We are pleased to welcome Mr William Ho to our team for his PhD study of Analysis of dynamic behaviour of offshore anchors for floating structures.  

This research will focus on the advanced constitutive behaviour of offshore clays combined with three-dimensional geotechnical finite element method simulation to consider the long-term behaviour of anchors and moorings.  The impacts of cyclic accumulation will be assessed due to water and wind loads transferred from the structure to the anchoring system.   As the resulting accumulation of shear strains and pore water pressure can impact the shear strength of the soil and the stiffness, the performance of anchoring systems under various storm loading conditions will be central to the project.  Consequently, the research aims to discover the underlying mechanical soil characteristics and processes controlling the bearing capacity of offshore anchor systems.

William attained his Bachelor of Science from University of Hong Kong before moving to Tasmania, where he completed his master’s degree in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Tasmania. As part of William’s Masters thesis, he investigated the cyclic behaviour of marine soils under for the simulation of helical anchor pull-out capacities. William’s PhD research focuses on numerical geotechnical modelling of offshore anchoring applications, understanding of seabed soil behaviour, and the optimisation of coupled soil-fluid-structural systems. William is the recipient of the 2022 Australian Geomechanics Society Tasmania Chapter’s AGS Prize in Geotechnical Engineering, University of Tasmania (TAS).