Reliability assessment of a tanker in damage conditions

The paper covers the reliability assessment of the hull girder of a tanker ship in grounding conditions. The work examines the various elements that an effective characterisation of a design scenario for a ship in damage conditions should include, highlighting the need for a proper accounting of the relationships among such elements. In particular, the dependencies on the damage extension and position of the corresponding static and dynamic loads and of the residual structural capacity of the ship are discussed, as well as the key point of the correlation between the environmental conditions during the accident (and in the immediate aftermath). A case study is then taken into consideration, corresponding to a specific ship in specific flooding condition in a given location. A characterisation of static and dynamic loads as well as of the residual strength is performed. The paper is meant to contribute to the discussion about a more rational treatment of accidental situations in the design structural requirements for ships.Keywords Longitudinal strength of damaged ships, damage scenarios, damage extension, grounding.