FINAL Subsea Pipeline Cluster Report 56pp

wealth from oceans
www.csiro.au
Subsea Pipelines
Collaboration Cluster
Advancing our knowledge of subsea pipeline technology
to support the oil and gas industry
Final report
2
Executive summary
4
Introduction to the
Subsea Pipelines Cluster
6
Training the offshore
pipeline engineers
of the future
10
Scientific and
engineering challenges
12
Scientific outcomes
of the Flagship
Collaborative Cluster
17
Putting the Clusters
research into practice
21
Commissioning
experimental equipment
for ongoing pipeline
testing in Australia
28
Publications and
dissemination
34
Key papers
46
Awards
48
Keynote presentations,
invited lectures and papers
49
Hosting international
conference ISFOG
50
The Partners
51
Flagship Collaboration
fund
Executive summary
Offshore subsea pipelines are used to export oil and gas from the field to platform and
then from the platform to the mainland. As they are the sole conduit for the hydrocarbons
their stability and integrity are of critical economic and environmental importance.
More than 80 per cent of Australias

gas resources exist in deep, remote,
offshore areas and being able to realise
the full potential of these remote
resources relies on the development
of economically viable transportation
solutions. Technical solutions for
Australias offshore pipelines must
maintain structural integrity and
continuous supply of products across
hundreds of kilometres of seabed.
Such technology is also vital to Australia
achieving the vision of platform
free fields, a CSIRO Wealth from
Oceans Flagship initiative. Platform
free fields research investigates ways
to replace traditional oil and gas
platforms with subsea technologies
for production of gas resources which
may lie as far as 300 km offshore,
at a depth greater than 1 km.
To address the challenges of providing
technical solutions to the Australian
oil and gas industry, six universities
and CSIROs Wealth from Ocean
Flagship came together in 2008
to establish the Subsea Pipelines
Collaboration Cluster. Its goal was to
underpin the development of these
hydrocarbon resources, by providing
engineering solutions for the safe
and economic design and operation
of subsea pipelines in Australias
offshore frontiers. This research
Cluster was enabled by a $3.6 million
grant through the CSIRO Flagship
Collaboration Fund and in-kind
contributions from the participating
universities of $7.4 million. Bringing
together an integrated and multidisciplinary team has been fundamental
to the success of the Cluster.
The Cluster has resulted in significant
advances in the understanding
of subsea pipeline technology,
Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report
including the development of stateof-the-art experimental equipment

to test pipeline attributes.
Key achievements include establishing
new numerical models and software
for analysing the stability of offshore
pipelines, novel methodologies for
economic and safe pipeline design,
and the commissioning of worldclass experimental and pipeline
testing facilities. These have resulted
in specialist testing and consultancy
services being available to the offshore
pipeline industry. The increased
knowledge and understanding will
contribute to CSIROs own research
in the areas of gas flow assurance
and production. They are also
publically available with the Cluster
having published more than 160
manuscripts in international journal
and conference proceedings.
Results from the Clusters research has
already been incorporated into the
next generation of subsea natural gas
projects such as the A$43 billion Gorgon
project in north-west Western Australia
that involves the development of the
Greater Gorgon gas fields and a LNG
plant on Barrow Island, near Karratha.
Acting for clients BP, Chevron, Inpex and
Woodside, testing facilities developed
have also underpinned designs for
Australias future pipelines to the Pluto,
Wheatstone, Ichthys and Browse fields
(off the north-west Western Australian
coast) and in international projects
offshore West Africa, Egypt and in the
Caspian sea. Research in the cluster also
formed part of a joint industry project
sponsored by the six energy majors
BHP Billiton Petroleum, BP, Chevron,
Petrobras, Shell and Woodside, and
administered by the Minerals and
Energy Research Institute of Western
Australia (MERIWA Project M395).
The current boom in Australian oil

and gas has caused a skills shortage in
key engineering fields. It is therefore
a key achievement that this cluster
has also trained 41 offshore engineers
and researchers for the benefit of
the offshore oil and gas industry
through its PhD and postdoctoral
programs. This will help underpin
the future success of engineering
in this area of national priority.
The Cluster outcomes are helping to
build future research priorities in CSIRO,
the Universities and with industry
partners in the areas of pipeline design
and installation in Australian calcareous
soil conditions and in deep water,
geohazard risk assessment, use of
automated underwater vehicles and in
developing the vision of platform free
fields in Australia. Future activities, such
as interactive workshops, will build on
this successful collaborative relationship.
This report summarises the
achievements of the Subsea
Pipeline Collaboration Cluster and
its impact on the Australian and
international oil and gas industries.
Mark Cassidy
Leader
CSIRO Flagship Collaboration
Cluster on Subsea Pipelines
The University of Western Australia
Ian Cresswell
Acting Director
CSIRO Wealth from
Oceans Flagship
Past CSIRO Wealth of Oceans Flagship Director Kate Wilson (right), CSIRO Energy Executive
Bev Ronalds (centre) and UWA Vice Chancellor Alan Robson (left) at the Cluster launch
Introduction to the Subsea Pipelines Cluster

Building a pipeline system to link an offshore oil and gas field to the mainland
represents a huge capital investment. For example, in Australia the construction of the
42 inch 135 km pipeline for the Trunkline System Expansion Project (TSEP) on the North
West Shelf in 2003/04 cost approximately A$800 million. Today, the cost per kilometre
of current pipeline projects, including the Gorgon (water depth: 1350 m length: 65
and 140 km), Scarborough (depth: 900m length: 280km), Pluto (depth: 830m length:
180km) and Browse (depth: 600m length: 5, 24 and 400km) is estimated to exceed
$4.5 million per kilometre. With over 2000km of pipelines under design in Australia,
capital expenditure is expected to exceed $10 billion.
With more than 80 per cent of
Australias gas resources exist in deep,
remote, offshore areas, our ability
to realise their full potential relies
on the development of economically
viable solutions to transport them.
Such technology is vital to Australia
achieving the vision of Platform Free
Fields, a CSIRO Wealth from Oceans
Flagship program. This research
investigates ways to replace traditional
oil and gas platforms with subsea
technologies for production of gas
resources which are considered

stranded off our coast in deep water
and at long distances to land. Under
these conditions subsea pipelines are
required to transport the gas over
long distances to shore. Transporting
hydrocarbons in extra long offshore
pipelines poses many challenges that
must be considered when designing
pipelines. These include stability of
pipeline structures over decades in
strong currents, a shifting seabed and
on steep seabed slopes. Assessment
and mitigation of potential geohazards,
such as submarine landslides, is also
critical for the safe routing of pipelines.
The Subsea Pipelines Collaboration
Cluster was established to meet
these challenges and to deliver
science-based engineering solutions
for the safe and economic design
and operation of subsea pipelines
in Australias deepwater frontiers.
Research has focused on ultralong
pipelines from deepwater to shore, a
critical goal of Platform Free Fields.
The CSIRO Flagship Collaboration
Fund enables the skills of the wider
Australian research community to
be applied to the major national
challenges targeted by CSIROs National
Research Flagship Program. As part of
the $480 million provided over seven
years by the Australian Government
to the National Research Flagships,
$115 million was allocated specifically
to enhance collaboration between
CSIRO, Australian universities and other

publicly funded research agencies.
The Subsea Pipeline Collaboration
Cluster was initiated by the Wealth
from Oceans Flagship to bring
together a diverse range of research
capabilities to deliver an in-depth
scientific understanding of the
key parameters involved in subsea
pipeline design, construction, longterm operation and monitoring.
The three year program contributed
to CSIROs research program that aims
to work with industry to develop the
science and technology to unlock new
opportunities in the exploration and
development of Australias offshore
hydrocarbon resources. The $7.4
million Cluster included $3.6 million
from the Flagship Collaboration Fund
and $3.8 million in-kind contributions
from the participating universities.
The Subsea Pipeline Collaboration
Cluster combined the research
capabilities of The University of
Western Australia, Curtin University
of Technology, The University of
Queensland, Monash University, The
University of Sydney, Flinders University
and CSIRO through the Wealth from
Oceans National Research Flagship.
From a start of 17 Chief Investigators the
cluster grew to eventually encompass
31 academic researchers and another
27 PhD and Masters students.
CSIRO Cluster on Subsea Pipelines Participants

SEABED
CHARACTERISATION
Lead Researcher
Professor Mark Randolph
Researchers
Professor Liang Cheng
Professor David White
Professor Mark Cassidy
Dr Itai Einav
Dr Pierre Rognon
Dr Noel Boylan
Dr Hongxia Zhu
PhD Students
Han Eng Low
Zhihui Ye
Yan Yue
Hamed Mahmoodzadeh
Poornaki
STRUCTURAL
INTEGRITY
Lead Researcher
Researchers
Professor Xiao-Ling Zhao
Professor Jayantha Kodikara
Dr Faris Albermani
Dr Yinghui Tian
Dr HongBo Liu
Dr Zhigang Xiao (until 2009)
Dr Pathmanathan Rajeev
SEABED MORPHOLOGY
PIPELINE RELIABILITY
Lead Researcher
Lead Researcher
Professor Hong Hao
Researchers
Dr Ming Zhao
Dr Zhipeng Zang
Researcher
Dr Ying Wang
PhD Students
Di Wu
Siti Fatin Mohd Razali
Fang Zhou (Visitor)
Xiaosong Zhu (Visitor)
PhD Students
Xuelin Peng
Chunxiao Bao
Wang Chao (Visitor)
PIPELINE HAZARDS
Lead Researcher
Researchers
Associate Professor Yuxia Hu
Dr Tom Baldock
Dr Christophe Gaudin
Dr Nathalie Boukpeti
Dr Dong Wang
Dr Noel Boylan
PhD Students
Jaya Kumar Seelam
Hee Min
Indranil Guha
Fauzan Sahdi
AUV AND ROV-BASED

SYSTEMS FOR PIPELINE
MONITORING
Lead Researcher
Associate Professor
Karl Sammut
Researchers
Associate Professor Fangpo He
Dr Jimmy Li
Dr Kim Klaka
Dr Alec Duncan
Mr Andrew Woods
PhD Students
Andrew Lammas
Matthew Kokegei
David Robert
Tae-hwan Joung
Lyndon Whaite
Grant Pusey
PhD Students
Mehdi Golbahar
Matthew Hodder
Bassem Youssef
Senthilkumar Muthukrishnan
Hossein Khalilpasha
Training the offshore pipeline

engineers of the future
The Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster is not only devising tomorrows subsea pipeline
technology, it is providing significant research training for Australias future pipeline engineers.
In all, 27 PhD students and 14 research associates undertook pipeline research within the cluster.
Chief Investigators
Mark Cassidy
The University
of Sydney
The University
of Queensland
Curtin University
of Technology
Itai Einav
Faris Albermani
Kim Klaka
Tom Baldock
Alec Duncan
Hong Hao
Monash
University
Mark Randolph
Liang Cheng
Xiao-Ling Zhao
David White
Flinders
University
Christophe Gaudin
Andrew Woods
Fangpo He
Jayantha Kodikara
Jimmy Li
Karl Sammut
CSIRO Cluster Postdoctoral Research Associates

Name
Institution
Project
Where they are now?
Hongjie Zhou
University of Western Australia
Seabed Characterisation
Advanced Geomechanics
Pierre Rognon
University of Sydney
University of Sydney
Noel Boylan
Pipeline Hazards
Advanced Geomechanics
Yinghui Tian
Structural Integrity
Zhigang Xiao
Monash
Monash University
Pathmanathan Rajeev
Monash
Monash University
HongBo Liu
Monash
Seabed Integrity
Monash University
Ming Zhao
Seabed Morphology
University of Western Sydney
Zhipeng Zang
Seabed Morphology
Nathalie Boukpeti
Pipeline Hazards
Dong Wang
Pipeline Hazards
James Schneider
Pipeline Hazards
University of
Wisconsin-Madison
Ying Wang
Pipeline Reliability
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Andrew Lammas
Flinders
Pipeline Monitoring
Flinders University
CSIRO Cluster Postgraduate Student Participants

Name
Inst.
Thesis Title
Cluster Stream
Name
Inst.
Thesis Title
Cluster Stream
James Schneider
UWA
Analysis of piezocone data for displacement pile design
Pipeline Hazards
Hongije Zhou
UWA
Numerical study of geotechnical penetration

problems for offshore applications
Han Eng Low
UWA
Performance of penetrometers in deepwater soft soil characterisation
Matthew Hodder
UWA
Geotechnical analysis of offshore pipelines and steel catenary risers
Di Wu
UWA
Experimental and numerical modelling of natural backfill

of navigation channels and pipeline trenches
Seabed Morphology
Grant Pusey
Curtin
Characterisation of long-range horizontal performance

of underwater acoustic communication
Pipeline Monitoring
Siti Fatin Mohd Razali
UWA
Wake characteristics of yawed circular cylinders and suppression

of vortex-induced vibration using helical strakes
Seabed Morphology
Xuelin Peng
UWA
Condition monitoring of offshore pipelines using vibration based method
Pipeline Monitoring
Jaya Kumar Seelam
UQ
Tsunami induced bed shear stresses- project 4
Pipeline Hazards
Benham Shabani
UQ
Ben contributing to the modelling of Jaya's but PhD otherwise unrelated
Pipeline Hazards
Andrew Lammas
Flinders
6 Degree of Freedom Navigation Systems for

Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
Pipeline Monitoring
Matthew Kokegei
Flinders
Fully Coupled 6 Degree of Freedom Control Systems

for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
Pipeline Monitoring
Yan Yue
UWA
Novel methods for characterising pipe-soil

interaction forces in-situ in deep water
Seabed characterisation
Bassem Youssef
UWA
Use of probability models in the integrated analysis in offshore pipelines
Zhihui Ye
UWA
Erosion threshold and erosion rate of seabed sediments
Santiram Chatterjee
UWA
Modelling of pipeline seabed interactions
David Roberts
Flinders
Pipeline Tracking Using Scanning Sonar Imaging
Pipeline Monitoring
Tae-hwan Joung
Flinders
Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling Techniques for

Analysing the Performance of a AUV Thruster
Pipeline Monitoring
Lyndon Whaite
Flinders
Mesh Free Methods for Probabilistic Optimal Control and

Estimation of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
Pipeline Monitoring
Fauzan Sahdi
UWA
Modelling of submarine slides and their impact on pipelines
Pipeline Hazards
Amin Rismanchian
UWA
Three dimensional modelling of pipeline buckling on soft clay
Senthilkumar
Muthukrishnan
Monash
Offshore pipe clay seabed interaction in axial direction
Chunxiao Bao
UWA
Vibration based structural health monitoring

of onshore and offshore structures
Pipeline Reliability
Indranil Guha
UWA
Structural analysis of submarine pipelines under

submarine slide and thermal loading
Pipeline Hazards
Hossein Khalilpasha
UQ
Propagation buckling of deep subsea pipelines
Hamed Mahmoodzadeh
Poornaki
UWA
Interpretation of partially drained penetrometer tests with

applications to the design of spudcan foundation
Hassan Karampour
UQ
Coupled upheaval/lateral and propagation buckling of ultra-deep pipelines
Scientific and engineering challenges

The Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster investigated and developed scientific
solutions to overcome the challenges of constructing pipelines from oil and gas
reserves in water depths exceeding 1000 metres.
For safe and economic developments

such pipelines are required to
maintain their structural integrity and
continuously supply hydrocarbons
across hundreds of kilometres of
rugged, often shifting, seabed to
bring the hydrocarbons to shore.
The Cluster brought together a diverse
range of research capabilities to deliver
an in-depth scientific understanding
of subsea pipelines in the areas of:
10
design
construction
long-term operation
real-time monitoring.
The aim of the program was to provide
a technical basis for the design of
pipelines for any new offshore field,
which contrasts with the current
case-by-case approach, significantly
reducing costs and uncertainties
for future pipeline design projects,

with particular relevance to remote
offshore locations around Australia.
There were six research streams
which mimicked the life cycle of a
pipeline, from characterising the
design environment to monitoring
any risk of failure during operation.
These streams were:
Seabed characterisation
This project concentrated on
advanced testing of seabed sediment
characteristics to understand how they
may affect pipelines resting on the
seabed. Current methods practised in
industry are hampered by the expense
of having to conduct multiple tests
along a long pipe route, inaccuracies
in interpreting site-characterisation
tools developed for traditional deep
foundation rather than the top 1 m layer
of soil, and difficulties of collecting soil
samples for onshore laboratory testing.
Novel equipment and interpretative
methods were developed to define
the main engineering parameters
required for pipeline design, such as
seabed strength and the effects of
seabed erosion. These included the
piezoball, toroidal and hemispherical
shallow ball penetrometers.
UWA miniature piezoball
Seabed morphology
Research was conducted into the
formation mechanisms of seabed sand
waves and in developing a model to
predict the evolution of sand waves with
and without the presence of a pipeline.
The project developed methods to
predict the three-dimensional erosion
of the seabed under pipelines.
Pipeline stability studies in

the miniature O-tube
Sea-bed amplitude map showing features

of the Gorgon slide, North West Shelf
Structural integrity
Full-life reliability
This project developed new numerical

models and design frameworks for
the analysis of pipeline stability and
fatigue by integrating the interactions
and effects of the seabed, currents
and waves on the pipeline structure.
This research assessed the feasibility of

using vibration measurement to monitor
the health of pipelines, with the aim
of replacing expensive and irregular
visual monitoring with continuous
measurements and analysis. Both
numerical simulation and experimental
test results indicate that vibration
measurement is very sensitive to
pipeline scouring damage. Methods
were developed for possible applications
to monitor pipeline conditions online.
Pipeline hazards
Deep-water developments require
pipeline routing up the continental
slope in areas of changing seabed
morphology and other geohazards. One
key technical challenge addressed by the
Cluster was the impact of a submarine
landslide sliding down the continental
slope and colliding with a pipeline.
Based on physical and numerical
modelling, this research developed
new calculation methods and analysis
tools. These tools were used to model
the run-out of submarine slides and to
assess their consequent impact forces
and potential damage to submarine
pipelines, together with an assessment
of tsunami-induced bed shear stresses
and pressure gradients on the sea floor.
Pipeline monitoring
Research explored the use of
autonomous underwater vehicles
(AUVs) for continuous monitoring,
assessment of pipeline integrity and
evaluation of the seafloor, and the
autonomous operation of an underwater
communication link between acoustic
modems. The scope of the AUV work
included developing new navigation,
control, and guidance techniques.
These new techniques aimed to improve
a vehicles capability to move more
accurately over long distances while
working close to objects; to detect and
track pipelines; and to manoeuvre to
deploy instruments into the seabed.
The technical detail and major
outcomes will now be presented for
each of these research streams.
11
Scientific outcomes
The following are the major scientific outcomes
of the Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster
Development of novel penetrometers
and techniques for interpreting soil

properties, including an enhanced
ball-shaped penetrometer the
piezoball and new toroidal and
hemispherical devices for deployment
at the seabed. These devices are
already being used in practical
applications offshore, where they are
deriving soil properties in the upper
metre of soil, the most relevant part
of the seabed for pipeline design.
Development of a methodology for
interpreting pipeline axial friction

design values from novel toroidal and
hemispherical penetrometer results.
Piezoball testing in Trondheim (from left) Noel Boylan (formerly COFS), Mike Long
(UCD), Annika Bihs (NTNU), Jan Jnland (NTNU) and Roselyn Carroll (UCD)
Complementary geotechnical
Miniature piezoball in beam centrifuge
centrifuge and field testing of the

piezoball penetrometer at UWA, the
Riverside site in East Perth and the
Kvenild and Dragvoll sites in Norway
(the latter in collaboration with the
Norwegian University of Science and
Technology). The tests examined
the transition between intact and
remoulded shear strength, as well
as dissipation tests to examine
the consolidation properties of
the soil. Both are essential in the
interpretation of seabed properties
for design of deepwater pipelines.
Established new solutions for the
interactive forces between pipelines

and the seabed during axial and lateral
movement, on both coarse-grained
and fine-grained seabeds, with these
solutions being encapsulated into an
efficient macroelement framework.
Proposed interpretative method
for adjusting measured piezoball

resistance to allow for the effects
of partial consolidation.
Distribution of excess pore pressure

after a 3-diameter penetration
12
u2 and uumball (kPa)

0
(a) u/D = 0.1
100
200
300
400
Piezocone
Piezoball
Depth (m)
(b) u/D = 0.5
12
16
u0
20
(d) u/D = 7
Softening
factor
1.00
0.95
0.90
0.85
0.80
0.75
0.71
0.66
0.61
0.56
0.51
0.46
0.14
0.36
0.31
Bq and Bumball
0.2
0.4
0.6
Depth (m)
(c) u/D = 1
12
16
20
Profiles of (a) u2 and umball (b) Bq and Bmball
13
(a)
(b)
Example of video footage images of (a) a pipeline crossing a sleeper and (b) an as-laid survey in silt
Established framework for
incorporating macroelement pipeseabed models into structural

analysis programs, including
uplift and reattachment.
Extension of plasticity models
describing the pipe-soil load

displacement behaviour on
Australias calcareous sands to lateral
displacements of up to five diameters.
Development of numerical analysis

code for integrated storm loading
on on-bottom pipelines.
Proposed formulae to calculate the

natural frequency of free spanning
subsea pipelines by considering
the boundary conditions, mass
of hydrocarbon products, axial
force and multiple spans.
Development of numerical analysis
using boundary element method

to predict the fatigue life of subsea
pipelines subject to combined actions.
14
Development of a numerical
model that simulates sand wave

formation and evolution.
Verification of the Regional
Oceanographic Modelling System

(ROMS) model for sand wave
migration and sand wave-pipeline
interaction model against offshore
data and comparison of numerical
results to other published models.
Establishment of a numerical
model for three-dimensional

flow and scour under pipelines,
and subsequent validation of the
model against experiments.
Analysis of initial embedment and
subsequent axial displacement

coupling pore pressure dissipation
and soil deformation.
Analysis of the influence of boundary
conditions, hydrocarbon products and

axial pipeline tension on the natural
frequency of on-bottom pipelines.
New convolution models to
calculate total bed shear stresses

for solitary waves and breaking
tsunami wave fronts.
Establishment of state-of-the-
art experimental equipment for

ongoing testing to support the
design of Australias offshore
pipelines, including:
the worlds first facility
for simulating submarine
slides at small scale within a
geotechnical drum centrifuge
a pressurised testing vessel of 4m
length and 173mm internal diameter
that is rated for 20MPa and capable
of simulating the propagation
of pipeline buckling during deep
water installation and operation
(up to 2000m water depth)
development of capabilities for

simulating whole-life loading
histories on model pipes in the
geotechnical centrifuge, including
storm-induced hydrodynamic
load sequences, and thermallyinduced lateral buckling cycles
Mini o-tube facility
an experimental testing rig for

studying general and field specific
cyclic axial interaction behaviour
between the pipe and soil behaviour
for general loading under drained
or undrained conditions
a mini O-tube facility for testing
of soil erosion properties
and small scale modelling of
seabed-infrastructure-ocean
interaction, allowing observations
of the flow conditions and
measurement of the erosion
threshold of seabed sediments
establishment of laboratory testing
apparatus to measure bed shear
stress under tsunami-shaped waves
development of miniaturised
versions of new field-scale
penetrometers, to allow
comparative testing of reconstituted
and in situ seabed sediments, in
support of centrifuge model testing.
attitude, velocity, and rotational

rates, as well as water currents
acting on the vehicle
a fully-coupled control algorithm
to achieve improved manoeuvring
close to hazards and reduce
battery consumption
a pipeline tracking system that can
detect and track multiple pipelines
hardware and software modules that
embed these navigation, control
and guidance system in an AUV.
Validation of vibration-based methods
Development of hardware and
For the application of autonomous
Underwater acoustic modems
to reliably monitor the condition

of subsea pipelines (though their
practical implementation still depends
on a number of issues including
the ability to transmit the vibration
data and power the sensors).
underwater vehicles, the project
developed:
a new full-order particle filter

based navigation algorithm that
can estimate an autonomous
underwater vehicles position,
software for controlling and

monitoring the performance of
underwater acoustic modems, while
simultaneously recording the ambient
noise and modem transmissions
on a wide-bandwidth recorder.
evaluated for their capacity to transmit
data along a pipeline. Long-term,
16-day trials of a five-kilometre
communication link between two
seabed-mounted modems in 100m
allowed detailed comparisons to be
made between measured modem
performance and performance
predicted by numerical simulators.
15
16
Putting the Clusters research into practice

The Collaboration Clusters work has revolutionised subsea pipeline technology and
its findings have already been implemented in oil and gas projects off Australia and
elsewhere in the world.
Meanwhile, four other long-distance
pipelines Gorgon, Wheatstone, Ichthys
and Browse are at an advanced stage
of design, and many shorter pipelines are
being designed. These new pipelines are
technically very challenging: some will
extend into deeper waters, well beyond
the shelf break, and some notably
those to the Ichthys and Browse fields
will be located north of Broome, in
different oceanographic and geotechnical
conditions compared to the existing
experience in the Carnarvon basin.
The new challenges of new regions,
greater pipeline lengths, deeper water and
new geohazards, have all been tackled
within the Cluster, and the research
techniques and outcomes spearheaded by
the Cluster have already been applied to
the design of Australias new pipelines.
These same technologies have also been
applied to projects elsewhere in the
world, such as for BPs PSVM field off
Angola, West Nile Delta offshore Egypt
and Shah Deniz in the Caspian Sea. This is
recognising Australias technical leadership
in pipeline engineering and the pivotal
role this Cluster has played in developing
testing facilities and design practises.
The Clusters research programs resulted
in several industry advances such as:
Key aspects of the Clusters innovative

contributions to pipeline technology
include
Industry Impact through

Geotechnical Centrifuge Testing
Two critical components of pipeline
design are the assessment of on-bottom
stability under severe hydrodynamic
loading from storms or tides and
the overall response of the pipeline
to internal temperature and pressure.
Under both conditions, the pipe may be
permitted to move significant distances
back and forth across the seabed, but
these movements must not be excessive
and the pipe must not be over-strained.
A critical input to assessment of pipeline
stability under these movements is the
interaction forces between the pipe and
the seabed. Centrifuge model testing,
using offshore soil samples and accurate
simulation of the pipeline weight and
movements, provides observations
that can be used to refine and validate
Existing pipeline
models for pipe-soil interaction, leading

to reduced design uncertainty. New
experimental techniques were developed
at UWA during the Cluster project, and
these have resulted in more realistic
simulations of pipeline behaviour. Using
these techniques, centrifuge testing
has been performed over the past four
years, using natural soil samples gathered
from offshore and providing results
that have had direct impact the design
of offshore field pipelines. The specific
projects, operators and pipe details are
provided in the table on following page.
Industry collaborator Paul Brunning of

