With its large waterplane area and its adjustable water depth, the basin is ideal for testing of structures in deep and finite water depth.
The key features of the Ocean basin are:
- Large waterplane area of 80 m (L) × 50 m (W) × 0-10 m (D). The adjustable floor covers 42x48 m of the basin area.
- Adjustable water depth from 0 to 8.7 m by use of the movable floor.
- Wave generation by use of paddle type wavemakers on two sides of the basin, capable of producing regular, irregular, and extreme waves, both long and short crested.
- Current generation in the longitudinal direction of the basin. Adjustable current velocity with a triangular vertical profile.
- Wind generation by use of a movable fan battery, blowing at the test set-up from any heading angle. Both constant and varying wind (gust spectrum), can be provided.
- Cable-driven parallel robot (CDPR) for application of external loads on floater models. Typically used for the application of mooring or wind loads by use of cyber-physical testing.
Key Instrumentation:
- Above- and under water optical position motion system.
- Above- and under water HD camera system including use of Augmented Reality for information overlay.
- Large range of high-fidelity sensors for measurement of tension, internal loads, wave loads, wave elevations, current speed and direction.
Applications
Our state-of-the-art facility provides essential support to industries and researchers across a diverse range of ocean technologies:
Offshore wind energy
We conduct rigorous testing of floating wind turbine concepts under realistic conditions. Our real-time hybrid model testing method is often employed for aerodynamic loads, allowing for flexible testing with varying levels of fidelity, from constant to turbulent wind. We test both stiff and flexible turbine models, enabling the extraction of structural responses in addition to loads.
Ship hydrodynamics
Our expertise extends to evaluating crucial aspects of ship performance, including seakeeping, manoeuvring, and resistance. This ensures optimal design for efficiency and safety.
Oil & Gas Infrastructures
We analyse vital parameters for offshore platforms such as station-keeping, environmental loads, and structural responses. Our extensive project experience includes investigating phenomena like green water on deck, relative air gap, and slamming loads. We've also developed specialised tools for extracting hydrodynamic quadratic transfer functions from model test results and for predicting green water loads.
Aquaculture
SINTEF Ocean has played a significant role in supporting the industry with the development of both traditional and innovative fish farming technologies, continuously evolving our model testing techniques to meet industry needs. We measure both loads on and response of rigid, semi-rigid and flexible fish farms. We have advanced measurement tools for both above and under water.
Why choose SINTEF?
Our state-of-the-art, large-scale facility is designed to accommodate substantial models, ensuring minimal wave reflection for highly accurate results. This advanced infrastructure, combined with our unique problem-solving expertise, means we can tackle an extensive range of complex challenges for the ocean industries.
Beyond our cutting-edge facilities, you'll benefit from the collaborative environment at SINTEF Ocean. We are at the forefront of developing new knowledge and advanced simulation tools that directly support the ocean industries. Our close ties with NTNU (the Norwegian University of Science and Technology) further enrich our capabilities, providing access to a broad spectrum of research and academic excellence.
The Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre
We are currently building a new Ocean Basin and Seakeeping and Manoeuvring basin that will be part of the new Ocean Technology Centre. Today’s Ocean Basin will be operational until the new Ocean Basin and seakeeping and manoeuvring basins are ready. More information about the Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre can be found here: The Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre.