Integration of Advanced Material Components to Deepwater Platforms

Due to a recent mooring shackle failure within the offshore industry, focus has been directed toward existing in-service facilities that have similar manufactured shackles installed in the mooring systems. An in-service deep water facility was identified as having similar mooring components by the same manufacturer that failed in-service. A subsequent assessment of the material properties was undertaken on readily available spare shackles that identified Charpy impact toughness values below the original material specification. Consequently, a fitness-for-service assessment was carried out that included the assessment of the shackle fracture toughness, a finite element analysis of the shackle and associated mooring components, and a deterministic analysis procedure that assessed the structural capacity of the shackle by considering the response of the shackle to the presence of a crack or flaw located at a shackle stress hot spot coupled with a significant return period event. Finally, full-scale structural testing of spare shackles was performed to enable verification of actual shackle load capacity with a flaw located at the shackle stress hot spot. The focus of this paper is on presenting an overview of the fit-for-service methodology and the results of the structural integrity assessment. While a full quantitative risk assessment of the effect of a low fracture toughness shackle in the mooring system would have been ideal, due to the level of data available and the timeframe required for a probabilistic assessment, it was deemed appropriate to undertake a deterministic assessment of the mooring shackles under realistic scenarios representative of service and severe loads that may accompany the service. The results of the deterministic assessment on an actual in-service deepwater floating facility will be presented. The fit-for-service methodology presented in this paper provides a robust method to assess in-service floating facilities that have been identified or suspected of having below-specification mooring components. It has successfully been applied to a number of Chevron in-service floating facilities in different geographical locations. Introduction Following the early failure of a mooring shackle on a new deepwater floating facility, attention has been directed to other new and existing assets that have similar manufactured mooring shackles installed in the mooring system. Additionally, the release of Safety Alert No. 256 from the U.S. Department of the Interior (Minerals Management Service), provided recommendations to operators to review their current specification and testing requirements for mooring systems to ensure that the mooring components are adequate for the proposed or current usage.

Summary The principal focus of this paper is to discuss and summarize, from the manufacturer's perspective, the primary milestones in the development of the marine riser system used to drill in record water depths off the U.S. east coast. This riser system is unique in that it used advanced designs, material technology, and quality control to enable safe operation in water depths beyond the capability of conventional drilling riser systems. Experience and research have led to design improvements that are now being incorporated in new riser systems that have the potential of expanding the frontiers to increasingly deeper water.

The Spar concept as a floating vessel is now recognized as a reliable and economic option for developing deepwater offshore hydrocarbon reservoirs. Many of the advantages of the Spar concept are attributed to the variety of riser systems that can be accommodated. This paper presents a discussion of design considerations for the top tensioned and steel catenary risers deployed from a Spar offshore production vessel. Results from extreme event strength analysis, Spar motion and current-induced fatigue analysis, and a riser-to-riser wake interference analysis are presented. Steel catenary risers are presented, including a comparison of results for risers supported by a Spar and a Semi. These analyses demonstrate that simple and reliable riser systems can be designed for use with the Spar platform concept.

PrefaceThis issue of Proceedings gathers the papers presented at 2018 International Conference on Advanced Electronic Materials, Computers and Materials Engineering (AEMCME 2018) held on September 14-16, 2018 in National University of Singapore, Singapore. AEMCME is an international conference covering research and development in the field of advanced electronic materials and computers and allow the participation from all over the world.More than 400 papers were submitted on the conference, and AEMCME finally accepted 280 papers after a double blinded peer review process by international reviewers and technical program committee members. Divided into 4 chapters, the papers provide a wide spectrum of researches on wide range of advanced electronic materials and computers. The chapters are devoted to Advanced Electronic Materials, Computers, Information Engineering and Application, Materials Physics, Chemistry and Engineering, as well as Power, Energy Systems and Engineering. Specific research results by conference participants were presented and examined in the light of the frameworks outlined above, which is of interest to academics, researchers and professionals in this field.Three keynote speeches were presented from Prof. Hao Gong, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Prof. Alfonso Maffezzoli, University of Salento, Italy; Prof. X.H. Zhu, Sichuan University, China separately. All the talks were very impressive for the high level of professionalism, and in many cases original ideas and activities have been accomplished or proposed.List of committees are available in this pdf.

