Numerical Study of a Single-Point Mooring Gravity Fish Cage With Different Deformation-Suppression Methods

Compared with the multipoint mooring fish cage, the single-point mooring (SPM) fish cage can spread out the fish wastes and uneaten feeds in a larger area, and it can also prevent the local environment from being overwhelmed. Thus, it has attracted much attention recently. In this research, different deformation-suppression methods are applied to the SPM system with a typical Norwegian fish cage aiming to increase the cultivation volume under the action of current and/or wave loads. A well-validated software, fhsim, is used to conduct the full-scale numerical study. The effects of the three deformation-suppression methods, i.e., (i) adding the lower bridles, (ii) adding the frontal rigid frame and (iii) adding the trawl doors, are analyzed under pure current and combined wave–current conditions. The results indicate that all the three deformation-suppression methods can improve the cultivation volume at least by 32% compared to the original SPM fish cage when the current velocity is larger than 0.5 m/s. In addition, moving the conjunction point close to the bottom ring can bring a positive effect on the cultivation volume maintaining with an only small increment in the tension force. This study can provide practical advice and useful guides for the SPM fish cage design.