Acergy presenting at the 2009 CSIRO
Flagship Cluster on Pipelines workshop
Ichthys
Proposed pipeline
improved site characterisation
Browse
through new technologies
specialised geotechnical
centrifuge testing
advanced numerical modelling

cyclone simulation experiments in the
Gorgon
Wheatstone
newly established O-Tube facility.
Also, through a joint industry project

involving six offshore operators (BHP
Billiton Petroleum, BP, Chevron, Petrobras,
Shell and Woodside), new approaches
for geohazard assessment have been
derived and applied in projects, including
the A$43billion Gorgon project in
north-west Western Australia that
involves designing a pipeline to travel
from 1350m water depth at the Greater
Gorgon gas fields to the LNG plant
on Barrow Island, near Karratha.
17
operator
project
year
pipeline length
main testing focus
Woodside
Pluto
2007
200km
Lateral buckling
BP
PSVM
2008
170km
Lateral buckling
Chevron
Gorgon
2008
65km & 150km
As-laid embedment
Chevron
Gorgon
2009
150km
Storm stability
Chevron
Gorgon
2009
150km
Free span stability
Chevron
Wheatstone
2010
225km
Buckling, storm stability
BP
B31SE
2010
50km
Lateral buckling
Inpex
Ichthys (infield)
2010
50km
Lateral buckling
Woodside
Browse
2011
400km
Buckling, storm stability
Inpex
Ichthys (export)
2011
850km
Lateral buckling
BP
West Nile Delta
2011
100km
Lateral buckling
BP
Shah Deniz
2011
25km
Lateral buckling
Summary of centrifuge tests conducted for industry during the Cluster
These centrifuge studies used new

modelling technology that permits
arbitrary patterns of load and
displacement to be imposed on a model
pipeline. This allowed the effects of
dynamic laying, thermal start-up and
shutdown cycles and hydrodynamic
storm loading to be simulated. In some
cases, stochastic storm simulations to
assess the pipe-soil response during
1000-year and 10000-year return
period design events were devised. The
underlying technology is described later
in this report (also refer to centrifuge
modelling technology section).
Industry impact through

numerical modelling
Numerical pipe-soil models were
incorporated into the industry stability
analysis package ABAQUS/SimStab
for use in the Gorgon Upstream
Joint Venture (GUJV) project. Cluster
researchers collaborated with GUJV
engineers in initially running the
plasticity UWAPIPE models under
Gorgon storm conditions, before
incorporating the models into the
SimStab software for GUJV engineers
to use. The new soil models are
now being used in the stability
analysis of the Gorgon pipeline on
the North West Shelf of Australia.
New methods to predict

submarine slidepipelineinteraction
Berms of soil along pipe in a industry test
18
Research into the interaction between

submarine slides and pipelines formed
a major theme within the cluster,
and also a joint industry project
administered by the Minerals and
Energy Research Institute of Western
Australia (MERIWA Project M395) and
sponsored by the six energy majors
BHP Billiton Petroleum, BP, Chevron,
Petrobras, Shell and Woodside. Annual
workshops between the sponsoring
A further significant part of the

project was the development of a new
geotechnically-based framework to
characterise the strength of soft seabed
deposits, based on extensive laboratory
measurements using different soil
types. This framework spans the solidfluid boundary that is crossed within
the slide material as it evolves into a
debris flow and, ultimately, a turbidity
current. In addition, extensive analytical
studies were performed to support
the development of new models for
the interaction forces between slides
and pipelines, and these were distilled
into simple design recommendations.
z (m)
1.45
1.35
1.25
1.15
1.05
0.95
0.85
0.75
0.65
0.55
0.45
20
10
0
t = 0.1 s
Velocity (m/s)
3.6
3.3
3
2.7
2.4
2.1
1.8
1.5
1.2
0.9
0.6
0.3
0
30
z (m)
The techniques emerging from this

research into the assessment of
pipeline-slide loading have been
applied to the Greater Gorgon
development, offshore Australia.
Velocity (m/s)
30
20
10
0
t = 3.3 s
Velocity (m/s)
30
0.12
0.11
0.1
0.09
0.08
0.07
0.06
0.05
0.04
0.03
0.02
0.01
z (m)
This project aimed to develop new

techniques to characterise and
model the geotechnical aspects
of submarine slide behaviour. The
project encompassed both physical
modelling and numerical modelling.
A program of novel centrifuge model
tests generated a library of wellcharacterised submarine slides, as well
as a database of slide-pipe interaction
force measurements. These results were
used to validate numerical run-out
computations that were performed
using two levels of sophistication a

new, and more refined, implementation
of the industry-standard depth-averaged
approach, and a continuum-based large
deformation finite element method.
20
10
t = 15 s
Velocity (m/s)
30
0.12
0.11
0.1
0.09
0.08
0.07
0.06
0.05
0.04
0.03
0.02
0.01
z (m)
companies and researchers were

held in Perth and in Houston, USA.
20
10
0
110
120
t = 69 s
130
140
150
x (m)
160
170
180
190
Velocity distributions on
deformed softening material
Developing slide experiments
at the UWA drum centrifuge
Slide run-out from centrifuge test with compression ridges highlighted
19
20
Commissioning experimental equipment

for ongoing pipeline testing in Australia
Major equipment development:
Penetrometers for pipeline site investigation

The offshore industry has already made significant advances in site
investigation techniques, incorporating full-flow penetrometers such
as the T-bar and piezoball devices originally developed at UWA.
Piezoball penetrometers are now
used routinely by the Australian site
investigation company, Benthic Geotech,
in its portable remotely operated drill
(PROD). Extensive data were obtained
in 2010 for Woodsides Browse project
on the North-West Shelf. ROVmounted penetrometer capabilities
have been developed by companies
such as Perry Slingsby in the USA (the
Rovdrill) and Geomarine in the UK.
Piezoball tests carried out in the project
have also given an insight into the
interpretation of data in silty carbonate
sediments found offshore Australia.
For pipeline design, an important
parameter is the axial friction between
pipe and soil. New devices have been

developed during the project to target
this parameter, by applying torsional
loading to a toroidal penetrometer,
or to an alternative hemi-spherical
penetrometer. In both cases, the
torsional interface response between
the device and soil represents a close
analogue of the axial sliding resistance
of a pipeline. Test data at model scale,
supported by numerical analysis, have
quantified the relationships between
axial friction and both the elapsed time
and velocity of shearing. Analytical
solutions have also been developed that
capture these contributions for different
soil types, thus providing a method for
interpreting data from the equipment.
T-bar penetrometers test on remoulded

sample of carbonate silt
21
UWAs geotechnical centrifuges

Both the beam (Figure a) and the drum centrifuges at the Centre for Offshore Foundation
Systems have had continuous technical upgrades to face the challenges associated with
the buckling of pipelines and the impact of submarine slides on pipelines.
These include:
An improved motion control system
enabling the modelling of pipeline

dynamic installation with complex
horizontal and vertical motion
interaction and the modelling of
pipeline buckling (Figure b) up to 600
cycles. This is a major improvement
compared to the previous modelling
capability (limited to about 100
cycles), which revealed specific
features of pipe soil interaction
related to the development of
berms and pipe embedment
over a large number of cycles.
The establishment of a new driving
system for the tool table of the drum

centrifuge and a new experimental
pipe apparatus. This upgrade was
triggered by the necessity to allow a
buried model pipeline to be translated
at various velocities through a soil

sample contained within the drum
centrifuge channel, simulating a pipe
engulfed within a submarine slide. By
using a soil sample which was initially
unconsolidated, the model pipe
tests were performed after different
degrees of consolidation leading to
varying sample properties (density
and undrained shear strength su).
Pipe translation tests were performed
using different model pipes with
varying length to diameter ratios
in order to determine the optimum
pipe geometry that would minimise
potential end effects. Once the test
technique was established the main
program of testing was undertaken.
This involved a total of 37 model pipe
translation tests spanning a wide
range of velocities and soil strengths.
The establishment of optic fibre
data transmission on both the beam

and the drum centrifuge improving
the transfer rate, increasing the
quality of the experimental data
and enabling high definition videos
to taken during experiments.
Christophe Gaudin and Yinghui Tian with

the beam centrifuge
Horizontal displacement direction

Model pipeline during horizontal buckling
22
Buried model pipeline translated through clay of various strengths
O-tube
A new O-tube facility allows storm conditions to be simulated within a large recirculating flume.
The mini O-tube was formulated as

part the Collaboration Cluster and
highlighted the feasibility of the
experimental testing approach. A larger
O-tube was then subsequently funded by
UWA, the Australian Research Council,
and Woodside and Chevron, via the
STABLEPIPE Joint Industry Project.
The facility allows a full ocean-pipelineseabed interaction to be simulated at
large scale. Cyclonic wave and current
conditions can be created in the 1.5
m high test section, flowing over a
15 m long mobile sediment bed. The
long-term aim is to allow seabed
mobility, manifested through scour
and liquefaction, to be incorporated
in simulations of pipeline on-bottom
stability which currently neglect these
potentially important processes.
This project is led by Liang Cheng,
with Hongwei An (UWA) and David
White and Mark Randolph. Support
for this initiative was provided by
Andrew Palmer (National University of
Singapore), as well as Woodside (Nino
Fogliani and Roland Fricke) and the local
consultancies JP Kenny (Terry Griffiths)
and Atteris (Eric Jas). Conference papers
describing the O-tube activity were
presented at the Offshore Pipeline
Technology Conference (in Amsterdam)
and the ISOPE Conference (Shanghai).
Scott Draper with the miniature O-tube
The large o-tube, assembled at the UWA Shenton Park field station
23
Propagation buckling
A subsea pipeline can experience a number of structural instabilities, such as lateral
(snaking) buckling, upheaval buckling, span formation and propagation buckling.
Among these, propagation buckling
is the most critical one, particularly in
deep water, and can quickly damage
many kilometres of pipeline.
A local buckle, ovalisation, dent or
corrosion in the pipe wall can quickly
transform the pipe cross-section into
a dumb-bell (or dog bone) shape that
travels along the pipeline as long as the
external pressure is high enough to sustain
propagation. The lowest pressure that
maintains propagation is the propagation
pressure that is only a small fraction
of the elastic collapse pressure of the
intact pipe. This results in a substantial
increase in material and installation cost

of the pipeline, since design is therefore
governed by propagation pressure.
A hyperbaric chamber was constructed for
the simulation of propagation buckling
in ultra-deep subsea pipelines. The
pressurised testing vessel is 4 m long with
an internal diameter of 173mm and is rated
for 20 MPa (2000 m water depth). A testing
protocol was successfully established and
numerous tests were conducted on 3m
long steel and aluminium pipes. A simple
testing procedure using a ring segment
of the pipeline was also established as
a preliminary test. A modified analytical
solution for propagation buckling was

proposed and a finite element model
was established and verified with
the experimental results. Based on
these findings, a new pipe topology is
proposed. Finite element analysis of the
new pipe, a faceted cylinder, shows a
substantial increase in buckling capacity
for the same diameter/thickness ratio.
The coupling of upheaval and lateral
buckling with propagation buckling
is being investigated together with
exploring the possible modification
of the hyperbaric chamber to simulate
this form of coupled buckling.
Axial pipeline walking

A testing system to investigate axial pipeline walking under drained and
undrained conditions has been established at Monash University, Australia.
A sophisticated 2D electrical actuator with
a precision of 0.01 mm/sec (to account
for the slow axial walking process) was
devised to simulate the pipe motion
on a laboratory-made clay seabed. A
horizontal linear motor capable of driving
the shaft with a drive force between
300 to 500 N for a stroke length of 200
mm is provided. The vertical motion is
controlled by a motor providing 200
to 300 N drive force to an expected
stroke length of 200 mm. Both load and
displacement controlled cycles can be

performed at different rates depicting
both undrained and drained conditions.
The system is suitable for element testing
of typical prototype pipe diameters.
Dummy sections at the ends of the test
pipe section are provided to reduce
boundary effects in simulation of a long
pipe. The following steps are used in a
typical experiment. First, a model seabed is
prepared and characterised using a T bar.
The Monash Advance Pipe Testing System (MAPS)
24
Second, the test pipe is allowed to settle

on the model seabed. Third, the test pipe
is subjected to cyclic axial displacements
using the horizontal actuator. On the
basis of instrumentation provided, the
axial on the test pipe section, pore
water pressure at pre-determined
locations and vertical settlement of
pipe are measured. The test results
produce the shear stress-displacement
characteristics of the pipe-soil interface
applicable to axial walking problems.
Tsunami testing facility

Novel bed shear stress measurements were performed in the
UQ tsunami wave flume, which is 25 m long and 0.8 m wide.
The shear cell consists of a 100 mm long,
250 mm wide and 1.21 mm thick smooth
plate supported on thin tubular sway
legs, with displacement measured by an
eddy-current sensor which resolves plate
movement to 0.001 mm. The wave flume
was equipped with a computer-controlled
piston wave-maker having a maximum
stroke length of 1.2 m and capable of
generating most types of waves including
solitary waves and bores. The experimental
model was set up to represent a
continental slope and shelf region, with
measurements made on the slope and
horizontal sections. Measurements were
made over both a smooth bed and a rough
bed. Both non-breaking and breaking
(bores) were investigated. Microsonic
ultrasonic wave gauges were used to
measure the wave heights and a SONTEK
2D Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter was used
to measure the flow velocities. A photo of
a physical model test for a solitary wave

is shown below. Numerical modelling
of the laboratory experiments has been
performed and used to calibrate and test
a tsunami model for prediction of seabed
shear stresses in the field.
Numerical modelling of tsunami sources

along the Sunda Arc has shown the
locations of principal hazard on the
WA continental slope and shelf, together
with hotspots of high bed shear stress,
both of which can be utilised in pipeline
routing studies.
A solitary wave at the shelf edge in the UQ experiments
25
Acoustic modems
The capability to perform at-sea evaluations of underwater acoustic communication
links has been enhanced by the development of equipment to allow the unattended,
autonomous operation and monitoring of such links for extended periods of time.
Battery operated, and mounted
in pressure proof housings, the
equipment controls the operation
of the modems and monitors their
performance while simultaneously
monitoring ambient noise and the
water column temperature profile. It
has been successfully used for several
experiments, including a 16-day
unattended trial in 100 m of water off
the Western Australian coast. It can
be readily modified to suit other types
of underwater acoustic modems.
The development of this hardware
has been complemented by
the development of a modem
performance simulator that can be
used to investigate the effects of
different environmental factors on
communication link performance.
Experimental setup for the long-term trial showing all equipment used in the deployment.
Two sets of equipment were deployed which periodically communicated with one another
while recording information including ambient noise levels and a temperature profile for the
bottom 50 m of the water column.
26
Autonomous underwater vehicles

