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The design of mooring line parameter for a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) should consider the ultimate limit state. Typhoons should be considered as a threatening condition for mooring design, and the characteristics of transient changing wind should be studied. Currently, few extreme value predictions consider gust features, and extreme mooring tensions may be underestimated in practical FOWT design. We conducted the simulations of the 5 MW wind turbine from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the environmental conditions of extreme gusts, waves, and currents. Extreme gusts were found to cause dramatic increases in mooring tensions under 100-year typhoon conditions. The average conditional exceedance rate (ACER) method is used to predict extreme mooring tensions. The impacts of simulation duration and sample size on the prediction results are then discussed. The results show that in extreme gust conditions, the tail data of the average conditional exceedance rate of mooring tension presents a different extrapolation trend from stable wind conditions. Short-term predicted values in gust conditions are 14-20% larger than those in stable wind conditions. The research shows the necessity of considering threatening gust conditions in the ultimate limit state design of mooring system of FOWT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a comprehensive numerical analysis of a full‐scale horizontal‐axis floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) rotor subjected to harmonic surging motions under both laminar and turbulent inflow conditions. Utilizing high‐fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, namely, large eddy simulation (LES) with actuator line model (ALM), this research investigates the rotor performance, wake characteristics, and wake structures of a surging FOWT in detail. The study delves into the influence of varying inflow turbulence intensities, surging settings, and their interplay on the aerodynamic performance and the wake aerodynamics of a FOWT rotor. The results show that, through employing the phase‐averaging technique, surge‐induced periodic coherent structures (SIPeCS) can be identified in the wake of all the surging cases studied, irrespective of the inflow conditions and the surging settings. Additionally, the findings show that the faster wake recovery observed in the surging cases is not caused by enhancing the instability‐induced turbulence level, a previously accepted hypothesis. Instead, the results indicate that it is due to the enhanced advection process resulting from the induction fields of SIPeCS that causes the wake to recover faster. The analysis of rotor performance shows that the time‐averaged rotor performances are affected by the intricate aerodynamics arising from the surging motions. With certain surging settings, the time‐averaged thrust and the time‐averaged power of a surging rotor are found to be simultaneously lower and higher compared with those of a fixed rotor. Furthermore, the study underscores the importance of considering both the magnitude of surging and the rate of surging simultaneously to fully characterize the hysteresis load on a surging rotor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shallow-water mooring chains of floating offshore wind turbines pose challenges such as nonlinear tension characteristics, high cost and prominent fatigue issues, which seriously hinder the large-scale use of floating wind power. Based on the hydrological and meteorological data of an offshore wind farm in the South China Sea, a sensitivity analysis of the mooring chain fatigue of a semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine in shallow water was conducted with different environmental loads and mooring chain design parameters. It was found that mooring fatigue is mainly caused by the wave condition within diagonal distribution of the wave dispersion diagram. The mooring chain fatigue calculated using the main monochromatic wave was more conservative than that calculated using the wave scatter diagram with a difference of about 28%. The mooring fatigue calculated using turbulent wind spectrum was greater than that calculated using steady wind. In contrast, waves are the main source of mooring fatigue, and the second-order wave force has an undeniable impact on the mooring fatigue of a semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine, which accounts for approximately 26% of wave-induced mooring fatigue. In addition, the current-induced mooring fatigue should not be neglected, although its effect is not as large as that caused by the wave or wind loads. An increase in the cross-sectional diameter and the length of a mooring chain, as well as a reasonable clump weight arranged, all contribute to improving the fatigue life of mooring chains in shallow water, which provide useful technical references for the optimization of mooring lines fatigue in shallow-water areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global pursuit of renewable energy has significantly accelerated offshore wind energy development. Floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) are increasingly in the spotlight as they offer superior capabilities for harnessing abundant wind resources in deep-water areas, outperforming traditional fixed-bottom turbines. The deployment and station-keeping of these floating structures are critically dependent on robust mooring systems and the precise selection of anchoring solutions. This paper provides an overview of various anchors, including driven and suction caissons, torpedo, and drag anchors, and their applications in real-world projects. These commonly used anchors were discussed in relation to mooring types, soil conditions, and expected bearing capacities. Torpedo anchor installation failures have been reported in cases where excessive tilt angles occur during deployment. This motivates us to present an in-depth study on the importance of directional stability during installation of torpedo anchors. The study will utilize computational fluid dynamics Star-CCM+ 2402 to analyze and assess the impact of the center of gravity configuration on stabilization. Additionally, theoretical formulas will be used to estimate the holding capacity that the torpedo anchor can provide. These insights are designed to assist wind energy developers in making informed and effective anchoring decisions for floating wind turbine projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This study presents a comprehensive numerical analysis of a full‐scale horizontal‐axis floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) rotor subjected to harmonic surging motions under both laminar and turbulent inflow conditions. Utilizing high‐fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, namely, large eddy simulation (LES) with actuator line model (ALM), this research investigates the rotor performance, wake characteristics, and wake structures of a surging FOWT in detail. The study delves into the influence of varying inflow turbulence intensities, surging settings, and their interplay on the aerodynamic performance and the wake aerodynamics of a FOWT rotor. The results show that, through employing the phase‐averaging technique, surge‐induced periodic coherent structures (SIPeCS) can be identified in the wake of all the surging cases studied, irrespective of the inflow conditions and the surging settings. Additionally, the findings show that the faster wake recovery observed in the surging cases is not caused by enhancing the instability‐induced turbulence level, a previously accepted hypothesis. Instead, the results indicate that it is due to the enhanced advection process resulting from the induction fields of SIPeCS that causes the wake to recover faster. The analysis of rotor performance shows that the time‐averaged rotor performances are affected by the intricate aerodynamics arising from the surging motions. With certain surging settings, the time‐averaged thrust and the time‐averaged power of a surging rotor are found to be simultaneously lower and higher compared with those of a fixed rotor. Furthermore, the study underscores the importance of considering both the magnitude of surging and the rate of surging simultaneously to fully characterize the hysteresis load on a surging rotor.

