Seismic and vibration mitigation for the A-type offshore template platform system

In this study an improved design method for the traditional A-type(or V-type) offshore template platform system was proposed to mitigate the vibration induced by the marine environmental loadings and the strong ground motions of earthquakes. A newly developed material model was combined into the structural system and then a nonlinear dynamic analysis in the time domain was carried out. The analysis was focused on the displacement and rotation induced by the input wave forces and ground motions, and the mitigation effect for these responses was evaluated when the viscoelastic damping devices were applied. The wave forces exerted on the offshore structures are based on Stokes fifth-order wave theory and Morison equation for small body. A step by step integration method was modified and used in the nonlinear analysis. It was found that the new design approach enhanced with viscoelastic dampers was efficient on the vibration mitigation for the structural system subjected to both the wave motion and the strong ground motion.<br />