The algorithms developed to control, navigate and guide AUVs have all
been tested numerically using realistic purpose-built simulators.
The developed algorithms must,

however, be physically validated
using a real vehicle equipped with the
necessary sensors and actuators.
The majority of AUVs currently available
from vendors are either closed
architecture which would prevent
alternative algorithms from being used
on the vehicle, or are too expensive,
or too small to be useful. The decision
was therefore taken to custom build a
modular vehicle that can satisfactorily
validate the developed algorithms
and with enough flexibility to meet
the range of survey/intervention
requirements posed by the offshore
oil and gas. This vehicle is currently
being built in collaboration with the
Australian Maritime College. The
vehicle is equipped with four lateral
thrusters as well as one propulsion
thruster permitting it to hover and hold
position while deploying instruments

into the seabed, and turn tightly while
manoeuvring close to obstacles. The
AUV is equipped with forward looking
and bathymetry plus side scan sonar to
build 3D relief maps of the seabed and

track pipelines and obstacles. It also has
doppler velocity sensors and IMUs for
navigation, as well other instruments
for acoustic and radio communications.
CAD image of an AUV
27
profile
Postgraduate
Matt Hodder
Geotechnical analysis of
offshore pipelines and steel
catenary risers
Matt Hodders thesis investigated
the interaction of cylindrical
objects with soil, and its application
to the analysis and design of
offshore pipelines and risers.
The behaviour observed during
experiments performed to assess the
effect of various loading conditions
on pipe-soil interaction response was
used to develop analytical models
appropriate to use in an integrated
soil-structure interaction assessment of
the pipe-soil system. The apparatus and
analysis methodology developed allows
comparisons of behaviour observed
during experiments performed using
a short element of pipeline assuming
two-dimensional plane-strain conditions
and the validation of pipe-soil interaction
models developed from element tests.
This thesis progresses the understanding
of geotechnical aspects of offshore
pipeline and riser behaviour. It also
advances the predictive capabilities
of pipe-soil interaction models,
enabling more accurate response
assessment and efficient design.
Publications and dissemination

Members of the Cluster have published 80 journal and
82 conference manuscripts from their research. A further
five technical reports were written specifically for the
cluster and three book chapters were published.
1.
Alam, M. S. and L. Cheng (2009), A 2-D

model to predict time development
of scour below pipelines with
spoiler, 12th International Conference
on Enhancement and Promotion of
Computational Methods in Engineering
and Science, Hong Kong Macau.
2. Alam, M. S. and L. Cheng (2009),

Blockage ratio and mesh dependency
study for Lattice Boltzmann flow around
cylinder, 12th International Conference
on Enhancement and Promotion of
Computational Methods in Engineering
and Science Hong Kong Macau.
3. Alam, M. S. and L. Cheng (2009), Modelling
of flow around a square cylinder of different
roughness using a lattice Boltzmann
model, 28th International Conference on
Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering,
Honolulu, Hawaii, OMAE2009-80155.
4. Alam, M. S. and L. Cheng (2010), A
parallel three-dimensional scour model
to predict flow and scour below a
submarine pipeline, Central European
Journal of Physics, 8(4): 604-619.
5. Albermani, F., H. Khalilpasha and H.
Karampour (2011), Propagation buckling
in deep subsea pipelines, Pipelines
International Digest, January 2011: 7-8.
6. Albermani, F., H. Khalilpasha and
H. Karampour (2011), Propagation
buckling in deep sub-sea pipelines,
Engineering Structures: 33(9): 3547-2553.
7. An, H., L. Cheng nd M. Zhao (2010).
Direct numerical simulation of 3D steay
streaming induced by Honji Instability.
17th Australasian Fluid Mechanics
Conference, Auckland, New Zealand.
8. An, H., L. Cheng and M. Zhao (2010),
Steady streaming around a circular
cylinder in an oscillatory flow, Ocean
Engineering, 36(14): 1089-1097.
28
12. Baldock, T. E. and D. Peiris (2011).

Overtopping and run-up hazards induced
by solitary waves and bores. Tsunami
Threat - Research and Technology, In-Tech.
13. Baldock, T. E. and J. K. Seelam (2009),
Numerical and physical modelling
of tsunami run-up and impact on
subsea pipelines, 1st Annual Society
for Underwater Technology Subsea
Technical Conference (SUT), Perth, CD.
14. Bao, C. X., X.Q Zhu, H. Hao and
Z.X. Li (2008), Operational modal
analysis using correlation-based
ARMA models, 10th International
Symposium on Structural Engineering
for Young Experts, CD:1459-1464.
15. Bao, C. X., X.Q Zhu, H. Hao and Z.X.
Li (2008), Variable modal parameter
identification using an improved
HHT algorithm, 10th International
Symposium on Structural Engineering
for Young Experts, CD:1465-1470.
16. Bao, C. X., H. Hao, Z.X. Li and X.Q.
Zhu (2009), Time-varying system
identification using an improved
HHT algorithm, Computers and
Structures, 87(23-24): 1611-1623.
17. Barnes, M. P., T. ODonaghue, J.M. Alsina
and T.E. Baldock (2009), Direct bed shear
stress measurements in bore-driven
swash, Coastal Engineering, 56: 853-867.
18. Barnes, M. P. and T. E. Baldock (2010), A
Lagrangian model for boundary layer
growth and bed shear stress in the swash
zone, Coastal Engineering,(57): 385-396.
19. Boukpeti, N., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph
(2009), Characterization of the solid-liquid
transition of fine-grained sediments,
28th International Conference on Offshore
Mechanics and Arctic Engineering,
9. An, H., Cheng, L., Zhao, M., (2010), Steady

streaming around a circular cylinder near
a plane boundary due to oscillatory flow. ,
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering: (accepted).
20. Boukpeti, N., D. White and M.F.

Randolph (2012) Analytical modelling
of the steady flow of a submarine
slide and consequent loading on a
pipeline, Gotechnique, 62(2) 137-146.
10. An, H., Cheng, L., Zhao, M. (2011), Direct

numerical simulation of oscillatory
flow around a circular cylinder at low
Keulegan-Carpenter number, Journal
of Fluid Mechanics, 666: 77-103.
21. Boukpeti, N., D.J. White, M.F. Randolph

and H.E. Low (2012), The strength of
fine-grained soils at the solid-fluid
transition, Geotechnique: in press, posted
ahead of print, 10.1680/geot.9.P.069.
11. Baldock, T. E., D. Cox, T. Maddux, J.

Killian and L. Fayler (2009), Kinematics
of breaking tsunami waves: a data set
from large scale laboratory experiments,
Coastal Engineering, 56: 506-516.
22. Boylan, N., C. Gaudin, D.J. White, M.F.

Randolph and Schneider, J.A. (2009),
Geotechnical centrifuge modelling
techniques for submarine slides, 28th
International Conference on Offshore
Mechanics and Arctic Engineering,
23. Boylan, N., C. Gaudin, D.J. White and M.F.

Randolph (2010), Modelling of submarine
slides in the geotechnical centrifuge,
7th International Conference on Physical
Modelling in Geotechnics (ICPMG 2010),
Zurich, Switzerland CD:1095-1100.
24. Boylan, N. and M. F. Randolph (2010),
Enhancement of the ball penetrometer
test with pore pressure measurements,
2nd International Symposium on Frontiers
in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG 2010),
Perth, Australia, CD:259-264.
25. Boylan, N. P., C. Gaudin, D.J. White
and M.F. Randolph (2012), Centrifuge
modelling of submarine slides, Ocean
Engineering: under review April 2011.
26. Boylan, N. P. and D. J. White (2010).
Geotechnical frontiers in offshore
engineering - invited keynote lecture.
International Symposium on Recent
Advances and Technologies in Coastal
Development, Tokyo, Japan, CD: 18 pages.
27. Cassidy, M.J. and Y. Tian (2007),
Technical note on pipesoil data
interaction model testing, GEO:08451.
28. Cassidy, M.J. and Y. Tian (2008),
Technical note on implementation of
UWAPIPE into ABAQUS, GEO:07421.
29. Chatterjee, S., D.J. White, D. Wang
and M.F. Randolph (2010), Large
deformation finite element analysis of
vertical penetration of pipelines into the
seabed, 2nd International Conference in
Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG
2010), Perth, Australia, n/a:785-790.
30. Cheng, L., K. Yeow, Z. Zang and B.
Teng (2009), Three-dimensional scour
below pipelines in steady currents,
Coastal Engineering, 56(5-6): 577-590.
31. Davies, M. C. R., E.T. Bowman and D.J.
White (2010), Physical modelling of
natural hazards - a keynote lecture, 7th
International Conference on Physical
Modelling in Geotechnics (ICPMG 2010)
Zurich, Switzerland, CD:3-22.
32. DeJong, J., N. Yafrate, D. DeGroot, H.E. Low
and M.F. Randolph (2010), Recommended
practice for full flow penetrometer
testing and analysis, ASTM Geotechnical
Testing Journal, 33(2): 13 pages.
33. DeJong, J. and M. F. Randolph (2012),
Influence of partial consolidation
during cone penetration on estimated
soil behaviour type and pore pressure
dissipation measurements, Journal
of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 138(7): 777-788.
34. DeJong, J. T., N.J. Yafrate and M.F.
Randolph (2008), Use of pore pressure
measurements in a ball full-flow
penetrometer, 3rd International Conference
on Site Characterization, Taiwan, 1269-1275.
35. Gaudin, C., D.J. White, N. Boylan, J.
Breen, T.A. Brown, S. De Catania and P.
Hortin (2009), A wireless high speed data
acquistion for geotechnical centrifuge
model testing, Measurement Science
and Technology, 20(9): 11 pages.
36. Guard, P. A., T.E. Baldock and P. Nielsen

(2009), Bed shear stress in unsteady
flow, Coasts and Ports, Wellington, NZ.
37. Hodder, M., M.J. Cassidy and D.
Barrett (2008), Undrained response
of pipelines subjected to combined
vertical and lateral loading, 2nd
International Conference on Foundations
(ICOF), Bracknell, UK, CD:897-908.
38. Hodder, M. S., White, D.J., Cassidy, M.J.
(2012) An effective stress framework for
the variation in penetration resistance
due to episodes of remoulding and
reconsolidation, Gotechnique, 63(1): 30-43.
39. Hodder, M. S., D.J. White and M.J.
Cassidy (2009), Effect of remoulding
and reconsolidation on the touchdown
stiffness of a steel catenary riser:
Observations from centrifuge modelling,
41st Offshore Technology Conference,
Houston, Texas, OTC-19871.
40. Hodder, M. S. and M. J. Cassidy (2010), A
plasticity model for predicting the vertical
and lateral behaviour of pipelines in clay
soils, Geotechnique, 60(4): 247263.
41. Hodder, M. S., D. J. White, et al. (2010),
Analysis of strength degradation during
episodes of cyclic loading, illustrated by
the T-bar penetration test, International
Journal of Geomechanics, 10(3): 117-123.
42. Jaeger, R. A., J.T. DeJong, R.W. Boulanger,
H.E Low and Randolph, M.F. (2010),
Variable penetration rate CPT in an
intermediate soil, 2nd International
Symposium on Cone Penetration Testing,
CPT10, Huntington Beach, California.
profile
Postgraduate
Grant Pusey
Characterisation of longrange horizontal performance
of underwater acoustic
communication
Grants study sought to characterise the
performance of horizontal underwater
acoustic data communication in
various scenarios with particular
application to subsea monitoring
and control systems. This involved
conducting field trials to simultaneously
measure environmental parameters
and communication performance.
An underwater acoustic communication
simulator was also developed
and the results compared to the
experiments. This thesis investigates
the environmental dependency of
communication performance and the
feasibility of using the technology
in place of cabled telemetry.
43. Khalilpasha, H. (2010). Buckling propagation

of subsea pipelines. EAIT Postragraduate
Student Conference, Queensland, Australia.
44. Khalilpasha, H. (2011). Nonlinear
numerical investigation of buckle
propagation in subsea pipelines. The 1st
International Postgraduate Conference on
Engineering, Designing and Developing
the Built Environment for Sustainable
Wellbeing, Brisbane, Australia.
45. Khalilpasha, H. and F. Albermani (2011).
On the propagation buckling and effects
in ultra-long deep subsea pipelines.
30th International Conference on Ocean,
Offshore and Arctic Engineering (OMAE
2011), Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
46. Kodikara, J. K. (2008). Study of the axial
response and its coupling of the general
pipe-soil interaction of seabed pipelines.
47. Kokegei, M., F. He and K. Sammut (2008),
Fully-coupled 6 degress-of-freedom control
of autonomous underwater vehicles,
IEEE Oceans 2008, submitted July 2008.
48. Kokegei, M., F. He and K. Sammut (2009),
Nonlinear fully-coupled control of AUVs,
1st Annual Society for Underwater Society
Subsea Technical Conference (SUT), Perth.
49. Kokegei, M., He, F. and Sammut, K.
(2011). Fully coupled 6 DoF control of an
over-actuated autonomous underwater
vehicle. Underwater Vehicles, InTech.
29
profile
Postgraduate
Bassem Youssef
The Integrated Stability Analysis
of Offshore Pipelines
The dissertation is concerned with the
stability analysis of offshore pipelines
under wave and current loading. An
integrated hydrodynamic-pipe-soil
modeling program is developed and
used in investigating the pipeline
stability in conditions found on the
Australian North West Shelf and the
Gulf of Mexico. The developed program
is a combination of three individual
programs to perform an integrated
pipeline simulation. A hydrodynamic
modelling program that generates
3D ocean surface, estimates the wave
kinematics at the pipeline level and
calculates the hydrodynamic loads on the
pipeline. A pipe-soil modelling program
that simulates the complicated pipe-soil
interaction behaviour under complex
hydrodynamic loading. The pipeline
is modelled using the commercial
finite element program ABAQUS.
Advanced statistical methods are
utilized in the thesis to investigate
the reliability of the pipeline stability
and the sensitivity of the design
input parameter. Pipeline centrifuge
modeling is conducted under complex
hydrodynamic loading, with the results
used to validate the integrated program.
The study provides engineers with a
3D pipeline modeling program and
methodologies to achieve reliable
and economic pipeline designs.
Bassem received an Innovation Award
Commendation from the Australian Gas
Technology Conference (Perth-2012)
for the development of the integrated
pipeline simulation program.
50. Lammas, A., K. Sammut and He,

