Lund, JorridJorridLundSapp, LinaLinaSappKubiczek, Jan ManuelJan ManuelKubiczekBöhm, AngeloAngeloBöhmvon Bock und Polach, Rüdiger Ulrich FranzRüdiger Ulrich Franzvon Bock und Polach2025-07-102025-07-102025-10-15Marine structures 1 (15): 103879 (2025)https://hdl.handle.net/11420/56139A methodology to better estimate the loads of ice acting on the propeller of a ship is developed. Based on measurements conducted in the North Pole region, an existing failure model for ice based on the Mohr–Coulomb nodal split approach is modified to better represent the lower strength of polar ice compared to laboratory ice. The modified material model for the sea ice is used to compute the propeller torque and a load spectrum for the propeller-ice interaction of the research ship S.A. Agulhas II. To this end, a floe-ice breaking simulation is used to estimate the size and shape of the ice cusps hitting the propeller of this ship. In the next step, a set of finite element simulations of the propeller-ice interaction utilizing the modified Mohr–Coulomb nodal split model is conducted. Based on this, the load spectrum is computed and compared with the measured torque on the propeller shaft of the S.A. Agulhas II. The successful reproduction shows the applicability of the approach to better estimate the loads exerted by the ice on the propeller.en0951-83392025115Elsevierhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Propeller-ice interactionComputational mechanicsMohr-Columb nodal splitFloe-ice breakingMechanical properties of polar iceIce-load spectrumShips in iceTechnology::623: Military Engineering and Marine EngineeringTechnology::624: Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering::624.1: Structural EngineeringTechnology::620: Engineering::620.1: Engineering Mechanics and Materials Science::620.11: Engineering MaterialsJournal Articlehttps://doi.org/10.15480/882.1536510.1016/j.marstruc.2025.10387910.15480/882.15365Journal Article