Numerical Calculation of The Ice-Breaking Resistance of the Icebreaker

This study investigates the governing characteristics of ice resistance encountered by icebreakers operating in multi-year ice regions, with particular emphasis on the effects of bow truncation length, vessel speed, and ice thickness. A numerical simulation framework was developed using the finite element platform LS-PrePost to reproduce ice bending, failure, and ship–ice interaction throughout the icebreaking process. The numerical predictions were subsequently validated against physical model test data. The results indicate that ice resistance exhibits an increasing trend as the bow truncation length, navigation speed, and ice thickness increase. The ice resistance of different bow truncation lengths in the multi-year ice area is different. By truncating the model ship at different positions from the bow and analyzing the ratio of the ice resistance of the truncated models to that of the full-scale model, researchers can better understand the effects of bow size. This can provide a theoretical basis for conducting ice resistance tests with truncated model ships in a limited-scale ice water tank, and has certain practical value for the design and optimization of the icebreaker’s hull lines.