F. (2008), Improving navigational
accuracy for AUVs using the MAPR
particle filter, IEEE Oceans 2008.
51. Lammas, A., K. Sammut and He, F.
(2009). 6-DoF navigation systems for
autonomous underwater vehicles. Mobile
Robots Navigation, In-Tech Books.
52. Lammas, A., K. Sammut and He, F. (2009),
MAPR particle filter for AUV sensor fusion,
Subsea Technical Conference (SUT), Perth.
53. Lammas, A. S., K. and He, F. (2012),
Measurement-assisted partial resampling
particle filter for full-order state-estimation
of an AUVs hydrodynamic parameters, IEEE
Oceanic Engineering: submitted April 2011.
54. LeBlanc, C. and M. F. Randolph (2008),
Interpretation of piezocones in silt,
using cavity expansion and critical state
methods, 12th International Conference
of International Association for Computer
Methods and Advances in Geomechanics
(IACMAG), Goa, India, CD:822-829.
55. Lee, J. and M. F. Randolph (2011),
Penetrometer based assessment of
spudcan penetration resistance, Journal
Engineering: 137(6): 587-596.
56. Lehane, B., C. OLoughlin, C. Gaudin
and M.F. Randolph (2009), Rate
effects on penetrometer resistance in
kaolin, Geotechnique, 59(1): 41-52.
57. Li, Y. H., K.Q. Fan, X.Q. Zhu and H. Hao
(2009), Operational modal identification
of offshore structures using blind
source separation, 1st Annual Society for
Underwater Technology Subsea Technical
Conference (SUT), Perth, CD: SUT09-LiYH.
58. Liu, H. B., X.L. Zhao and Z.G. Xiao (2010),
Fatigue testing of subsea pipeline
steel connections under combined
actions, The 21st Australasian Conference
on the Mechanics of Structures and
Materials, Melbourne, 649-655.
59. Liu, H. B. and X. L. Zhao (2011). Predictions
of fatigue life of steel connections
under combined actions using boundary
element method. 21st International
Offshore and Polar Engineering
Conference, Maui, Hawaii, 4: 276-281.
60. Liu, H. B. and X. L. Zhao (2012). Fatigue
behaviours of subsea pipeline steel
connections under combined actions.
7th International Conference on Advances
in Steel Structures, Nanjing, China.
61. Liu, H. B. and X. L. Zhao (2012).
Fracture mechanics analysis of steel
7th International Conference on Advances
in Steel Structures, Nanjing, China.
62. Liu, H. B. and X. L. Zhao (2012). Repair
efficiency of CFRP reinforced steel
6th International Conference on Fibre
Reinforced Polymer Composites in
Civil Engineering, Rome, Italy.
63. Liu, H.B, and X.L. Zhao (2012), Fatigue

Behaviour of Welded Steel Connections
under Combined Actions, Advances
in Structural Engineering An
International Journal, 15(10): 1817-1828.
64. Liu, H.B and X.L. Zhao (2013), Prediction
of fatigue life for CFRP strengthened
steel connections under combined
loads, International Journal of Structural
Stability and Dynamics, 12(6): DOI:
10.1142/S0219455412500599
65. Low, H. E., M.F. Randolph, C.J.
Rutherford, B.B. Bernard and J.M.
Brooks (2008), Characterization of
near seabed surface sediment, Offshore
Technology Conference, OTC19149.
66. Low, H. E., M.F. Randolph, J.T. DeJong and
N.J. Yafrate (2008), Variable rate full-flow
penetration tests in intact and remoulded
soil, 3rd International Conference on Site
Characterization, Taiwan, 1087-1092.
67. Low, H. E., T. Lunne, K.H. Andersen,
M.A. Sjursen, M.A., X. Li and M.F.
Randolph (2010), Estimation of intact
and remoulded undrained shear
strengths from penetration tests in soft
clays, Geotechnique, 60(11): 843-859.
68. Low, H. E., M. F. Randolph, T. Lunne, K.H.
Andersen and M.A. Sjursen (2011) Effect
of soil characteristics on relative values
of piezocone, T-bar and ball penetration
resistance, Geotechnique, 61 (8): 651-664.
69. Low, H. E., M.M. Landon, M. F.
Randolph and D. DeGroot, (2011)
Geotechnical characterisation and
engineering properties of Burswood
clay, Geotechnique, 61 (7): 575-591.
70. Low, H. E. and M. F. Randolph (2010),
Strength measurement for near
seabed surface soft soil, Journal of
Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 136(11): 1565-1573.
71. Lunne, T., K.H. Andersen, H..E. Low,
M. F. Randolph and M.A. Sjursen,
(2011) Guidelines for offshore in situ
testing and interpretation, Canadian
Geotechnical Journal, 48(4): 543-556.
72. Mahmoodzadeh, H., N, Boylan, M.F.
Randolph and M.J. Cassidy (2011). The
effect of partial drainage on measurements
by a piezoball penetrometer. 30th
International Conference on Ocean Offshore
and Arctic Engineering (OMAE2011),
Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
73. Merifield, R. S., D.J. White and M.F.
Randolph (2008), The effect of pipesoil interface conditions on undrained
breakout resistance of partiallyembedded pipelines, 12th International
Conference on Advances in Computer
Methods and Analysis in Geomechanics
74. Merifield, R. S., D.J. White and M.F.
Randolph (2009), The effect of surface
heave on the response of partiallyembedded pipelines on clay, Journal
of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 135(6): 819-826.
75. Osman, A. S. and M. F. Randolph

(2010), Response of a solid infinite
cylinder embedded in a poroelastic
medium and subjected to a lateral
load, International Journal of Solids
and Structures, 47(18-19): 2414-2424.
76. Peng, X. L. and H. Hao (2008), Damage
detection of underwater pipeline using
vibration-based method, 3rd World
Congress on Engineering Asset Management
and Intelligent Maintenance System.
77. Pusey, G., A. Duncan and A. Smerdon
(2009), Analysis of acoustic modem
performance for long range
horizontal data transmission, OCEANS
09 IEEE Bremen, Germany.
78. Pusey, G. (2011). Characterisation of
long-range horizontal performance of
underwater acoustic communication,
Curtin University, PhD Thesis.
79. Pusey, G. and A. Duncan (2008),
Characterisation of underwater
acoustic modem performance for
real-time horizontal data transmission,
Australian Acoustical Society Annual
Conference 2008, Geelong.
80. Pusey, G. and A. Duncan (2009),
Development of a simplistic underwater
acoustic channel simulator for analysis and
prediction of horizontal data telemetry,
Australian Acoustical Society National
Conference, Adelaide, abstract submitted.
81. Pusey, G. and A. Duncan (2009), An
investigation of oceanographic parameters
affecting acoustic modem performance for
horizontal data transmission, Underwater
Acoustic Measurements Technologies
and Results 3rd International Conference
and Exhibition, Nafplion, Greece.
82. Pusey, G. and A. Duncan (2009), A
preliminary study of underwater acoustic
communications over horizontal ranges,
Subsea Technical Conference (SUT) Perth, CD.
83. Randolph, M. F., D. Wang, H. Zhou,
M.S. Hossain and Y. Hu (2008),
Large deformation finite element
analysis for offshore applications,
12th International Conference of
International Association for Computer
84. Randolph, M. F., D. Seo and D.J.
White (2010), Parametric solutions
for slide impact on pipelines, Journal
Engineering, 136(7): 940-949.
85. Randolph, M. F., C. Gaudin, S.M.
Gourvenec, D.J. White, N. Boylan and
M.J. Cassidy (2011), Recent advances in
offshore geotechnics for deepwater
oil and gas developments, Ocean
Engineering, special issue: 38(7): 818-834.
86. Randolph, M. F. and P. Quiggin (2009),
Non-linear hysteretic seabed model for
catenary pipeline contact, 28th International
Conference on Offshore Mechanics
and Arctic Engineering (OMAE 2009),

87. Randolph, M. F. and D. J. White (2008),
Offshore foundation design a
moving target. Keynote paper, 2nd
(ICOF), Bracknell, UK, 27-59.
88. Randolph, M. F. and D. J. White (2008),
Pipeline embedment in deep water
processes and quantitative assessment,
Offshore Technology Conference, OTC19128.
89. Randolph M.F. and D.J. White (2012),
Interaction forces between pipelines
and submarine slides - a geotechnical
viewpoint. Ocean Engineering, 48, 32-37.
90. Rognon, P. G., I. Einav and C. Gay
(2010), Internal relaxation time in
immersed particulate materials,
Physical Review E, 81: 061304.
91. Rognon, P. G., I. Einav, J. Bonivin and
T. Millar (2010),A scaling law for heat
conductivity in sheared granular material,
Europhysics Letters, 89, pp 58006.
92. Rognon, P. G. and C. Gay (2008), Soft
dynamics simulation 1: normal approach
of two deformable particles in a viscous
fluid and optimal-approach strategy, The
European Physics Journal, 27: 253-260.
93. Rognon, P. G. and C. Gay (2009), Soft
dynamics simulation 2: elastic spheres
undergoing T1 process in a viscous fluid,
The European Physics Journal, 30: 291-301.
94. Schneider, J. A., M.F. Randolph, P.W.
Mayne and N. Ramsey (2008), Analysis
of factors influencing soil classification
using normalized piezocone tip resistance
and pore pressure parameters, Journal
of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 134(11): 1569-1586.
95. Schneider, J. A., M.F. Randolph, P.W.
Mayne and N. Ramsey (2008), Influence of
partial consolidation during penetration
on normalised soil classification by
piezocone, 3rd International Conference on
Site Characterization, Taiwan, 1159-1165.
96. Seelam, J. K., P.A. Guard and T.E. Baldock
(2011), Measurements and modelling of
bed shear stress under solitary waves,
97. Seelam, J. K. and T. E. Baldock (2009),
Direct bed shear stress measurements
under solitary tsunami-type waves
and breaking tsunami wavefronts,
International Conference on Coastal
Dynamics, Tokyo, Japan.
Role of submarine canyon on tsunami
amplification on south east coast
of India, International Conference of
Asia Oceania Geosciences Society,
Singapore, poster presentation.
Measurements and modelling of direct
bed shear stress under solitary waves, 9th
International Conference on Hydro-Science
and Engineering, Chennai, India, 421-430.
100. Seelam, J. K. and T. E. Baldock (2011).

