Abstract
Abstract. Spar-type platforms for floating offshore wind turbines are considered suitable for commercial wind farm deployment. To reduce the hurdles of such floating systems becoming competitive, in situ aero-hydro-servo-elastic simulations are applied to support conceptual design optimization by including transient and non-linear loads. For reasons of flexibility, the utilized optimization framework and problem are modularly structured so that the setup can be applied to both an initial conceptual design study for bringing innovative floater configurations to light and a subsequent optimization for obtaining detailed designs. In this paper, a spar floater for a 5 MW wind turbine is used as the basis. The approach for generating an initial but very innovative conceptual floater design comprises the segmentation of the floating cylinder into three parts, the specification of a freer optimization formulation with fewer restrictions on the floater geometry, and the allowance for alternative ballast materials. The optimization of the support structure focuses primarily on cost reduction, expressed in terms of the objective to minimize the floater structural material. The optimization results demonstrate significant potential for cost savings when alternative structural and manufacturing strategies are considered.
Highlights
With floating support structures for offshore wind turbines, more offshore wind resources can be captured and used for power generation, as around 60 % to 80 % of the ocean areas cannot be exploited with bottom-fixed structures, which are limited to water depths of up to around 50 m (European Wind Energy Association, 2013)
The technology readiness level of floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) systems has significantly increased, so that “floating offshore wind is coming of age”, as WindEurope states in its floating offshore wind vision statement (WindEurope, 2017, p. 4)
An automated optimization approach is applied to a spar-type FOWT system to develop a conceptual innovative floating platform design, which is optimized with respect to the change in hydrodynamics and their impact on the main system performance, while structural, manufacturability, or other constraints are not considered, whereas other advancements are facilitated
Summary
With floating support structures for offshore wind turbines, more offshore wind resources can be captured and used for power generation, as around 60 % to 80 % of the ocean areas cannot be exploited with bottom-fixed structures, which are limited to water depths of up to around 50 m (European Wind Energy Association, 2013). Floating offshore wind technology is no longer in its infancy. More than 40 floating foundation concepts exist and are under development, of which only a few are already used in pilot floating wind farms (Quest Floating Wind Energy, 2020; Future Power Technology, 2019; James and Ros, 2015; Mast et al, 2015). For further speeding up of the market uptake of floating offshore wind farms, significant cost reductions are still required
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
