Application of Advanced Composite Materials for Offshore Jacket Mudmats

摘要

“Mudmats” are large structures used to temporarily prevent offshore platforms or “jackets” from sinking into soft unconsolidated soil on the seabed. The functional life span of these mudmats is limited, as they are essentially redundant after installation of the foundation piles. Conventional steel mudmats are subject to high corrosion rates and require large numbers of sacrificial anodes to slow down the rate of corrosion. Advanced composite materials would offer significant advantages as alternative means of construction as they are corrosion resistant, lightweight and cost effective. This paper describes the industrial process from the initial concept of Glass Reinforced Polymer (GRP) mudmats through to manufacture, large scale mechanical testing and on site installation of a GRP mudmat system for a major offshore development in the Caspian Sea.