Carmen Gasparotti

This paper presents a structured narrative review of the impact of climate change on offshore renewable energy (ORE) infrastructure, focusing on the interaction between climatic stress factors and structural reliability. Following a structured literature search, numerous scientific studies were selected and analyzed based on predefined inclusion criteria related to climatic loads; the results included in various studies were analyzed in relation to probabilistic assessment methods and offshore structural performance. This study tracks technological evolution from the first offshore wind farms to modern hybrid systems that combine wind, solar, and energy storage. The results highlight the central role of probabilistic methods in assessing structural safety under extreme weather conditions, showing that traditional deterministic approaches must be complemented with advanced statistical models for risk estimation. The review also highlights the contribution of offshore renewable energy to global energy security by diversifying sources and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. By integrating technological advances with rigorous reliability analyses, this study provides clear directions for designing sustainable, resilient, and climate-adapted offshore infrastructure.

The rapid expansion of aquaculture has led to a substantial increase in the generation of organic waste, nutrient-rich effluents, and residual biomass, creating significant environmental challenges while simultaneously providing opportunities for resource recovery within the circular bioeconomy. Environmental biotechnology offers a broad range of solutions for transforming these waste streams into valuable products, including renewable energy, fertilisers, biochar, microbial biomass, and other bio-based resources. However, the practical implementation of these technologies in floating aquaculture systems remains fragmented due to the lack of integrated engineering approaches. This review critically analyses the current state-of-the-art in environmental biotechnology pathways for aquaculture waste valorisation, covering biological, physicochemical, and thermochemical technologies applicable to floating production systems. The assessment covers anaerobic digestion, composting, insect bioconversion, microalgae cultivation, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, nutrient recovery, hydrothermal carbonisation, and pyrolysis, together with their technological maturity, offshore applicability, and contribution to circular resource recovery. Beyond reviewing existing technologies, this paper proposes the “Circular Floating Aquaculture Systems Engineering Integration Framework” (CFAS-EIF), a systems engineering concept that integrates floating production infrastructure, waste collection, resource recovery technologies, digital management, and circular value chains into a unified architecture. The framework illustrates how environmental biotechnology can be implemented through coordinated engineering integration, enabling the transition from waste management to resource valorisation in offshore aquaculture. The proposed framework provides researchers, engineers, and industry stakeholders with a comprehensive reference for designing next-generation aquaculture platforms that support sustainable resource management, climate change mitigation, and a circular bioeconomy.

This paper examines the current state of Romanian seaports from the perspective of their transformation into smart ports, using the SWOT model to identify the most suitable strategies. It highlights the strengths and weaknesses of existing infrastructure, as well as the opportunities and risks, to outline coherent and sustainable courses of action for future development. A SWOT analysis was conducted based on information collected from a questionnaire sent to members of the maritime port authority, directors, and staff from various departments of the analyzed ports, as well as direct interviews with experts from the three ports. This analysis served as the foundation for developing strategies aimed at accelerating digitization, improving operational efficiency, and reducing environmental impact. The identified strategies were subsequently ranked using the AHP method. The weights assigned to the ten strategies emphasize the relative importance and systemic influence of each one on the process of ports transforming into smart entities. This study makes a significant contribution to the emerging literature on the transformation of Romanian seaports into “smart ports” by approaching this process through the lens of sustainable port development.

The paper highlights four of the most relevant strategies that are useful for the development of a shipyard in Romania, in the context of the current conflict in the Black Sea area and the energy crisis. The analysis is based on the use of two useful tools in strategic planning, SWOT and AHP, which have allowed the identification of environmental factors and, respectively, the determination of the global priorities of these strategies in relation to the established criteria, to rank them. The results obtained have shown that the most two relevant strategies are the strategy regarding the implementation of aggressive campaigns focused on market segments with low competition, which combines the strengths of the shipyard with the opportunities of the environment in which it operates and the strategy regarding the adaptation of the modernization of military ships to the conflict requirements in the Black Sea, which combines the strengths with the threats from the external environment. The other two ranked strategies have been the strategy regarding the relaunch of closed capacities towards repair activities for other types of ships, defined by combining the shipyard's weaknesses with environmental opportunities, and the strategy regarding the renegotiation of contracts and reduction of consumption to mitigate the impact of high costs and the energy crisis, which combines the weaknesses with threats from the external environment.

