Modeling of an underwater drilling platform for very near shore applications

Abstract

The development of the blue economy involves the construction of marine infrastructures (harbors, marine wind farms, underwater data centers, etc.). All these activities require a geological investigation of the sea bottom. For nearshore and very near-shore applications the most common solution is represented by the adoption of fixed jack-up platforms; however, transportation and deployment of this kind of infrastructure are quite expensive and time-consuming. Also, the adoption of floating drilling technologies that are currently used for offshore applications is often difficult or impossible in shallow waters. In this work, an underwater drilling platform designed for near-shore applications is investigated. The proposed system is designed and optimized for rapid deployment in different operational conditions. This work is focused on the description of this innovative solution including simulation models that have been developed for this activity. Also, simulation models represent an original contribution because they are able to simulate complex interactions of the drilling pod with the surrounding water, with the support ship and with the excavated sea bottom.