The understanding and prediction of spar vortex induced motion (VIM) is an important area for the offshore industry as it affects the integrity of riser and mooring systems related to strength and fatigue loading. With exploration moving to deeper water, there is a desire not only to asses spar VIM early in the design cycle, but also to optimize the design. The methodology to model spar VIM with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was pioneered by the authors and is utilized in this study to demonstrate how CFD can aid the design process, as well as conducting additional benchmark cases to improve confidence in CFD. Comparisons against experiments of a large scale hull at high Reynolds number are performed to validate CFD and establish an efficient methodology that is subsequently used for screening. This new method utilizes a boundary condition that allows simulation under arbitrary headings. As a result the overall computational cost and setup overhead is reduce by an order of magnitude enabling screening for VIM well within design cycle requirements. Simulations of spar geometries with increasing detail are performed starting from a hull with strakes, adding pipes and mooring components and finally incorporating the truss. The effects of each component are discussed with their impact on VIM response. Overall the computations show that high quality predictions are possible and it is practical to incorporate CFD into the design process. Screening and the generation of response curves can be done during initial design and more targeted assessments during detail design.

A number of spars are being installed in deepwater areas in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) which are subject to loop / eddy current conditions and require that their mooring system be designed for Vortex Induced Motion (VIM). This paper presents insights into fatigue and wear issues for mooring systems of spars subject to VIM, and illustrates the importance of reassessing industry practices for mooring strength and fatigue design for mooring systems that must resist VIM. During the GoM Millennium Eddy Current Event in April 2001, the ChevronTexaco Genesis spar platform, which is installed in Green Canyon Block 205 in the GoM, underwent VIM which was greater than anticipated during the original design of the mooring and riser systems. A key part of developing a permanent solution for ensuring integrity in future large VIM events was the assessment of fatigue and wear damage accumulated in past VIM events, for the purpose of ensuring fitness of the components of the mooring system for future service. The main elements of this assessment were: (a) The hindcast of the mooring line tensions from measured platform motions. (b) The evaluation of stress concentration on the mooring chain in the fairleads. (c) The assessment of fatigue damage for high amplitude/low cycle conditions, and (d) The assessment of accumulated wear. The results of this fatigue assessment led to a decision to replace the fairlead chain segments on 4 of the 14 mooring legs of Genesis, in order to ensure that they would have adequate fatigue endurance under the Stepped Line Tensioning (SLT) solution developed to mitigate the risk of VIM of the spar in the future. The project team’s unique understanding of mooring system response under VIM and resulting mooring component fatigue and wear issues led to the development of novel fatigue and wear hindcasting procedures that allowed the project to reliably assess the remaining life of the mooring components, and make decisions to selectively replace some of the components to ensure integrity for the remaining life of the platform under the SLT solution.

There are now over a dozen low-CTE materials with thermal conductivities between that of copper (400 w/m-K) and over 4X copper (1700 W/m-K). Most have low densities. For comparison, traditional low-CTE packaging materials like copper/tungsten have thermal conductivities that are little or no better than that of aluminum (200 W/m-K) and high densities. There are also low-density thermal insulators with low CTEs. Some advanced materials are low cost. Most do not outgas. They have a wide range of electrical properties that can be used to minimize electromagnetic emissions or provide EMI shielding. Several are now in commercial and aerospace applications, including laser diode packages; light-emitting diode (LED) packages; thermoelectric cooler bases, plasma displays; power modules; servers; laptops; heat sinks; thermally conductive, low-CTE printed circuit boards; and printed circuit board cold plates. Advanced material payoffs include: improved thermal performance, reliability, alignment and manufacturing yield; reduced thermal stresses and heating power requirements; simplified thermal design; enablement of hard solder direct attach; weight savings up to 85%; size reductions up to 65%; and lower cost. This paper discusses the large and increasing number of advanced packaging materials, including properties, development status, applications, increasing manufacturing yield, cost, lessons learned and future directions, including nanocomposites.

