Study on the Effectiveness Evaluation of Cross-Flooding Hatches in Damage Stability Design of Large Passenger Vessels

With the implementation of the new SOLAS 2020 damage stability requirements, multiple strategies are being actively investigated to enhance the damage stability performance of large passenger vessels. Among these, cross-flooding devices such as pipes and ducts are commonly employed [1, 2]. This study focuses on evaluating the effectiveness of cross-flooding hatches and proposes a methodology for performance assessment, addressing the current lack of explicit regulatory guidance concerning this specific type of device. Conventional pipe-based formulations from IMO are utilized to estimate the cross-flooding time associated with hatches installed on a 150,000 GT cruise vessel. In parallel, a time-domain simulation using computational fluid dynamics is conducted to model the flooding process from initiation to equilibrium. The results demonstrate that while theoretical pipe equations offer conservative estimates useful for preliminary design, time-domain simulations capture the actual dynamic response more accurately, predicting a reduced time to reach equilibrium. These findings highlight the need for further investigation and methodological refinement regarding cross-flooding hatch calculations, particularly in light of the absence of detailed regulatory frameworks.