The study is devoted to the problems of mathematical simulation of the physical process of interaction between the ice cover and the offshore engineering objects in terms of simulation and statistical methods. In the previous studies the authors made an attempt to describe a wider scope of possible scenarios of interaction which might cause an ice force extreme by value. The purpose of this study is to simulate effects of stable ice congestions which caused extreme ice loads on structures.
When designing the structures intended for operation in the seas under severe ice conditions, it is necessary to consider a possible effect from the drifting ice features, such as level ice fields, layered or hummocky ice fields, individual hummocks, ridges of hummocks, grounded hummocks, icebergs, ice masses from icing-up, combinations thereof, etc. The offshore platforms are mostly affected by the drifting ice features (such as individual hummocks, ridges of hummocks, or giant level ice fields, as well), loads from which may be very high and become extreme for the platforms. The subject was considered urgent because the effect from the extreme ice features was one of the most difficult challenges to include during MIRP designing. From analysis of the worldwide investigations of ice effects on marine hydroengineering structures, as well as from the guidelines of the normative documents, it became clear that they had omitted a considerable portion of the calculated occurrences and kinds of effects which could occur in the open marine area. In addition, the analysis of references in the practice of ice load calculations showed that various researchers had considered basically the particular cases of the structure supports affected by any ice feature (such as the level/hummocky ice fields, grounded hummocks, icebergs, etc.) only.
