Scour Around a Subsea Structure with Mudmat: Comparison of Field Data with Laboratory Data

Abstract

This paper presents comprehensive field measurements around a subsea structure with a mudmat. Surveys are reported at two different times following installation, together with soil classification data for the seabed sediment and measurements of near seabed metocean currents. The field data is compared with scour predictions based on model scale experiments of a 3D printed replica structure subjected to a near bed velocity time series that mimics the field conditions. Comparisons indicate that predictions based on the experimental data agree well with respect to the extent and rate of scour, but only if site specific metocean conditions and soil properties are used together with the actual structural geometry. The experiments also indicate the role that a mudmat foundation can play in providing some inherent scour protection to the superstructure it supports.