Numerical Simulation of Container Stacks Dynamics Under Typical Motion Excitation

Present regulation and norms for securing equipment are calculated based on static strength analysis ignore the dynamic situations faced by containers during maritime transportation, and the event of container loss still occurs. This research aim to investigate the dynamic behavior of container stack under typical motion excitations simulating real ocean conditions. A two-tier scaled model of a 20-ft ISO freight container were built based on scaling law. The research process is divided into three stages. The first stage: establish a full-scale 20-ft container mode, and obtain characteristic information such as mass and stiffness through finite element analysis. In the second stage, the multi-objective optimization algorithm is used to establish the scale model of the container, and the scale model of the design is verified. In the third stage, the finite element method is used to further understand the influence of each design variables on the dynamic response of container stack. Under different motion excitations, the influence of each basic variables on the structural response and the load change on the critical points of the structure are determined. Meanwhile, the results of this study also show that the mathematical model constructed is effective and can reasonably predict the actual situation of container stacks stored on the ship’s deck.