Time–Frequency Analysis of Nonlinear Dynamics of an Aquaculture Cage Array in Waves

The nonlinear dynamic response of an aquaculture cage array caused by wave-frequency and low-frequency excitations coupled with the nonlinearity of the mooring and the netting system is a complicated problem. So far, this problem still has not been completely understood. To address this issue, we consider the nonlinear interaction of an extreme wave with an aquaculture cage array containing 16 net cages in a 2 × 8 configuration. This paper aims to provide insight into understanding the nonlinear dynamics of an aquaculture cage array via time–frequency analysis. Time-domain analysis shows that the cage array exhibits weak nonlinearity in the surge and heave motions. On the contrary, there is strong nonlinearity in the sway motion under 45° and 90° wave attacks. Aside from this, the frequency-domain analysis indicates that nonlinearities exist in all three of these different responses (surge/sway/heave). Particularly, the low-frequency component has a predominant effect on the nonlinearity of the sway motion under 45° and 90° wave attacks. With this understanding, future aquaculture fish farms that contain multiple cages (i.e., cage array) can be potentially designed to withstand severe conditions in the open ocean.