AN INNOVATIVE BOOSTER TO INCREASE THE FINAL PENETRATION DEPTH OF OMNI-MAX ANCHOR

摘要

An anchor booster, which belongs to the field of ocean engineering, is designed to increase the final penetration depth of the OMNI-Max anchor. The anchor booster is attached to the tail of the OMNI-Max anchor to increase its impact velocity in water and penetration depth in seabed. Moreover, the booster can also improve the directional stability of the OMNI-Max anchor during its free fall in water. After installation, the booster is retrieved by pulling its retrieval line up and can be used for the subsequent installation. The booster is comprised of a cylindrical shaft with three rear fins. The shaft is designed with an ellipsoidal tip and a contracted rear to reduce the drag force during free fall in water and dynamic installation in seabed. The shaft rear is set with three slots separated by 120° in plane thus the rear fins can be inserted into the slots to improve the directional stability of the hybrid anchor (i.e. the OMNI-Max anchor with a booster). The booster tip is fabricated with a cylindrical slot and the anchor tail has a compatible bar, such that the booster can be connected to the anchor tail by a shear pin. The booster geometry is simple, allowing for cost effective fabrication. With the aid of a booster, the final penetration depth and thus the holding capacity of the OMNI-Max anchor can be increased to a great extent. Therefore, the safety factor is increased or the total cost is reduced for the mooring system.