This paper presents the local structural analysis of a steel foundation supporting the pumps of a potable water system installed on a 30,000 DWT Handymax bulk carrier. The aim is to evaluate the structural behaviour of the foundation under static and dynamic loads representative for shipboard service and to propose simple constructive improvements that enhance stiffness and vibration performance. The potable water system is briefly described, including design requirements, sizing of the pumps, hydrophore unit and heat exchanger. The support structure is modelled in 3D CAD and analysed using the finite element method in ANSYS Mechanical, considering the mass of the pump unit and excitation frequencies up to 60 Hz. Three foundation variants are investigated: the initial design, a stiffened version obtained by adding local reinforcements and an alternative closed-section frame using rectangular hollow profiles. For each model, deformations and equivalent von Mises stresses are evaluated and compared with the yield limit of steel S235JR and with serviceability criteria from Eurocode 3. The results show that the optimized foundation with rectangular hollow sections significantly reduces maximum deformations and improves dynamic behaviour, without exceeding allowable stress levels. Recommendations for monitoring, maintenance and vibration isolation using spring-type anti-vibration mounts are also formulated.

This paper aims to present how the risk assessment is conducted and to explore the main risks that could potentially disrupt the production flow of piping spool fabrication. From a management perspective, risk assessment may act as a foundation for a successful project. However, if it is not solid, consequences appear. For complex projects, such as HVDC topside, the operational team must be aware of the effects of risks that occur, and before any measures are implemented, the team must be capable of anticipating them. As a starting point, through a brainstorming session, it was assessed using a qualitative analysis of the risks, the probability of occurrence, and the impact they could produce. The process is associated with a variety of risks, from small ones (for instance, human errors that can be corrected) to larger ones (quality defects, contaminated materials, timeline constraints, non-compliance with standards, and safety risks). The paper also includes strategies of mitigation and associated actions. Moreover, in this paper are included methods proposed for further in-depth analisys.

The anchoring installation is one of the most important deck systems, ensuring the safe temporary positioning of a ship in roads, coastal areas or inland waters. Although its configuration may differ from one vessel to another, the design and testing procedures are strongly standardised by the rules of classification societies. This paper presents an overview of the construction and operation of ship anchoring systems and describes the main requirements for testing anchor windlasses, chain stoppers, anchors and associated equipment. The methodology includes factory acceptance tests of the windlass, verification of the electrical drive according to IEC 60034-1, on-board commissioning and sea trial procedures. Particular attention is paid to the performance criteria requested by class rules, such as continuous pulling capacity, short-time overload, hoisting speed, braking capacity and structural integrity of the chain stopper. A practical example of testing a multi-purpose anchor-mooring windlass built by a Romanian manufacturer is discussed, highlighting the measurement of torque, temperatures, rotational speeds and brake performance. The paper underlines the role of proper planning, documentation and coordination between shipyard, equipment manufacturer, Owner and Classification Society to achieve a safe and reliable anchoring installation.

This article explains the advantages of Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading vessels, recent trends in mooring systems, hull construction, safety, and operational aspects. These types of vessels are vital to the modern offshore oil and gas industry. These specialized ships are designed to process and store hydrocarbons from offshore oil fields and of fload them to shuttle tankers or pipelines. Their adaptability and mobility make them especially valuable in deepwater and remote locations. These vessels, converted or specifically built for oil production, represent a significant evolution in the offshore extractive industry, offering a set of operational, economic, and strategic advantages that have positioned them as preferred options in numerous projects around the world.

The design of ships has changed dramatically since the 1970s. We have shifted from manual drafting to digital tools and computers, mostly because computer technology has greatly improved. Nowadays, with the growth of smart digitalization in Industry 4.0, using modern digital software and tools makes ship design more efficient and enhances its quality throughout a ship's entire lifespan. However, this shift has also made operations more complex and requires users of the software to have more specialized training. Today, technologies like automated optimization, simulation-based design, managing the entire product lifecycle, digital twins, and artificial intelligence are commonly used in the shipping industry. These technologies are applied during both the design and construction phases, as well as in preparing and inspecting ships. This paper reviews major advances in these areas and discusses how the industry can address current and future challenges.

Climate change is one of the major challenges of the 21st century for the off shore oil industry, generating fundamental changes in operating conditions and requiring complex technological adaptations. This paper investigates the vulnerability of offshore oil infrastructures to the effects of climate change, analysing the impact of temperature increases, sea level changes and the intensification of extreme weather events on offshore platforms. By analysing the specialized literature and evaluating the data, the study identifies the main risks to which these infrastructures are exposed and proposes integrated optimization and adaptation strategies. The results highlight the need to implement advanced structural monitoring technologies, develop multi-criteria optimization methods and integrate renewable energy solutions to increase the resilience of offshore platforms. The analysis shows that infrastructure in Arctic regions is exposed to risks caused by permafrost instability, and many major European terminals are vulnerable to sea level rise. Our paper proposes a unified conceptual model that integrates structural optimization technologies, continuous monitoring solutions, and modern risk management approaches to maintain the safety and sustainability of offshore operations under conditions of intensifying climate change.