Industrial construction in an underwater environment
Underwater construction is industrial construction in an underwater environment. It is a part of the marine construction industry.[1] It can involve the use of a variety of building materials, mainly concrete and steel. There is often, but not necessarily, a significant component of commercial diving involved.[2][3] Some underwater work can be done by divers, but they are limited by depth and site conditions, and it is hazardous work, with expensive risk reduction and mitigation, and a limited range of suitable equipment. Remotely operated underwater vehicles are an alternative for some classes of work, but are also limited and expensive. When reasonably practicable, the bulk of the work is done out of the water, with underwater work restricted to installation, modification and repair, and inspection.
Scope and applications
Underwater construction is common in the civil engineering, coastal engineering, energy, and petroleum extraction industries.
Civil engineering
Construction below the water table is mostly managed by using cofferdams or pressurised caissons to exclude water sufficiently to work above the local water level within the enclosure, though it may also be possible to keep the water level down by pumping it out as fast as it seeps in, thereby artificially lowering the water table at the worksite.
Dams, reservoirs, canals, locks
Bridges and causeways over bodies of water often require foundation structure below water level. Usually this is done using coffer dams and caissons, which themselves may involve underwater work.
Coastal engineering
Wave attack on Ilfracombe's sea walls during a storm.
Coastal engineering is a branch of civil engineering concerned with the specific demands posed by constructing at or near the coast, as well as the development of the coast itself.
Harbours, docks, breakwaters, jetties, piers, wharfs and similar structures are all immediately adjacent to, or project into coastal waters, and are supported in part by seabed.
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage systems, pipelines, structural components of buildings, and railways.[4][5]
Coastal engineering is the branch of civil engineering concerned with construction at or near the coast, and the development of the coast itself.
Structural engineering is a sub-discipline of civil engineering relating to the form and shape of structures, and the stability, strength, rigidity and response to external loads of built structures.
Underwater rock blasting, or dredging of softer sediments, to clear an area of a navigational hazard, to excavate a canal or basin, or to prepare for foundations.
Piling, including piles driven to serve directly as the support member, and sheet piles, which may be used as formwork for cast concrete, or for constructing cofferdams, to allow the enclosed area to be dewatered.
Caissons and cofferdams may be used to allow unimmersed work below the surface level of the water. In closed caissons the internal pressure may be raised to keep water out. Occupants need to use an airlock for access, and may require decompression stops when exiting.
Underwater demolition, for removal of damaged structure in repair work, or to prepare an area for new construction.
Underwater inspection of underwater structures, installations, and sites is a common diving activity, applicable to planning, installation, and maintenance phases, but the required skills are often specific to the application. Much use is made of video and still photographic evidence, and live video to allow direction of the inspection work by the supervisor and topside specialists. Inspections may also involve surface preparation, often by cleaning, and non-destructive testing. Tactile inspection may be appropriate where visibility is poor. Inspection can also be done using remotely controlled underwater vehicles.[8][9][10]
Commercial diving, is used when necessary or when it is an economical alternative, when work must be done by a human operator at an underwater worksite.
Hyperbaric work may be appropriate in a pressurised caisson.
Hyperbaric welding, when necessary in new construction, may be done in a dry habitat designed to provide a dry enclosure at ambient pressure around the area to be welded.
The most commonly used materials in marine construction are concrete and steel.[11]
Occupational safety and health issues
Underwater work by divers on construction sites is generally within the scope of Diving regulations.[12][13] The work may also come within the scope of other occupational heath and safety related regulations.
^"History and Heritage of Civil Engineering". ASCE. Archived from the original on 16 February 2007. Retrieved 8 August 2007.
^ abLarn, Richard; Whistler, Rex (1993). "17 - Underwater concreting". Commercial Diving Manual (3rd ed.). Newton Abbott, UK: David and Charles. pp. 297–308. ISBN 0-7153-0100-4.
^Gerwick, Ben C. Jr (2007). Construction of Marine and Offshore Structures (third ed.). Taylor and Francis. ISBN 978-0-8493-3052-0.
^Bayliss, Mel; Short, David; Bax, Mary (17 March 1988). Underwater Inspection. Taylor and Francis. p. 229. ISBN 9780419135401.
^Kelly, Shawn W. (March 1999). Underwater Inspection Criteria. Port Hueneme, California: Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center.
^Stannard, Liam (6 January 2021). "5 Amazing Underwater Structures: How Underwater Construction Works". www.bigrentz.com.
^"Diving Regulations 2009". Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 – Regulations and Notices – Government Notice R41. Pretoria: Government Printer. Archived from the original on 2016-11-04. Retrieved 3 November 2016 – via Southern African Legal Information Institute.
^Staff (1977). "The Diving at Work Regulations 1997". Statutory Instruments 1997 No. 2776 Health and Safety. Kew, Richmond, Surrey: Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO). Retrieved 6 November 2016.
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