September 25, 2019
T
ianqiang Jia is a PhD student within the Project 4: Novel Anchors and Subsea Foundation Systems project stream. His research focus is on tolerably mobile foundations which have the ability to move in response to pipeline expansion and contraction. Movement of the mobile foundation alleviates the loads acting on pipeline end terminations (PLETs), permitting a smaller size foundation to be used. In turn, this reduces the required lifting capacity of an installation vessel.
“I have used both experiments and theory to analyse the behaviour of mobile foundations. A series of centrifuge tests were conducted on both kaolin clay and carbonate silt in order to provide experimental data. A framework was then created to predict the horizontal resistance, settlement and formation of berms due to the typical operating pattern of a PLET which results in cyclic sliding and periods intervening consolidation.”
Using tolerably mobile foundations, smaller in size and weight, means potential cost savings through more efficient installations.
Tianqiang is an active participant in the OFFshore ITRH mentoring program and for further details of his research, please refer to Tianqiang’s profile page.
