic forces acting on any section of netting or an entire
257 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
net panel. We decided to use one-dimensional net elements: their development is
straightforward and they are easily compatible with the existing nite element codes
used to analyze mooring systems and oating structures. Any two-dimensional net
panel can be modeled as a set of perpendicular or inclined one-dimensional net
elements. The hydrodynamic behavior of the proposed net element is based on the
Morison equation [eq. (1)]. Since drag force and inertia force in this equation are
uncoupled, we can treat them separately. In the following analysis, we shall assume
that the water surface is not altered and there is no interaction between the individual
net strands [see discussion after eq. (17)].
Let us construct the net element of length L to model a section of a net panel
having the following physical and geometrical properties:
r mass density of net material;
A outline area of the modeled section of a net panel ( ab in Fig. 2);
E Youngs modulus of net material;
d twine diameter;
l half-mesh size.
According to Morison equation, the drag force per unit length acting on a one-
dimensional element is
f
D
C
1
V
Rn
C
2
V
Rt
. (13)
The equivalency of drag force is provided by the correct choice of C
1
and C
2
coef-
cients. The following procedure is used to calculate C
1
and C
2
of the consistent
net element. First, the value of the Reynolds number Re
n
is calculated using the
diameter of a single strand. Second, the normal and tangential drag coefcients C
n
and C
t
are found by substituting this value into eq. (2). Third, the Morison equation
coefcients C
1
and C
2
are calculated:
C
1
r
w
Ad
lL
C
n
V
Rn
, C
2
C
t
. (14)
With such a choice of coefcients, the drag induced on the part of the actual net
will be modeled with good accuracy by the corresponding net element.
The inertia components of the Morison force are
f
I
C
3
V

n
C
4
V

Rn
, (15)
where the coefcients C
3
and C
4
are calculated to provide the same inertia as the
inertia of the corresponding part of the actual net panel:
C
3
r
w
pd
2
A
2lL
, C
4
r
w
pd
2
A
2lL
C
m
. (16)
Thus, the total hydrodynamic force acting on the consistent net element is
f r
w
Ad
lL
C
n
V
Rn
V
Rn
C
t
V
Rt
r
w
pd
2
A
2lL
(V

n
C
m
V

Rn
). (17)
258 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
In the analysis to follow, we assume that the ow around the net element is not
disturbed by interaction with other net elements (approximation of non-interacting
strands). The assumption of non-interacting net strands was also used by Besson-
neau and Marichal (1998) and Gignoux and Messier (1999). It is obvious, that such
an approximation becomes inaccurate at high solidity ratios caused, for example, by
biofouling. To improve the accuracy of modeling in such cases, one must either
solve the three-dimensional problem of uid dynamics for the ow around multiple
non-collinear cylinders, or introduce some kind of interaction or shadowing coef-
cients [see, for example, Aarsnes et al. (1990); Palczynski (2000) or Fredriksson
(2001)].
Please note that our approach can be modied to approximately account for strand
interaction; this modication will not be presented in this paper since all the con-
sidered examples deal with low solidity ratio nets.
2.4. Development of net element: discretization
To approximate the section of a net, we use a one-dimensional nite element with
two nodes. The displacements of these nodes (three components at each node) consti-
tute the six degrees of freedom of the element. Let us denote the vector of degrees
of freedom by q and the shape function matrix by N. Below we derive the element
stiffness, damping and mass matrices and the nodal dynamic force vector for the
consistent net element.
Let us dene the following directional unit vectors: n
RV
- in the direction of the
relative velocity; n
Ra
- in the direction of the relative acceleration; n
a
- in the direction
of the uid acceleration; and t- parallel to the structural element (see Fig. 3). Then
the uid force per unit length can be expressed as
f C
1
n
RV
n
T
RV
VC
1
n
RV
n
T
RV
u C
2
tt
T
VC
2
tt
T
u C
3
V

n
C
4
n
Ra
n
T
Ra
V

(18)
C
4
n
Ra
n
T
Ra
u ,
where u and u are the velocity and acceleration of a point of the element. Using the
nite element shape functions to approximate u and u as functions of nodal displace-
ments q, velocities q and accelerations q , we obtain the expression for the equivalent
nodal force vector due to the wave and current loads:
F mq Cq H (19)
where m and C are the virtual mass and damping matrices given by
m