Tsunami induced bed shear strewsses
on Northwest Coast of Australia.
International Conference of Asia Oceania
Geosciences Society (AOGS2011), Taiwan.
Tsunami induced shear stresses along
submarine canyons off south-east coast of
India. 6th International Conference on Asia
and Pacific Coasts (APAC2011), Hong Kong.
Solitary wave friction factors from
direct shear measurements on a sloping
bed. 8th International Conference
on Coastal and Port Engineering in
Developing Countries, Madras, India.
Comparison of bed shear under
non-breaking and breaking solitary
waves, International Journal of Ocean
and Climate Systems: 2(4): 259-278.
104. Senthilkumar, M., P. Rajeev, P. and J.
Kodikara (2010). Offshore pipe clayseabed interaction in axial direction.
Cluster workshop: abstract.
105. Senthilkumar, M., J. Kodikara and P.
Rajeev (2011). Numerical modelling of
undrained vertical load-deformation
behaviour of seabed pipelines.
13th International Confernce of the
(IACMAG 2011), Melbourne, Australia.
106. Senthilkumar, M., J. Kodikara and P.
Rajeev (2011). Numerical modelling of
vertical load-displacement behaviour
of offshore pipeline using coupled
analysis. Pan Am CGS Geotechnical
Conference, Toronto, Canada.
107. Senthilkumar, P. R., M., J. Kodikara and
N.I. Thusynathan (2011). Laboratory
modelling of pipe-clay seabed interaction
in axial direction. International
Symposium of Offshore and Polar
Engineering 2011, Maui, Hawaii.
108. Sleelam, J. K., Baldock, T.E. (2010),
Tsunami induced currents in vicinity
of Palar submarine canyon off southeast coast of India a numerical
model study, Poster presentation at
International Conference of Asia Oceania
Geosciences Society (AOGS 2010), India.
109. Tian, Y., M.J. Cassidy and G. Gaudin,
(2008), Pipeline integrity: centrifuge
modelling of pipes in sand, Geo:09475.
110. Tian, Y., M.J. Cassidy and C. Gaudin
(2010), Advancing pipe-soil interaction
models through geotechnical centrifuge
testing in calcareous sands, Applied
Ocean Research, 32(3): 284-297.
111. Tian, Y., M.J. Cassidy and B.S. Youssef
(2010). Consideration for on-bottom
stability of unburied pipelines using
force-resultant models. 20th International
Offshore and Polar Engineering Conference
(ISOPE), Beijing, China, 2: 212-219.
31
112. Tian, Y., M.J. Cassidy and C. Gaudin

(2011). Centrifuge tests of shallowly
embedded pipeline on undrained and
partially drained silt sand. GEO: 11560.
113. Tian, Y., D. Wang and M.J. Cassidy
(2011). Large deformation finite element
analysis of offshore geotechnical
penetration tests. 2nd International
Symposium on Computational Mechanics
(ComGeo11), Cavtat-Dubrovnik, Croatia.
114. Tian, Y., M.J. Cassidy and B.S. Youssef
(2011), Consideration for on-bottom
stability of unburied pipelines using a
dynamic fluid-structure-soil simulation
program, International Journal of Offshore
and Polar Engineering: 21(3): 1-8.
115. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2008), Explicit
and Implicit integration algorithms for
an elastoplastic pipe-soil interaction
macroelement model, 27th International
Conference on Offshore Mechanics and
Arctic Engineering, OMAE2008-57237.
116. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2008), Modelling
of pipe-soil interaction and its application
in numerical simulation, International
Journal of Geomechanics, 8(4): 213-229.
117. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2008), A practical
approach to numerical modelling of
pipe-soil interaction, 18th International
(ISOPE), Vancouver, Canada, 2:533-538.
118. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2009), Pipesoil interaction analysis with a 3D
macroelement model, 19th International
(ISOPE), Osaka, Japan, 461-468.
119. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2010), The
challenge of numerically implementing
numerous force-resultant models
in the stability analysis of long onbottom pipelines, Computers and
Geotechnics, 37(1-2): 216-232.
120. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2010), A pipe-soil
interaction model incorporating large
lateral displacements in calcareous sand,
Journal of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 137(3): 279-287.
121. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy, (2013),
Equivalent absolute lateral static
stability of on-bottom offshore
pipelines, Australian Geomechanics
Journal, under review November.
122. Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2011),
Incorporating uplift in the analysis
of shallowly embedded pipelines:
Int. Journal of Structural Engineering
and Mechanics, 40(1): 29-48.
123. Tran, D. S. and V. M. Tran (2010).
Propagation of buckle in subsea pipelines,
BE Thesis, University of Queensland.
124. Wang, D., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph
(2009), Numerical simulations of dynamic
embedment during pipe laying on soft
clay, 28th International Conference on
Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering,
32
125. Wang, D., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph

(2010), Large deformation finite element
analysis of pipe penetration and largeamplitude lateral displacement, Canadian
137. Xiao, Z. G. and X. L. Zhao (2007),

Frequency analyses of free spanning
subsea pipelines with finite element
method, 5th International Conference on
Advances in Steel Structures, 3:645-650.
126. Wang, D., M.F. Randolph and D.J. White

(2012), A dynamic large deformation finite
element method and element addition
technique, International Journal for
Geomechanics: under review April 2011.
138. Xiao, Z. G. and X. L. Zhao (2008), Stress

analyses of free spanning subsea
pipelines with finite element method,
10th International Symposium on Structural
Engineering for Young Experts.
127. Wang, Y., X.Q. Zhu, H. Hao and

K.Q. Fan (2009), Development and
testing of guided wave techniques
for pipeline integrity monitoring,
1st Annual Society for Underwater
Society Subsea Technical Conference
(SUT), Perth, CD:SUT009-WangY.

Prediction of Natural Frequency of Free
Spanning Subsea Pipelines, International
Journal of Steel Structures, 10(1): 81-90.
128. Westgate, Z., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph

(2009), Video observations of dynamic
embedment during pipelaying, 28th
Mechanics and Arctic Engineering (OMAE
2009), Honolulu, Hawaii, OMAE2009-79814.
129. Westgate, Z., M.F. Randolph, M.F, D.J.
White and S. Li (2010), The influence
of seastate on as laid pipeline
embedment: a case study, Applied
Ocean Research, 32(4): 321-331.
130. Westgate, Z., D.J. White and M.F.
Randolph (2010), Pipeline laying and
embedment in soft fine-grained soils: field
observations and numerical simulations.,
Offshore Technology Conference, Houston,
OTC2010:Paper number 20407.
131. Westgate, Z. J., M.F. Randolph and D.J.
White (2010), Theoretical, numerical and
field studies of offshore pipeline sleeper
crossings, 2nd International Symposium
on Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics,
Perth, Australia, n/a:845-850.
132. White, D. J., C. Gaudin, N. Boylan
and H. Zhou (2010), Interpretation of
T-bar penetrometer tests at shallow
embedment and in very soft soils, Canadian
133. White, D. J. and D. N. Cathie (2010).
Geotechnics for subsea pipelines a
keynote lecture. 2nd International
Symposium on Frontiers in Offshore
Geotechnics, Perth, Australia, n/a: 87-123.
134. White, D. J. and M. S. Hodder
(2010), A simple model for the effect
on soil strength of remoulding
and reconsolidation, Canadian
135. Wu, D., L. Cheng and M. Zhao (2010),
Numerical and experimental study of
natural backfill of pipeline in a trench
under steady currents, International
Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic
Engineering (OMAE2010), Shanghai,
China, CD:OMAE2010-20325.
136. Xiao, Z. G. and X. L. Zhao (2007), Current
status of research into subsea pipelines
subjected to fatigue loading, International
Institute of Welding Asian Pacific Congress,
Stream 1 Structures/Pipelines:Paper 1.34.

Frequency analyses of free spanning
subsea pipelines, International Journal
of Steel Structures 10(1): 1598-2531.
141. Yafrate, N. J., J.T. DeJong, D. DeGroot
and M.F. Randolph (2009), Evaluation
of remolded shear strength and
sensitivity of soft clay using full
flow penetrometers, Journal of
Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental
Engineering, 135(9): 1179-1189.
142. Yan, Y., White, D.J. and Randolph, M.F.
(2010), Investigation into the toroid
penetrometer on non-homogeneous clay,
2nd International Symposium on Frontiers
in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG2010),
Perth, Western Australia, CD:321-326.
143. Yan, Y., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph
(2011), Penetration resistance and stiffness
factors in uniform clay for hemispherical
and toroidal penetrometers, International
Journal for Geomechanics: 11(4): 263-275.
144. J.T. Yi, S.H. Goh, F.H. Lee and M.F.
Randolph,(2012), A numerical study of
cone penetration in fine-grained soils
allowing for consolidation effects,
Gotechnique, 62(8): 707 719.
145. Youssef, B. S., M.J. Cassidy and Y. Tian
(2010), Balanced three-dimensional
modelling of the fluid-structure-soil
interaction of an untrenched pipeline, 20th
International Offshore and Polar Engineering
Conference (ISOPE), Beijing, China, 2:123-130.
146. Youssef, B. S., Y. Tian and M.J. Cassidy
(2011). Probabilistic modes application
in the integrated stability analysis of
offshore on-bottom pipeline. 30th
Mechanics and Arctic Engineering
(OMAE2011): OMAE50047.
147. Zang, Z., L. Cheng, M. Zhao, D. Liang and
B. Teng (2009), A numerical model for
onset of scour below offshore pipelines,
Ocean Engineering, 56: 458-466.
148. Zang, Z., L. Cheng and M. Zhao (2010),
Onset of scour below pipeline under
combined waves and current, International
Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic
Engineering (OMAE2010), Shanghai,
China, CD:OMAE2010-20719.
149. Zang, Z., L. Cheng and M. Zhao (2010). Onset

of scour below pipeline under combined
waves and current. 29th International
Conference on Offshore Mechanics
and Arctic Engineering (OMAE2010),
Shanghai, China, CD: OMAE2010-20325.
150. Zang, Z. and L. Cheng (2012), Numerical
simulation on sand waves behaviour and
their interaction with pipelines by ROMS
model, Ocean Engineering: submitted 2011.
151. Zhao, M., L.Cheng and T. Zhou (2009),
Numerical simulation of three-dimensional
flow past a yawed circular cylinder, Journal
of Fluids and Structures, 25(5): 831-847.
152. Zhao, M., L.Cheng and Z. Zang (2010),
Experimental and numerical investigation
of local scour around a submerged vertical
circular cylinder in steady currents,
28th International Conference on

Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering
(OMAE 2009), OMAE2009-79148.
155. Zhao, M. and L. Cheng (2010), Finite element
analysis of flow control using porous
media, Ocean Engineering, 37: 1357-1366.
160. Zhou, H. and M. F. Randolph (2009),

Numerical investigations into cycling
of full-flow penetrometers in soft
clay, Geotechnique, 59(10): 801-812.
156. Zhao, M. and L. Cheng (2010), Numerical

investigation of local scour below a
vibrating pipeline under steady currents,

Resistance of full-flow penetrometers
in rate-dependent and strain-softening
clay, Geotechnique, 59(2): 79-86.

investigation of vortex-induced
vibration of a circular cylinder close
to a plane boundary., International
Conference on Ocean, Offshore and
Arctic Engineering, OMAE2010,
Shanghai, China, OMAE2010-21147.

Effect of shaft on resistance of a ball
penetrometer, Geotechnique, 61 (11): 973-981.

simulation of local scour below a vibrating
pipeline in currents, 4th International
Conference on Scour and Erosion, 233-239.
158. Zhao, M. and L. Cheng (2010). Threedimensional numerical simulation of

hydrodynamic forces on an oblique cylinder
in oscillatory flow. 17th Australasian
Fluid Mechanics Conference, Auckland,
New Zealand, Pen Drive: Paper 042.
154. Zhao, M. and L. Cheng (2009),

Experimental investigation of local
scour around a submerged vertical
circular cylinder in steady currents,
159. Zhou, H., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph

(2008), Physical and numerical simulation
of shallow penetration of a cylindrical
object in soft clay, GeoCongress
profile
Postgraduate
Yues thesis focused on establishing

a theoretical understanding for the
response of a new class of seabed
penetrometers the toroid and ball
penetrometers designed specifically
for pipe-soil interactions without the
difficulty of end effects. In view of the
perceived need to improve the pipe
design guidelines and develop more
reliable procedures for estimating
the axial interaction between pipe
and soil, this study explored toroid
and ball penetrometer performance
on clays through centrifuge model
tests and small strain finite element
analyses. There was also an emphasis
on the axial interaction in isolation at
shallow embedment ratio, but some
possible way of its incorporation
into a more general interaction
modelling scheme are examined.
The aim of the research was to:
Provide an improved quantitative
framework to characterise the

undrained surficial soft sediments
which will conclude (a) suggest
undrained resistance factors
Characterization, Monitoring and

Modelling of Geosystems, 179: 108-117.
163. Zhou, T., H. Wang, S. F. Mohd Razali,

Y. Zhou and L. Cheng (2010), Threedimensional vorticity measurements in
the wake of a yawed circular cylinder,
Physics of Fluids, 22(1): 015108.
164. Zhu, H. and M. F. Randolph (2011),
Numerical analysis of a cylinder moving
through rate-dependent undrained soil,
Ocean Engineering, 38(7): 943-953.
165. Zhu, H. and M. F. Randolph (2010), Large
deformation finite element analysis of
submarine landslide interaction with
embedded pipelines, International Journal
for Geomechanics, 10(4): 145-152.
Yue Yan
Novel methods for characterising pipe-soil interaction
forces in situ in deep water
under vertical and torsional
loading appropriate for toroid
and ball penetrometer at shallow
embedment depths (b) allow
operative soil stiffness to be
estimated, or for the penetrometer
stiffness to be converted into
pipe-soil stiffness as required.
Investigating the drainage of
The ultimate aim of this research is to

develop a theoretical understanding of
the behaviour of a shallowly embedded
spherical and toroid penetrometer
subjected to vertical and torsional
loading, and to prove through physical
modelling the concept of this new site
characterisation tool focusing on axial
interaction between a pipeline and soil.
soil during penetration and

torsional loadings. The key effect
is to provide robust dissipation
solutions specifically for these
two new penetrometers, which
enables the measured pore
pressure to be interpreted in
terms of the consolidation
characteristic of the soil.
Develop a testing framework and a
more reliable interpretation method

for the near surface seabed soft soil.
Provide recommendations on
the design of in these in situ

tools and associated testing
procedures which will lead to
more reliable and less conservative
assessments of axial friction.
33
Key papers
Low, H..E., T. Lunne, K.H. Andersen, M.A. Sjursen, M.A., X. Li and M.F. Randolph. (2010). Estimation of
intact and remoulded undrained shear strength from penetration tests in soft clays. Gotechnique, 60(11),
843-859.
solutions to evaluate the influence
of particular soil characteristics. The
overall statistics showed similar levels
of variability of the resistance factors,
with low coefficients of variation,
for all three types of penetrometer.
However, correlations of the resistance
factors with specific soil characteristics
indicated that the resistance factors for
the piezocone were more influenced
by soil stiffness, or rigidity index,
than for the T-bar and ball, while the
effect of strength anisotropy was
only apparent in respect of resistance
factors for the T-bar and ball relative
to shear strengths measured in triaxial
Difficulties in obtaining high quality

soil samples from deep water sites have
necessitated increasing reliance on
piezocone, T-bar and ball penetration
tests to determine soil properties for
design purposes. This paper reports the
results of an international collaborative
project in which a worldwide,
high quality database of lightly
overconsolidated clays was assembled
and used to evaluate resistance factors
for the estimation of intact and
remoulded undrained shear strength
from the penetration resistance of each
device. The derived factors were then
compared with existing theoretical
qnet (kPa)
0
500
1000
qT-bar (kPa)
1500
2000
500
1000
compression. In the correlation

between the remoulded penetration
resistance and remoulded strength,
the resistance factors for remoulded
strength were found higher than those
for intact strength and with slight
tendency to increase with increasing
strength sensitivity but insensitive
to soil index properties. Based on an
assessment of the influence of various
soil characteristics, resistance factors
are recommended for the estimation
of intact and remoulded undrained
shear strength from the penetration
resistances of each device for soil with
strength sensitivity less than six.
qball (kPa)
1500
2000
500
1000
12
1500
2000
10
Burswood
Chinguetti
Chinguetti
10
Onsy
Burswood
Chinguetti
Ariake
15
Laminaria
25
GOG 2
GOG 3
GOG 4
Norwegian Sea
30
40
(a)
(b)
(a) Profiles of qnet (b) profiles of qT-bar (c) profiles of qball
(c)
()
(( ))
()
()
()
()
()
()
(( ))
Yafrate and DeJong (2006)
0
Onsy
Burswood
Norwegian Sea
Chinguetti
Burswood 1g model test
GOG 1 1g model test
10
Laminaria
Norwegian Sea
35
()
12
GOG 5
GOG 6
Laminaria
Ariake
GOG 1
20
qball /qball,rem
Depth (m)
Chinguetti
qT-bar/qT-bar,rem
8
6
4
2
0
Yafrate and DeJong (2006)

