Rapid High Impact Test Apparatus (RHITA)

The Challenge

In ice-prone offshore environments, pipelines, flexible flowlines, and subsea electrical cables laid on the seabed may be subject to contact from drifting ice keels. Traditional engineering assumptions treated ice contact as an immediate failure condition; however, modern design approaches model the full interaction – accounting for push/pull forces, local strain, and end-tension – until either the ice breaks or the line embeds into the seabed.

While advanced simulation tools exist to model this interaction, physical validation is required to ensure that critical parameters – such as ice and soil strength – are accurately captured. Without this validation, design assumptions remain conservative and may not reflect the true resilience of the system.

Our Solution

To address this gap, C-CORE developed the Rapid High Impact Test Apparatus (RHITA) – a large-scale, purpose-built experimental system for conducting high-force impact testing between solid ice samples and infrastructure components such as pipelines and cables.

Key features of RHITA include:

  • Self-reacting, rigid steel frame, capable of delivering up to 2 MN horizontal and 4 MN vertical force
  • Horizontal test velocities up to 0.5 m/s, simulating realistic impact conditions
  • Fully instrumented with high-capacity load cells for accurate force and velocity measurements

RHITA’s modular design accommodates a variety of impactor geometries through interchangeable adapter plates, including:

  • Rigid and flexible pipeline sections
  • AC/DC subsea cables
  • Hull panels representing ship structures

Loads are applied via a high-strength indenter beam with precisely machined shear keys and bolted connections, ensuring repeatable and reliable load transfer. The reaction end is mechanically isolated from the test carriage and support track to eliminate frictional interference in data collection.

This unique testing capability allows engineers to validate simulation models, optimize subsea infrastructure design, and improve understanding of ice-structure interactions. RHITA has become a critical tool for advancing Arctic engineering, supporting safer, more resilient infrastructure in high-risk offshore environments.