With floating facilities increasing in size and tending to deeper and harsher locations; the mooring system design for environmental loading becomes ever more challenging. Higher average line tensions and fatigue loads can present uncertainty when assessing the capacity and qualification of the individual components.
In 2011 and in response to a client request, SRP investigated the availability of compact subsea mooring connectors with high bending and tension fatigue capacity. An absence of results led SRP to explore the potential of cross-pollinating the technology from deepwater drilling and production riser systems to mooring systems. The reasoning being that steel risers can be subject to very high combined loading; weight limitations and fatigue life often motivate the designer to use high strength steels and efficient, fatigue resistant connections.
This paper discusses the process and design considerations arising from adaptation of an existing and proven technology from one application (wellhead connectors) to a new application (subsea mooring connectors).
The design verification and qualification test program being carried out in 2012 and 2013 are detailed as an example of a design team's interpretation of riser, mooring and new technology standards. The results of the qualification test program, including static and fatigue testing, will also be presented as an indicator of technical success of the strategy.