Once fundamental scientific laws are understood, engineering technology depends on advances in materials – materials science – more than any other factor. Historically, ages have been named for the most advanced materials technology available: Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age. If you look around the room you are in, you will recognize that our current age is the age of manufactured materials: plastics, ceramics, acrylics, polyester fibers, etc. Underlying the “Information Age” are the advances in electronic materials that have made possible the computers, displays, and communications equipment that enable information transfer and processing. Selecting materials with desirable properties and then processing to enhance these properties is now standard practice. The next generation of materials will include nanoscale manipulation and fabrication of materials unlike anything found in nature. These new nanomaterials can be predicted to have properties exceeding any currently available materials.

The present issue of IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) contains 113 selected manuscripts submitted to the 8th Global Conference on Materials Science and Engineering (CMSE 2019), which was held during November 12-15, 2019 in Sanya, Hainan Province, China, and was sponsored by Sage Publishing. Since 2012, CMSE provides an annual international academic platform for participants from all over the world to share new theoretical and experimental approaches and findings in all aspects of materials science and engineering.This conference attracted 150 participants from universities, research institutes and technological innovative enterprises from 17 countries. The conference had parallel sessions with dedicated selected topics on: Advanced Material Technologies, Energy materials and Semiconductors, Nanomaterials, Surface and Coatings Technology, Characterization & Testing and Structural materials. The technical program consisted of 4 keynote, 15 invited, 43 oral and 31 poster presentations.The electronic submission, double-blind peer reviewing, revision and polishing procedures for the selected manuscripts complied with high standards and requirements for regular international peer-reviewed publications. The contribution of our regular reviewers and authors ensured a high level and novelty of CMSE2019 reports, while sponsors, Technical and Organizing Committees provided a state-of-the-art technical background and creative atmosphere.

Solar Turbines Incorporated (Solar), under cooperative agreement number DE-FC26-0CH11049, has conducted development activities to improve the durability of the Mercury 50 combustion system to 30,000 hours life and reduced life cycle costs. This project is part of Advanced Materials in the Advanced Industrial Gas Turbines program in DOE's Office of Distributed Energy. The targeted development engine was the Mercury{trademark} 50 gas turbine, which was developed by Solar under the DOE Advanced Turbine Systems program (DOE contract number DE-FC21-95MC31173). As a generator set, the Mercury 50 is used for distributed power and combined heat and power generation and is designed to achieve 38.5% electrical efficiency, reduced cost of electricity, and single digit emissions. The original program goal was 20,000 hours life, however, this goal was increased to be consistent with Solar's standard 30,000 hour time before overhaul for production engines. Through changes to the combustor design to incorporate effusion cooling in the Generation 3 Mercury 50 engine, which resulted in a drop in the combustor wall temperature, the current standard thermal barrier coated liner was predicted to have 18,000 hours life. With the addition of the advanced materials technology being evaluated under this program, the combustor life is predicted to be over 30,000 hours. The ultimate goal of the program was to demonstrate a fully integrated Mercury 50 combustion system, modified with advanced materials technologies, at a host site for a minimum of 4,000 hours. Solar was the Prime Contractor on the program team, which includes participation of other gas turbine manufacturers, various advanced material and coating suppliers, nationally recognized test laboratories, and multiple industrial end-user field demonstration sites. The program focused on a dual path development route to define an optimum mix of technologies for the Mercury 50 and future gas turbine products. For liner and injector development, multiple concepts including high thermal resistance thermal barrier coatings (TBC), oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) alloys, continuous fiber ceramic composites (CFCC), and monolithic ceramics were evaluated before down-selection to the most promising candidate materials for field evaluation. Preliminary, component and sub-scale testing was conducted to determine material properties and demonstrate proof-of-concept. Full-scale rig and engine testing was used to validated engine performance prior to field evaluation at a Qualcomm Inc. cogeneration site located in San Diego, California. To ensure that the CFCC liners with the EBC proposed under this program would meet the target life, field evaluations of ceramic matrix composite liners in Centaur{reg_sign} 50 gas turbine engines, which had previously been conducted under the DOE sponsored Ceramic Stationary Gas Turbine program (DE-AC02-92CE40960), was continued under this program at commercial end-user sites under Program Subtask 1A - Extended CFCC Materials Durability Testing. The goal of these field demonstrations was to demonstrate significant component life, with milestones of 20,000 and 30,000 hours. Solar personnel monitor the condition of the liners at the field demonstration sites through periodic borescope inspections and emissions measurements. This program was highly successful at evaluating advanced materials and down-selecting promising solutions for use in gas turbine combustions systems. The addition of the advanced materials technology has enabled the predicted life of the Mercury 50 combustion system to reach 30,000 hours, which is Solar's typical time before overhaul for production engines. In particular, a 40 mil thick advanced Thermal Barrier Coating (TBC) system was selected over various other TBC systems, ODS liners and CFCC liners for the 4,000-hour field evaluation under the program. This advanced TBC is now production bill-of-material at various thicknesses up to 40 mils for all of Solar's advanced backside-cooled combustor liners (Centaur 50, Taurus 60, Mars 100, Taurus 70, Taurus 65, Titan 130, Titan 250 and Mercury 50). This TBC coating system significantly outperformed all other TBC systems evaluated under the program. The initial field unit, with the 40 mil advanced TBC developed under this program, has far exceeded the 4,000-hour requirement of the program, accumulating over 20,000 hours of commercial operation at Qualcomm Inc. in San Diego, CA. The 40 mil advanced TBC remains in excellent condition, with no evidence of chipping or spalling. The engine will continue operation until the unit is due for overhaul at approximately 30,000 hours. The Oxide Dispersion Strengthened (ODS) alloy injector tip testing and evaluation was also successful, however, the ODS injector tip development on this program was terminated, primarily due to the fact that the Mercury 50 injector tip was redesigned (Generation 3) by Combustion Engineering.

