Ship-bank interaction: a critical perspective review and future prospective

The increasing volume of global maritime traffic requires the safe navigation of large vessels through restricted waterways, where ship-bank interactions can increase the risks of grounding, collision, and channel blockage. This review critically evaluates experimental, numerical, and simulation-based studies of ship-bank hydrodynamic interactions. The analysis shows that CFD generally provides more accurate predictions of surge and sway forces by capturing viscous and free-surface effects, particularly in shallow water, although considerable uncertainty remains in predicting yaw moments near banks under extremely shallow-water conditions. Potential-flow methods enable rapid parametric assessments but may underpredict lateral forces because of their inviscid formulation. Major research gaps include limited experimental uncertainty quantification, insufficient investigation of multi-degree-of-freedom drift motions, and conflicting surge-force trends associated with hull-specific flow dynamics. Future research should prioritize hybrid experimental-numerical frameworks, scale-effect quantification, and validated multi-DOF mathematical models incorporating external disturbances to enhance navigational safety.Highlights Review ship-bank interaction experimental and numerical studies.Comparative analysis of studies based on previous approaches.Displaying the differences across various conducted studies.Highlight the scientific issues that require more concern in future work.