L
0
C
4
N
T
n
RV
n
T
RV
Nds (20)
C

L
0
C
1
N
T
n
RV
n
T
RV
Nds

L
0
C
2
N
T
tt
T
Nds (21)
259 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 3. Schematic representation of the possible directions of the uid acceleration a, relative uid accel-
eration a
R
, relative uid velocity v
R
and the corresponding unit vectors.
and the vector H is
H

L
0
C
1
N
T
n
RV
n
T
RV
Vds

L
0
C
2
N
T
tt
T
Vds

L
0
C
3
N
T
n
a
n
T
a
V

ds

L
0
C
4
N
T
n
Ra
n
T
Ra
V

ds.
Note that a similar expression for H is presented in Gosz et al. (1997) for the equival-
ent nodal force vector due to the wave and current loads on a truss element. But in
the case of a consistent net element, the formulae for coefcients C
1
, C
2
,C
3
and
C
4
are different.
The buoyancy force per unit length is chosen to produce the same total buoyancy
as the corresponding section of the net panel:
f
b
g(r
w
r)
pd
2
A
2lL
. (22)
In general, the element may be partially submerged. Let part 0sL
w
of the element
260 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
be submerged and part L
w
sL be above the surface. Then, the element
buoyancy/weight force vector can be calculated as follows
F
bw

L
w
0
N
T
g(r
w
r)
pd
2
A
2lL
ds

L
L
w
N
T
gr
pd
2
A
2lL
ds. (23)
Note that L
w
L for completely submerged element, and L
w
0 for a completely
dry one.
Since the mass per unit length is m r(pd
2
A) / (2lL), the element consistent mass
matrix M is given by the following expression:
M r
pd
2
A
2lL

L
0
N
T
Nds. (24)
The elasticity force in the net element is modeled as the resultant of tensions in
all tethers deforming in the direction parallel to element (we neglect the transverse
resistance). Thus, the element stiffness matrix is be calculated using the ber material
Youngs modulus E and the effective cross sectional area given by
A
eff

pd
2
A
2lL
. (25)
The elasticity force in the consistent net element is then the same as in the truss
element with the equal effective cross sectional area A
eff
, and the expression for the
element stiffness matrix is
K
EA
eff
L

L
0
B
T
BdetJds, (26)
where B J
1
N/ s is the element strain-displacement transformation matrix that
must be calculated at each time increment and J is the Jacobian. Formula (26)
assumes small deformation and constant elastic stiffness of the net material through-
out the entire range of deformation. To account for nonlinear material behavior, we
use the tangent elastic modulus calculated on the previous step of the time integration
procedure. To account for large nonlinear strain, we implement the updated Lagrang-
ian approach (Bathe, 1982). A total Lagrangian approach can also be used in this
case.
3. Finite element program description
The Aqua-FE program, developed at the University of New Hampshire, is an
advanced computer design and analysis tool to model the dynamic response of par-
tially or completely submerged structures in an ocean environment. It uses a commer-
261 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
cially available program, Msc. Mentat, as a graphical user interface. The core nite
element code is written in Fortran, the numerical procedure implemented in the
code is described in detail by Gosz et al. (1997) and Swift et al. (1997). Note that
some corrections to the procedure have been recently introduced they are reected
in eqs. (31) and (32). Truss, buoy, cable and net elements are incorporated into the
program to model various parts of marine structures and mooring systems. The non-
linear Lagrangian formulation is employed to account for large displacements of
structural elements. To solve the nonlinear equations of motion the unconditionally
stable Newmark direct integration scheme is adopted as described next.
The standard nite element discretization of a structural system (including net
elements) in a moving uid environment results in the following system of differen-
tial equations
Mq Kq R F (27)
where q is the (time dependent) vector of nodal displacements, M is the time inde-
pendent consistent mass matrix, K is the global stiffness matrix, R is the equivalent
nodal force vector due to gravity and buoyancy forces and F is the equivalent nodal
force vector due to relative uid motion, wave and current loads. This equation is
highly nonlinear, because the right hand side part (vectors R and F) depends on
time, motion, deformation and whether the individual elements are submerged, par-
tially submerged or dry.
The equivalent nodal force vector F is calculated using eq. (19). Substituting
expression for F into eq. (27) yields
(M m)q Cq Kq R H. (28)
The solution technique of this equation is based upon Newmarks b method to inte-
grate the equations in time and full NewtonRaphson iteration scheme to nd nodal
displacement at every time step. First, we discretize eq. (28) in time:
(M m
t+t
)q
t+t
C
t+t
q
t+t
K
t
q R
t+t
H
t+t
P
t
q
t
, (29)
where K
t
is the tangent stiffness matrix, P
t
is the internal force vector and
q q
t t
q
t
. Following the Newmarks b method we then express velocity and
acceleration at time instant t t as
q
t+t