It is a great privilege and honor for me to serve as the Editor-in-Chief of Advanced Materials Science and Technology (AMST). I want to express my heartfelt thanks to the editorial team for their efforts to make the journal going to the success. AMST, founded in 2019, is publishing research papers of high quality in the field of materials science and technology. Materials science and industry are entering a new era of green, high-end and intelligent, under pressure from the global community on the environment and energy needs[1-3]. Many countries are developing strategies for clean energy and low-carbon innovation. This depends to a great extent on the innovation research of new materials, functional materials and intelligent materials and development of related science and technology[4,5]. It is under such background and requirement that our journal, AMST, was founded and is fast growing, providing a platform to the scientific community for the exchange of knowledge about the chemistry and technology of new materials, especially to the increasingly inter- and multidisciplinary nature of materials-based research. Our journal is to give some insight into the opportunities and challenges related to advanced materials science and technology, and to call on more researchers participating actively in and sharing the chance. AMST is serving our readers with high level papers under our rigorous but fair peer-review procedures, and publish on a not-for-profit basis for the benefit of the scientific community. Indeed, we try our best to take the journal forward to continue growing as a trusted and respected gold open access venue for the publication of high quality, impactful results on the frontiers of materials-based research. We hope you enjoy this rising star in materials research as much as we do, and wonderful future issues is coming.

An overview of the effect of stirrer design on the mechanical properties of Aluminium Alloy Matrix Composites fabricated by stir casting

The Federal Institute of Materials Research and Testing (BAM) – 150 Years of Enabling Scientific and Technological Breakthrough

From the Classical Scheme to Asmart/Functional Materials System: A Generic Transformation of Advanced Materials Technologies

New wall materials are advanced materials with many excellent properties such as lightweight, high strength, sound absorption, heat preservation, energy saving and environmental protection, and represent the development trend of advanced wall materials technology. Based on this, this paper firstly introduces the development status of China and western countries, then shows the characteristics, types, uses and development status of new wall materials developed in China, and finally discusses the problems that need to be solved in its development. The results of the study show that: Western countries have established appropriate policies and relatively environmentally friendly building environments, and China is striving to develop new wall materials and shift to green buildings. Therefore, new wall materials will become the preferred building materials in the future, and new wall materials have their own advantages and disadvantages, which need to be combined with a variety of conditions for selection and further research and development.