Loads On Ship Hulls
The hulls of ships are subjected to a number of loads.
- Even when sitting at dockside or at anchor, the pressure of surrounding water displaced by the ship presses in on its hull.
- The weight of the hull, and of cargo and components within the ship bears down on the hull.
- Wind blows against the hull, and waves run into it.
- When a ship moves, there is additional hull drag, the force of propellors, water driven up against the bow.
- When a ship is loaded with cargo, it may have many times its own empty weight of cargo pushing down on the structure.
If the ship's structure, equipment, and cargo are distributed unevenly there may be large point loads into the structure, and if they are distributed differently than the distribution of buoyancy from displaced water then there are bending forces on the hull.
When ships are drydocked, and when they are being built, they are supported on regularly spaced posts on their bottoms.
Read more about this topic: Strength Of Ships
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