q
bt
2

q
t
bt

1
2b
1

q
t
, q
t+t
q
t
(1g)tq
t
gtq
t+t
, (30)
where parameters b and g are chosen by the user in the intervals: 0b
1
4
,
0g
1
2
. Substituting these expressions into eq. (29) yields
262 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
(M m
t+t
C
t+t
gt bt
2
K
t
)
q
bt
2
R
t+t
H
t+t
P
t
q
t
(M m
t+t
C
t+t
(gb)t)
q
t
bt

M m
t+t

1
g
2b
2g

C
t+t
t

q
t
.
(31)
We use a NewtonRaphson approach (see Bathe, 1982) to solve the nonlinear
eq. (31) at each time step.
4. Comparison with available results
There are certain difculties involved with comparison/validation of different
approaches to net modeling. Most of the numerical simulation results available in
the literature are provided for net structures of a particular design (Bessonneau and
Marichal, 1998; Lee and Pei-Wen, 2000) with no exact geometry and material
properties given. Experimental and in situ observations are usually made for the
structures containing several net panels or a net with some additional members whose
contribution to drag/inertia forces is not easily evaluated [see, for example, Palczyn-
ski (2000); Kim et al. (2001); Fredriksson (2001)]. We provide here a comparison
of our predictions with the easy-to-use formulae of Kawakami (1959, 1964) and
Aarsnes et al. (1990).
The semi-empirical formula of Kawakami (1964) gives the drag force acting on
a net having outline area A as a quadratic function of current velocity V
f
D

1
2
AC
d
r
w
V
2
(32)
where C
d
is the mesh drag coefcient. For the knotless net, this coefcient is given
by the following empirical expression (see Milne (1972)
C
d
1 2.73

d
l

3.12

d
l

2
(33)
where d is the twine diameter and l is the half-mesh size (Fig. 2). This formula
provides the resistance of a net to current acting in the direction perpendicular to
the net panel only. It does not cover the oblique currents and the resulting lift forces.
The formula proposed by Aarsnes et al. (1990) based on their experimental obser-
vations, includes both drag and lift forces:
f
1
2
AC
D
r
w
VV
1
2
C
L
V
2
n
L
, (34)
where the drag and lift coefcients are given by
263 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 4. Orientation of the net panel is characterized by angle a between current V and
unit normal vector n.
C
D
0.04

0.04 2
d
l
4.96

d
l

2
109.6

d
l

cosa, (35)
C
L

1.14
d
l
14.16

d
l

2
80.8

d
l

sin2a. (36)
The direction of the lift force is dened by unit vector n
L
that can be expressed in
terms of current velocity vector V and unit vector n normal to the net panel and
directed leeward as follows
n
L

