Numerical analysis and experimental verification of the mechanical response of offshore platform tubular members subjected to lateral load

The offshore platform consists of a large number of tubular structures which may be damaged by the impact of visiting ships and dropped objects during service. In this paper, the mechanical response of thin-walled circular steel tubes under lateral load fixed at both ends were mainly investigated. Firstly, the numerical simulation was performed by the commercial FEA software ABAQUS, and then the simulation results were verified by quasi-static experiments. In the end, the effect of the tube length, the indenter shape and the impact position on the mechanical response of tubular members were discussed.