Abstract
Extended well testing has emerged from the need for accurate, reliable predictions of well performance. Recent events in the Gulf of Mexico have demonstrated this need. The analysis of a moored tanker and semi-submersible two-body system established for the purposes of extended well testing will be conducted in this study. The proposed extended well testing system consists of a moored tanker and a semi-submersible joined by a hawser. The analysis demonstrates the interaction of two interconnected bodies of comparable size and addresses the reliability of existing semi-submersible mooring systems in providing the needed restoring forces required for this system. In addition, this report provides a method for preliminary evaluation of extended well testing systems. The purpose of the research was to conduct a parametric study of a two-body system for use in preliminary analysis of extended well testing scenarios. The parametric study varied mooring line configuration, environment orientation, and environment severity. Of special interest were vessel offsets and mooring line tensions caused by the combination of mean offset, wave frequency oscillation, and low frequency oscillation. The mooring system with buoys in the tanker bow mooring lines seemed to give the best results. In addition, the linear simplified model provided a quick way to verify the computer generated eigenvalues and eigenvectors.
Maldonado-Aguirre, Georgina (1993). Dynamic analysis of a semi-submersible connected to a tanker. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1993 -THESIS -M244.