(V n) V
|V n V|
, (37)
where a is the angle between the current direction and the normal vector of net
panel (Fig. 4).
Figs. 5 and 6 present the comparison of the nite element simulations using the
Fig. 5. 1 m1 m net panel: variation of drag with current.
264 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 6. 1m1m net panel: variation of total drag force with angle (current=1 m/s).
consistent net element with the results of Kawakami (1964) and Aarsnes et al. (1990).
They are obtained for a square 1 m1 m panel of net having l 0.0155 m,
d 0.0016 m, r 1150 kg/ m
3
and E 2 10
9
Pa. In Fig. 5, the drag is plotted
as function of current which is assumed to be perpendicular to the panel. The calcu-
lations have been performed using 4, 24 and 544 net elements to model the same
panel. The dependence of the total drag force (including both drag and lift
components) on the orientation angle a is depicted in Fig. 6. The results show that
the increase in number of net elements per panel from 24 to 544 (Fig. 7) does not
produce a signicant change in the predicted hydrodynamic forces for the considered
case of current-only loading.
As can be seen in the gures, the drag forces obtained using our approach are
Fig. 7. Net panel in constant current V. (a) 24 elements, (b) 544 elements.
265 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
lower than the ones given by eqs. (32) and (34). It can be explained by the following
considerations. First, our model accounts for deformation of the net panel producing
more accurate distribution of tension: in-plane components of drag cancel each other
resulting in lower normal drag force (see Fig. 7a). Second, we use the drag coef-
cients that depend on Reynolds number while formulae (33), (35) and (36) contain
geometrical parameters only. For example, when the velocity changes from 0.1 to
1 m/s, the Reynolds number changes from 137 to 1375 resulting in C
d
decreasing
from 1.44 to 1.21 (compare with Kawakamis constant parameter C
d
1.31).
Note that formulae of Kawakami (1964) and Aarsnes et al. (1990) do not include
the uid acceleration term (the inertia component of Morison equation). That is why
only constant current loading (no wave) could be used to compare our approach with
their analytical formulae.
Recently, a comprehensive experimental study of the hydrodynamic characteristics
of netting and the net shadowing effects has been initiated at the University of New
Hampshire Ocean Engineering Program. This study will include physical testing of
net panels at the UNH wave/tow basin facility and in situ monitoring of sh cages
at the UNH open ocean aquaculture demonstration site. The results will be reported
when enough data is accumulated and processed.
5. Application to offshore aquaculture shcages
The proposed approach to net modeling was applied to the analysis of a tension
leg shcage (TLC Refa) considered for deployment at the University of New
Hampshire open ocean aquaculture demonstration site (see Tsukrov et al., 2001). The
site is located in 52 m of water 2.6 km south of the Isles of Shoals, New Hampshire.
The nite element model of the TLC Refa is presented in Fig. 8. The sh cage
consists of a net bag (height=16 m, diameter=16 m) with a oating collar
(height=1 m, diameter=6 m). The cage is moored with six tension legs, and the
structural stability is provided by a hexagonal reinforcement ring. The mechanical
and geometric properties of the cage structural components are provided in Table 1.
Note that for some of them (reinforcement ring, collar and buoy) the effective mech-
anical properties are given to take into account the complicated cross-sectional
geometry. In this cage, netting is not only used as a sh enclosure, but also as an
important structural component needed for overall structural integrity. The impor-
tance of the net contribution into the dynamic performance of the shcage was a
major practical motivation of the present research. The netting parameters are
l 0.0155 m, d 0.0016 m, r 1150 kg/ m
3
and E 2 10
9
Pa.
The dynamic performance of the TLC Refa sh cage was investigated for both
typical and extreme environmental loading conditions at the UNH aquaculture dem-
onstration site. The regular loading condition for the site consists of a 1.2 m wave
and the tidal component of the coastal current which is estimated to be 0.25 m/s.
The extreme loading condition consists of a nominal 9 m wave (with a period of
8.8 s) and a current which is set to change linearly from 1 m/s on the surface to
0.25 m/s near the bottom. The wave data sets and the locations used to obtain these
266 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 8. Finite element model of TLC Refa1800.
Table 1
Effective mechanical and geometric properties of TLC Refa
Element Material Mass Cross-sectional area Youngs
density(kg/m
3
) (m
2
) modulus(Pa)
Leg chain Steel 7850 2.72610
4
210
11
Reinforcement ring Glass ber armed 1000 4.4210
3
1010
11
plastic
Vertical rope Polypropylene 950 3.1410
4
1.210
9
Horizontal rope Polypropylene 950 210
4
1.210
9
Net twine Polyamide 1150 1.97610
6
210
9
Buoy Polyurethane 116 0.283
Collar HDPE 409 110
8
characteristics are described in detail by Fredriksson et al. (1999) and Fredriksson
(2001).
Figs. 9 and 10 present the comparison of the special net element approach with
the previously used equivalent truss approach described in Tsukrov et al. (2000).
The results are provided for the mooring leg and upper vertical rope tension under
extreme environmental loading condition. The variations of tension in the upper ver-
tical rope are given as functions of time for 10, 21 and 36 consistent net elements
per panel. Note that the initial low tensions in Fig. 9 correspond to the state when
the cage is released from the undeformed conguration before the periodic pattern
267 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 9. Comparison of the mooring line A tensions for different net modeling approaches.
Fig. 10. Tensions in the vertical rope B obtained using different net modeling approaches.