0
6
St
10
12
(a) Comparison between qT-bar/qT-bar,rem

and strength sensitivity. (b) Comparison
between qball/qball,rem and strength
sensitivity.
34
Key papers
Randolph, M. F., D. Seo and D.J. White (2010), Parametric solutions for slide impact on pipelines,
Journal of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental Engineering, 136(7): 940-949.
Pipelines are frequently subjected to
active loading from slide events, both on
land and in the offshore environment.
Whether the pipeline is initially buried
or lying close to the surface, and
whether it crosses the unstable region
or lies in the path of debris originating
from further away, the main principles
are unchanged. The pipeline will
be subjected to active loading over
some defined length, related to the
width of the slide, and as it deforms
will be restrained by transverse and
longitudinal resistance in adjacent
passive zones. Ultimately, the pipeline
may come to a stable deformed shape
where continued active loading from
0.01
qB/EA =
0.001
0.0005
0.001
0.01
0.0002
0.0001
0.00005
0.00002
Tension
Computed strain, /E
Computed strain, /E
Combined
0.0001
p/q = f/p = 0.5

0.00001
10
accuracy over a wide parameter range,

and the net effect of the slide in terms
of stresses induced in the pipe wall
and maximum displacement of the
pipeline may be captured in appropriate
dimensionless groups. Design charts
are presented for slide widths of up to
1000 times the pipeline diameter, for
a practical range of other parameters
such as the ratios of passive normal
and frictional resistance to the active
loading. Although the solutions are
limited by some of the idealisations,
they should provide a useful starting
point in design, providing a framework
for more detailed numerical analysis for
the particular governing conditions.
the slide is equilibrated by membrane

tension in the pipeline in addition to
the passive resistance. Various authors
have explored this problem, and
these principles are well established.
However, to date, no attempt has
been made to develop a standard set
of parametric solutions, which is the
purpose of the current paper. Both
analytical and numerical solutions of
the problem have been developed,
initially for slides acting normal to the
pipeline but later extended to general
conditions with the slide impacting
the pipeline at some angle. It is shown
that analytical solutions based on
certain idealisations maintain their
Note, order of curves is from centre outwards for

the two B/D values, according to the legend
B/D = 100
0.001
Bending
100
1000
Normalized debris flow width, B/D
Effect of slide loading and width on maximum pipeline strains
10000
0.0001
0.00001
B/D = 10,000
p/q = 4, f/p =1
p/q = 0.5, f/p = 1
p/q = 0.5, f/p = 0.5
p/q = 0.5, f/p = 0.25
p/q = 0.05, f/p = 0.25
0.0001
0.001
Slide loading, qB/EA
0.01
Variation of maximum combined strain with slide loading
35
Key papers
Hodder, M. S. and M. J. Cassidy (2010), A plasticity model for predicting the vertical and lateral
behaviour of pipelines in clay soils, Geotechnique, 60(4): 247263.
A complete theoretical model for
predicting the undrained behaviour
of a rigid pipe in clay soils when
subjected to combined vertical and
horizontal loading is described.
Physical modelling of a pipe on soft,
lightly overconsolidated kaolin clay
was conducted, with the experimental
test program specifically designed
to establish the model parameters.
The testing was conducted within

The University of Western Australias
geotechnical drum centrifuge using
an element of pipe 10mm in diameter,
50mm in length and at an acceleration
50 times the Earths gravity. The
model presented is expressed by
the force resultants on the pipe and
the corresponding displacements
and allows predictions of response
UWA drum centrifuge used for pipeline testing
36
to be made for various vertical and

horizontal load or displacement
combinations. However, it is limited to
monotonic loading and relatively small
displacements. The model is verified in
this paper by retrospectively simulating
a selection of combined loading tests
and comparing the output with the
experimentally recorded results
Key papers
Tian, Y. and M. J. Cassidy (2008), Modelling of pipe-soil interaction and its application in numerical
simulation, International Journal of Geomechanics, 8(4): 213-229.
This paper presents three plasticity
models that can be applied to
numerically simulate pipe-soil
interaction. They can be applied
individually to evaluate the forcedisplacement response of a small planestrain pipe section or in combination
to simulate a long pipeline system.
In the latter, numerous pipe-soil
elements are attached to structural
finite-elements, each simulating
localised foundation restraint along
the pipeline. The three models are
increasing in sophistication, mainly due
to the manner in which they account
for the behaviour within an allowable

combined loading surface. The first is
based on traditional strain-hardening
plasticity theory and therefore assumes
purely elastic response inside a single
expandable yield-surface. The second
allows some plasticity due to the use
of a bounding surface, and the third
accounts for kinematic hardening
through the introduction of a second
smaller surface. The models are detailed
in this paper, allowing for simple
numerical implementation. Importantly,
they are incorporated within the
structural analysis of a pipeline
and their potential to investigate

generic pipeline system behaviour
is demonstrated. The applicability
of the three models is interpreted
theoretically and their differences
shown through application for (i) a
one pipe-soil interaction element,
and along (ii) a 100m segment of
pipeline. The latter shows the practical
application of these models to offshore
pipeline engineering examples, with
the influence of a free span behaviour
investigated. The ability to model
complex cyclic loading is also shown.
Footing response of 30-m span
37
Key papers
Liu, H.B. and X.L. Zhao (2011), Predictions of fatigue life of steel connections under combined actions
using boundary element method, The 21st International Offshore and Polar Engineering Conference,
Maui, Hawaii, USA, 19-24 June, Volume 4, pp. 276-281
The fatigue life of girth weld is always
an important issue for subsea pipelines.
In this paper the method of numerical
modelling was used to study the fatigue
behaviours of subsea pipeline steel
connections. The analytical models were
established using the software of BEASY,
which is developed on the basis of the
boundary element method of analysis.

Combined forces were applied in these
models: constant amplitude cyclic mode
I load and perpendicular static load.
The numerical results were compared
with the corresponding experimental
results and good agreements were
achieved. Their fatigue behaviours
were described clearly by the stress

intensity factors near crack-tip, the
crack propagation rates and the fatigue
lives. The effect of perpendicular
static load, stress ratio and stress
range on fatigue behaviours were
evaluated through parametric study.
F1
Loading
frame
Fh
Fh
F1
Hydraulic to apply hoop force
Hand pump
Pipeline displacement after 3 hrs
hydrodynamic loads
Footing response of 30-m span
38
Key papers
Zhao, M. and L. Cheng (2010), Numerical investigation of local scour below a vibrating pipeline under
steady currents, Coastal Engineering, 57: 397-406.
Local scour below a vibrating pipeline
under steady current is investigated by
a finite element numerical model. The
flow, sediment transport and pipeline
response are coupled in the numerical
model. The numerical results of scour
depths and pipeline vibration amplitudes
are compared with measured data
available in literature. Good agreement
is obtained. It is found that pipeline
vibrations cause increases of scour

depth below the pipeline. The scour pit
underneath a two-degree-of-freedom
vibrating pipeline is deeper than that
under a pipeline vibrating only in the
transverse flow direction. The effects
of water depth are also investigated.
The present numerical result shows that
water depth has weak effect on the scour
depth. However it does affect the time
scale of the scour. The shallower the

water depth is, the less time it requires
to reaches the equilibrium state of scour.
It is found that the vibration forces
vortices to be shed from the bottom side
of the pipeline. Then vortex shedding
around a vibrating pipeline is closer to
the seabed than vortex shedding around
a fixed pipeline. This contributes to the
increase of the scour depth.
Mini tube facility: 0.25m x 0.25m test section area
Time development of scour below a pipeline
39
Key papers
Albermani, F., H. Khalilpasha and H. Karampour (2011), Propagation buckling in subsea pipelines,
Engineering Structures, 33(9): 2547-2533
The paper investigates buckle
propagation in deep subsea pipelines.
Experimental results using ring squash
tests and hyperbaric chamber tests
are presented and compared with a
modified analytical solution and with
numerical results using finite element

analysis. The experimental investigation
was conducted using commercial
aluminium pipes with diameter-tothickness (D/t) ratio in the range of 2048. In contrast to conventional cylindrical
(a)
(b)
Ring squash test RST
40
pipe, a faceted cylindrical geometry is

also investigated. Preliminary analysis of
a faceted pipe shows that a substantial
increase in buckling capacity can be
achieved for the same D/t ratio.
Key papers
Senthilkumar, M. P. Rajeev, J. Kodikara, and N. I. Thusyanthan, (2011). Laboratory modelling

of pipe-clay seabed interaction in axial direction, The 21st International Offshore and Polar
Engineering Conference, Maui, Hawaii, USA, 19-24 June.
The current trend of bottom embedding
of offshore petroleum pipelines is
increasingly being challenged by the
expansion of the pipeline at elevated
operating conditions of temperature and
pressure. For simplicity, the expansion
challenges could be classified into
axial walking and lateral buckling,

relevant to the axial and lateral
components of interaction. This paper
summaries current knowledge on the
axial resistance of surface laid pipes,
in general, the pipe-soil interaction
in axial direction. The experimental
works obtained from literature are

detailed and modelling techniques are
reviewed. Finally, the development
of the Monash Advance Pipe testing
System (MAPS) for further investigating
axial response is explained and the
testing methods are discussed.
Monash Advanced Pipe Testing System (MAPS) in action
Monash Advanced Pipe Testing System (MAPS)
41
Key papers
Wang, D., D.J. White and M.F. Randolph. (2010), Large deformation finite element analysis of pipe
penetration and large-amplitude lateral displacement, Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 47(8): 842-856.
Seabed pipelines must be designed
to accommodate thermal expansion
which is commonly achieved through
controlled lateral buckling and to
resist damage from submarine slides.
In both cases, the pipe moves laterally
by a significant distance and the overall
pipeline response is strongly influenced
by the lateral pipe-soil resistance. This
resistance is affected both by the soil
conditions and also the weight of the
pipe, since the longitudinal flexibility
allows the pipe to move vertically while
being pushed or dragged laterally. In this
paper, the process of pipe penetration
and lateral displacement is investigated
the soil strength. For light pipes, the

pipe rises to the soil surface and the
soil failure mechanism involves sliding
at the base of the berm. In contrast,
heavy pipes dive downwards and
a deep shearing zone is mobilised,
expanding with continuing lateral
movement. The different responses
are reconciled by defining an effective
embedment that includes the effect of
the soil berm or wall ahead of the pipe.
The relationship between normalised
lateral resistance and effective
embedment is well fitted using a power
law, regardless of the pipe weight.
using a large deformation finite element

