Thermo-electro-mechanical bending of submarine power cables

Abstract

Submarine power cables (SPCs) experience complex multi-physical effects in practical engineering scenarios, particularly involving mechanical, thermal, and electrical interactions. When electrical current passes through inner conductors, temperature rises induce thermal expansion, leading to deformation and influencing the bending behavior through alterations in the stick–slip mechanism. Although experimental studies have highlighted temperature’s significant impact on the bending performance of SPCs, detailed insights into the underlying multi-physical interactions remain scarce. This paper introduces a novel repetitive unit cell (RUC) numerical model to investigate the bending behavior of SPCs comprehensively under coupled electrical, thermal, and mechanical fields. An innovative thermal expansion method is proposed to effectively simulate initial residual stresses present at component interfaces post-manufacturing. Furthermore, a temperature-dependent constitutive model based on the Ramberg–Osgood framework is developed and validated against experimental data obtained at varying temperatures. The simulation distinctly identifies the competing effects of material softening and contact stress variations induced by temperature changes, providing critical insights into their contributions to overall cable bending behavior. The outcomes offer valuable guidelines for engineers in the practical design and optimization of submarine power cables. All relevant computational codes developed in this study are publicly accessible athttps://pan-fang.github.io/Codes/.