of motion develops. As can be seen from the gures, the equivalent truss element
approach noticeably overestimates the tension in the ropes and time required to
develop the periodic pattern of motion. The reason for this is that the equivalent
truss approach overestimates the inertia of netting, as discussed in Section 2. It can
be also seen from Fig. 10 that the increase in number of net elements per panel
from 21 to 36 does not cause signicant tension difference in the fully developed
periodic motion.
Fig. 11 reports the results of computer modeling of the TLC Refa under both
typical and extreme environmental loading conditions using 21 net elements per
panel (this corresponds to 342 net elements in the entire structure). The characteristic
deformed congurations and maximum tensions at the key locations are given. Under
268 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
Fig. 11. TLC Refa deformed shape and highest tension values under: (a) typical loading conditions;
and (b) extreme loading conditions.
a typical loading condition, the sh cage keeps its shape, and both deformation and
tensions are small. The extreme environmental loading results in large deformations
but moderate tensions the safety factor k T
fail
/ T
calculated
of at least 3.4 was
observed for all analyzed sh cage components, see Tsukrov et al. (2001). Our simul-
ations (not provided here) show no big difference in the results obtained using differ-
ent net modeling techniques for typical loading conditions it is explained by the
low levels of acceleration of the sh cage motion, so the inaccuracy in the inertia
modeling becomes insignicant.
6. Conclusions
In the prediction of overall dynamic behavior of net-containing structures (shing
nets, aquaculture net pens, etc.), it is important to accurately model the contribution
from forces exerted on the nets by environmental loading. A reasonable estimate of
the total force acting on a net panel must include weight, buoyancy, inertia and drag
forces experienced by nets. In numerical modeling using nite elements it is not
feasible to model the behavior of each strand comprising the net separately, because
of the large number of nite elements that are required for such direct modeling. It
has been shown in this paper that hydrostatic and hydrodynamic forces exerted on the
moving netting, including wave and current-related water motion, cannot be exactly
represented by equivalent structural elements. Both buoyancy and inertia of structural
elements are proportional to the volume, drag is approximately proportional to the
area, and it is impossible to choose the equivalent geometry to reproduce these three
forces simultaneously. That is why we have developed a special consistent net
element to model net panels or their parts.
269 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
The development of the consistent net element is based on the modied Morison
equation (1). It makes use of the fact that drag and inertia related terms in this
equation are uncoupled, so they can be treated separately. Thus, it is possible to
choose such a set of coefcients in eq. (1) that both the action of uid and inertia
of a net panel are reected. These coefcients are presented in eqs. (14) and (16).
The stiffness, mass and damping matrices and the equivalent nodal force vector of
the consistent net element are then given by eqs. (20)(26).
Note that the Morison equation is valid for cylindrical structural elements with
the diameter that is small compared to the wavelength. We also neglect the water
surface diffraction effects and the effect of interaction between individual strands of
netting. The interaction effect refers to the disturbance in the uid ow around a net
strand caused by the presence of other strands. In our approach, the effect of net
interaction can be approximately taken into account by introduction of so-called
shadowing coefcients into the Morison equation.
The consistent net element has been implemented in the nite element program
Aqua-FE used in the University of New Hampshire to analyze the dynamic perform-
ance of various structures subjected to mechanical and current/wave-related environ-
mental loading. The comparison with semi-empirical formulae of Kawakami (1964)
and Aarsnes et al. (1990) shows that our simulations predict lower drag forces. The
reason for this is that our model accounts for deformation of the net panel reecting
the fact that drag forces on net strands partially cancel each other. We also use the
drag coefcients that depend on the Reynolds number, while formulae of Kawakami
(1964) and Aarsnes et al. (1990) have drag coefcients dependent upon geometrical
parameters only.
The proposed approach to net modeling has been applied to the analysis of a
tension leg sh cage considered for deployment at the University of New Hampshire
open ocean aquaculture demonstration site. Various environmental loading con-
ditions have been considered. The results have been compared with the predictions
obtained using the equivalent truss elements to model nets. It has been shown that
the latter approach overestimates the stresses in the sh cage because it over predicts
the inertia of the system. The nite element simulations also show that 21 special
net elements per net panel is enough to adequately represent the inuence of the net
on the overall dynamic characteristics of the considered sh cage system.
7. Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the Open Ocean Aquaculture Demonstration Project,
NOAA/Sea Grant contract No. NA86GR60016. The authors would like to thank K.
Baldwin and M. Grosenbaugh for useful discussions. The authors also acknowledge
contribution of M. Gosz into the original development of Aqua-FE computer pro-
gram. The information on physical and geometrical properties of TLC Refa was
presented by Darco Lisac, Refa Mediterranean.
270 I. Tsukrov et al. / Ocean Engineering 30 (2003) 251270
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