Effect of Ship Speed on Level Ice Edge Breaking

This paper presents a numerical model of ship ice-wedge interaction to study the effect of ship speed on level ice edge breaking. The interaction process is modeled using LS-DYNA. The developed model considers ice crushing, ice flexural failure and the water foundation effect. For the ice, two different plasticity-based material models are used to represent ice crushing and ice flexural behaviors. The water foundation effect is modeled using a simple linear elastic material. The analysis is performed for a ship speed range of 0.1 to 5 ms⁻¹ and ice thickness of 0.5 to 1.5 m. The analysis indicates that both ship speed and ice thickness significantly affect the ice breaking process. The model results are in good agreement with a number of analytical and empirical models. The model can be useful in establishing a rational basis for safe speed criteria, improving ship structural standards and tools for ice management capability assessment.