(LDFE) method, with a strain-softening,
rate-dependent soil model being
incorporated. The calculated soil flow
mechanisms, pipe resistances and
trajectories from the LDFE analyses
agree well with upper bound plasticity
solutions and centrifuge test data. It
is found that the lateral resistance is
strongly influenced by soil heave during
penetration and the berm formed
ahead of the pipe during lateral pipe
displacement. Two distinct modes of
behaviour are evident, depending
on the weight of the pipe relative to
-1
-1
u/D=0.01
z/D
z/D
u/D=0.5
-0.5
-0.5
0.5
0.5
(a)
1.5
-1.5
-1.5
1.5
-1
-0.5
0.5
x/D
(b)
-2.5
1.5
u/D=1.0
-1.5
-1
-2
-1.5
-1
-0.5
0.5
-3
-2.5
-2
-1.5
x/D
u/D=2.0
-1
-0.5
-0.5
z/D
z/D
Equivalent plastic strain around pipe after vertical penetration (w/D = 0.45)
0.5
0.5
(c)
-3
-2.5
-2
-1.5
x/D
-1
-0.5
-4.5
(d)
-4
-3.5
Soil flow mechanisms for a heavy pipe (R = 1.25)
42
x/D
Key papers
Boylan, N., C. Gaudin, D.J. White and M.F. Randolph (2010), Modelling of submarine slides in the
geotechnical centrifuge, 7th International Conference on Physical Modelling in Geotechnics (ICPMG
2010), Zurich, Switzerland CD:1095-1100.
The depletion of near shore hydrocarbon
resources has led to a move to
exploration and production in deep
and ultra-deep waters. This shift into
deeper waters requires increased
reliance on sub-sea installations and
pipelines that can extend to more than
500km from shore, often across areas
of changing seabed morphology and
continental shelves. The viability of
these developments is increasingly
Sliding door
dependent on the security of the

installations and tie-backs to shore,
which are susceptible to geohazards
such as submarine slides. The Centre
for Offshore Foundation Systems (COFS)
has initiated research to investigate the
impact of submarine slides on offshore
pipelines. As part of this project, a
facility has been developed to model
submarine slides in the geotechnical
drum centrifuge at the University of
Western Australia. This facility uses

the long, narrow channel of the drum
centrifuge to model the run-out of
submarine slides that are triggered
from an intact block of clay, along a
model seabed. This paper describes
the development of the apparatus to
trigger the slides in the drum centrifuge
and presents some results from the
first tests conducted in the facility.
Paddle
Legend
intact block of clay
Counter mass
Slide triggering device

Slide box
CLD gantry
Slide run-out
Cross-section of drum centrifuge equipment for slide modelling
43
Key papers
Baldock, T. E. and J. K. Seelam (2009), Numerical and physical modelling of tsunami run-up and
impact on subsea pipelines, 1st Annual Society for Underwater Technology Subsea Technical Conference
(SUT), Perth.
This paper presents initial results from
experimental and numerical modelling
of tsunami wave propagation over the
continental slope and near shore region.
The paper considers the potential
impacts of tsunami waves on subsea
pipelines, which may be indirect i.e. the
triggering of submarine landslides or
turbidity currents. The project will also
consider how the complex bathymetry
around pipelines may change the fluid
loading, and it will also examine the
potential loads induced by internal
waves. The modelling encompasses both
overland flow processes and the seabed
pressures and shear stresses induced
by tsunami waves. Likely conditions
on the continental shelf and on the

continental slope are also examined.
The experimental measurements
include data covering non-breaking and
breaking tsunami-type waves obtained
from the large-scale Tsunami Wave
Basin at Oregon State University. Initial
experimental measurements of sea bed
pressures and bed shear stresses will
be presented from the University of
Queensland tsunami wave flume, which
will subsequently be used to investigate
the potential for tsunami-induced
liquefaction of the sea bed around
pipelines and the potential for tsunami
to trigger submarine landslides. The
paper provides an overview and initial
OSU tsunami wave basin
44
results of the experiments which aim

to simulate conditions corresponding
to the continental shelf slope and
particularly the near shore zone, where
tsunami breaking may generate high
horizontal pressure gradients over
large areas of the seabed. Novel shear
cell measurements will be made to
investigate the relative contribution
of shear stress and pressure gradients
to submarine slide initiation. Tsunami
kinematics within submarine canyons
may amplify the tsunami motion and
flow velocities and is also of concern.
The experimental results will be used
to further refine numerical modelling
of tsunami and to develop models.
Key papers
Pusey, G. and A. Duncan (2009), A preliminary study of underwater acoustic communications

over horizontal ranges, 1st Annual Society for Underwater Technology Subsea Technical Conference (SUT)
Perth, CD.
Difficulties in subsea data telemetry stem
from issues to do with electromagnetic
wave penetration and procedures
involved in deploying and maintaining
cabled solutions. While acoustic
modems are increasingly useful in many
(a)
applications, communications over

a large horizontal range are subject
to many complications. This study
investigates the various mechanisms
affecting acoustic propagation,
specifically those important for data
transmission over long ranges. This is

followed by preliminary results from
propagation models and trials off the
coast of Western Australia.
(b)
Summary of deployment results showing modem performance over range (a) and the
corresponding signal strength data detected by the ambient noise recorder (b).
45
Awards
Pipeline industry awards:

Australian Gas Innovation Award Commendation
Bassem Youssef received the Australian Gas Innovation Award Commendation.
He was recognised for his unique pipeline on-bottom stability simulation
program, developed as part of his PhD study. This provides pipeline
engineers with a reliable and accurate pipeline design tool capable of a
3D simulation of offshore pipelines under the action of wave and current
loading. Bassem was supervised by Mark Cassidy and Yinghui Tian.
> Bassem Youssef
Postgraduate student awards:

Benthic Scholarship: Han Eng Low Hamed Mahmoodzadeh Poornaki
SUT Scholarship: Bassem Youssef
AusAid Scholarship: Siti Fatin Mohd Razali
46
Pipeline industry awards:

Industry Innovation and Technology prize and Innovation and
Development category of the 2012 WA Engineering Excellence Awards
Cluster Chief Investigators Liang Cheng and David White, along with Scott Draper
and Hongwei An won the Innovation and Development category of the 2012 WA
Engineering Excellence Awards for the O-Tube Program, which simulates the
effects of cyclone on subsea pipelines. The O-Tube also won the Subsea Energy
Australia Industry Innovation and Technology Award. The research is crucial for
Australias massive oil and gas industry, which plans to install an estimated 3000km
of offshore pipelines worth more than $15 billion over the next 10 years.
> David White with the beam centrifuge
Researcher awards:
Whitfield Scholarship: Hongjie Zhou
Australian Academy of Sciences Anton Hales medal: David White
ARC Future Fellowships: David White Mark Cassidy
2011 E.H. Davis Lecturer: Mark Cassidy
2011 WA young scientist of the year: David White
47
Keynote presentations,
invited lectures and papers
Boylan, N. P. and D. J. White (2010).
Geotechnical frontiers in offshore
engineering invited keynote lecture.
International Symposium on Recent
Advances and Technologies in Coastal
Development, Tokyo, Japan, CD: 18 pages.
Cassidy, M.J. (2009). Engineering
for a new generation of offshore
production. ATSE Focus. Vol. 154,
Australian Academy of Technological
Sciences and Engineering, pp. 21-22.
Cassidy, M.J. (2009). Foundations
for Australias offshore oil and gas
installations, WA Chapter of the
Australian Academy of Technological
Sciences and Engineering, 10 June 2009.
Randolph, M. F., D. Wang, H. Zhou,

M.S. Hossain and Y. Hu (2008),
Large deformation finite element
analysis for offshore applications,
12th International Conference of
(IACMAG), Goa, India, CD: 3307-3318.
White, D.J. (2008). Geotechnical
design of seabed pipelines,
European Symposium on Centrifuge
Modelling, London, May 2008.
White, D.J. (2009). Recent advances in
pipeline geotechnics made through
centrifuge modelling at UWA, Deltares,
The Netherlands, December 2009.
Cassidy, M.J. and Y. Tian (2011).

Development and application of
models for the stability analysis of
Australias offshore pipelines. Proc.
2011 Symposium on Coastal and Marine
Geotechnics: Foundations for trade, 15th
Annual Symposium of the Australian
Geomechanics Society, Sydney, Australia.
Hao H. (2009). SHM research in UWA,
Guangzhou University, China, 2009.
Randolph, M.F., C. Gaudin, S. Gourvenec,
D.J. White, N. Boylan and M.J. Cassidy
(2011), Recent advances in offshore
geotechnics for deepwater oil and gas
developments, Ocean Engineering.
Randolph, M. F. and D. J. White (2008),
Offshore foundation design a
moving target. Keynote paper, 2nd
(ICOF), Bracknell, UK, 27-59.
48
White, D.J. and C. Gaudin (2009).

Physical modelling techniques
developed within the Cluster and the
resulting advances in pipeline analysis
techniques, International Workshop
on Geotechnical Modelling, Tongji
University, China, November 2009.
White, D. J. and D. N. Cathie (2011).
Geotechnics for subsea pipelines a
keynote lecture. 2nd International
Symposium on Frontiers in Offshore
Geotechnics, Perth, Australia, n/a: 87-123.
Hosting the Second International Symposium

on Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics
Pipeline engineering and the research of the Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster
was highlighted at the Second International Symposium on Frontiers in Offshore
Geotechnics (ISFOG), hosted by the Centre of Foundation Systems at the University
of Western Australia, Perth, between 8 and 10 November 2010.
The ISFOG symposium provided a
platform for academics and practitioners
to discuss and exchange ideas to address
the emerging challenges in offshore
geotechnical engineering and showcase
state-of-the-art offshore geotechnics.
ISFOG 2010 was opened by Ann
Pickard, the Country Chair of Shell in
Australia and Executive Vice President
of Shell Upstream Australia.
The symposium attracted 306 delegates
from 24 countries representing industry
and academia.
The technical themes of the symposium

were selected to reflect the key stages
of an offshore project. They ranged from
assessing offshore geohazards with
state-of-the-art geophysics and in situ
geotechnical testing techniques, through
to design considerations for foundation
solutions and pipelines, culminating in
key considerations involving design risk.
Professor David White delivered the
keynote lecture, and international
practitioners and academics presented
14 papers on pipeline engineering.
These can be found in the proceedings.
Ann Pickard, Country Chair of Shell, at the

opening of ISFOG 2010 with Mark Cassidy
Christophe Gaudin giving a tour of the beam centrifuge during ISFOG2010
ISFOG2010 proceedings
49
The partners
The Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster

combined the capabilities of:

Curtin University of Technology
The University of Queensland, Brisbane
Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria
The University of Sydney
Flinders University, Adelaide
CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship.
50
Flagship Collaboration Fund
The Flagship Collaboration

Fund enables the skills
of the wider Australian
research community to
be applied to the major
national challenges targeted
by the CSIROs National
Research Flagship Program.
As part of the $305 million
provided over seven years by
the Australian Government
to the National Research
Flagships, $97 million was
allocated specifically to
enhance collaboration
between the CSIRO,
Australian universities
and other publicly funded
research agencies.
The Australian Governments
budget announcement in
2007 provided additional
resources for the fund.
The Subsea Pipeline
Collaboration Cluster
contributes to the Wealth
from Oceans Flagship. The
program aims to work with
industry to develop the
science and technology to
unlock new opportunities
in the exploration and
development of Australias
offshore hydrocarbon
resources. The cluster
consisted of a $3.6 million
grant through the Flagship
Collaboration Fund and inkind contributions totalling
$7.4 million from the
participating universities.
51
52
53
Contact us
t 1300 363 400

+61 3 9545 2176
e enquiries@csiro.au
w www.csiro.au
Your CSIRO
Australia is founding its future on

science and innovation. Itsnational
science agency, CSIRO, isapowerhouse
of ideas, technologies and skills for
building prosperity, growth, health and
sustainability. It serves governments,
industries, business and communities
across thenation.
For further information
Flagship Collaboration Cluster leader

Winthrop Professor Mark Cassidy
Director Centre for Offshore Foundation
Systems, University of Western Australia
M053
35 Stirling Highway
Crawley WA 6009
t +61 8 6488 1142
f +61 8 6488 1104
e mark.cassidy@uwa.edu.au
CSIRO
Ian Cresswell
Science Director, Wealth from Oceans
National Research Flagship, CSIRO
GPO Box 1538
Hobart TAS 7001
t +61 3 6232 5213
f +61 3 6232 5125
e ian.cresswell@csiro.au

FINAL Subsea Pipeline Cluster Report 56pp

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FINAL Subsea Pipeline Cluster Report 56pp

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wealth from oceans

More than 80 per cent of Australias

Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report

including the development of stateof-the-art experimental equipment

The current boom in Australian oil

Introduction to the Subsea Pipelines Cluster

resources which are considered

Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report

CSIRO, Australian universities and other

CSIRO Cluster on Subsea Pipelines Participants

AUV AND ROV-BASED

Training the offshore pipeline

Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report

CSIRO Cluster Postdoctoral Research Associates

Where they are now?

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Sydney

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

University of Western Australia

Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report

CSIRO Cluster Postgraduate Student Participants

Analysis of piezocone data for displacement pile design

Numerical study of geotechnical penetration

Han Eng Low

Performance of penetrometers in deepwater soft soil characterisation

Geotechnical analysis of offshore pipelines and steel catenary risers

Experimental and numerical modelling of natural backfill

Characterisation of long-range horizontal performance

Siti Fatin Mohd Razali

Wake characteristics of yawed circular cylinders and suppression

Condition monitoring of offshore pipelines using vibration based method

Jaya Kumar Seelam

Tsunami induced bed shear stresses- project 4

Ben contributing to the modelling of Jaya's but PhD otherwise unrelated

6 Degree of Freedom Navigation Systems for

Fully Coupled 6 Degree of Freedom Control Systems

Novel methods for characterising pipe-soil

Use of probability models in the integrated analysis in offshore pipelines

Erosion threshold and erosion rate of seabed sediments

Modelling of pipeline seabed interactions

Pipeline Tracking Using Scanning Sonar Imaging

Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling Techniques for

Mesh Free Methods for Probabilistic Optimal Control and

Modelling of submarine slides and their impact on pipelines

Three dimensional modelling of pipeline buckling on soft clay

Offshore pipe clay seabed interaction in axial direction

Vibration based structural health monitoring

Structural analysis of submarine pipelines under

Propagation buckling of deep subsea pipelines

Interpretation of partially drained penetrometer tests with

Coupled upheaval/lateral and propagation buckling of ultra-deep pipelines

Scientific and engineering challenges

For safe and economic developments

Subsea Pipeline Collaboration Cluster final report