ObjectivesA new Spar-type floating wind turbine platform design scheme is proposed for a 15 MW floating wind turbine, and its performance is analyzed. MethodsBased on potential flow theory, the frequency domain hydrodynamic calculation of the platform is carried out and the wave loads and motion response characteristics of the platform under different wave directions are analyzed. The blade element momentum method is applied to calculate the aerodynamic load of the impeller and make it equivalent to the wind coefficient in order to calculate the time-domain response of the platform under the combined effect of wind, waves and currents under different working conditions, while also analyzing the force situation of the mooring lines. ResultsThe results show that the heave, roll, and pitch of the platform have peak points at the natural frequency of its motion, and the positions of occurrence are all far from the main energy region of the waves. Under the action of wind, waves and currents, compared to the working conditions, the maximum pitch angle of the platform under extreme conditions is smaller, but the amplitude of maximum surge, heave and mooring tension are greater than the working conditions. ConclusionsThe newly designed Spar-type floating wind turbine platform has good stability and hydrodynamic performance. Under the designed environmental loads, its response and mooring force can meet the requirements of the specifications, ensuring the safety and stability of the wind turbine.

The comprehensive numerical simulation of the tower shadow effect on floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs), an area less explored compared to fixed-bottom wind turbines, is presented in this study. The atmospheric boundary layer inflow and the joint north sea wave project random wave are used as the operating conditions for FOWT. The combination of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software simulator for wind farm applications and turbine simulation tool OpenFAST is used to implement fluid-structure interaction calculations. The output power, platform motion, wake velocity deficit and vortex structures are analyzed to reveal the influence of the tower shadow effect on the FOWT. The results indicate that due to the fluctuation caused by the turbulent wind and the floating platform motion, the tower shadow effect of FOWT is less significant for its periodic power decay than that of fixed-bottom wind turbines. And according to the velocity deficit analysis, the influence area of the tower shadow effect on the wake is mainly in the near wake region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increased scale and deployment of floating wind turbines in deep sea environments, jack-up installation vessels are unable to conduct maintenance operations due to limitations in water depth. This has led to the recognition of the advantages of floating cranes in offshore maintenance activities. However, the dynamic coupling between the crane and the floating wind turbine under wave and wind action can result in complex responses, which also relate to complex mooring configurations. The ability to maintain stability during maintenance operations has become a primary concern. In order to address this issue, a method of connecting a floating crane with a floating wind turbine is proposed, simulating the berthing of a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) to a crane. Thus, a systematic comparison was conducted with frequency- and time-domain simulation using ANSYS-AQWA software. The simulation results demonstrated the feasibility and dynamic efficiency of this novel berthing approach. Connecting the crane vessel to a floating wind turbine significantly reduced the crane tip movement. Simulations showed that the crane tip movement in the X-, Y-, and Z-directions was reduced by over 30%, which implies that it may be feasible to conduct offshore on-site maintenance operations for the FOWT by using floating crane vessels if the two bodies were properly constrained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) normally suffers from complex external load conditions. It is vital to accurately estimate these loads and the subsequent structural motion and deformation responses for the safety design of the FOWT throughout its service lifetime. To this end, a coupled computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite element analysis (FEA) approach is proposed, which is named the CFD–FEA coupled approach. For the CFD approach, the volume of fluid (VOF), the dynamic fluid–body interaction (DFBI), and overset with sliding meshes are used to capture the interface of the air and the water and to calculate wind/wave loads and the motion response of the FOWT. For the FEA approach, the explicit nonlinear dynamic finite element method is employed to evaluate structural deformation. The one-way coupling scheme is used to transfer the data from the CFD approach to the FEA approach. Using the NREL 5 MW FOWT with a catenary mooring system as the research object, a series of full-scale simulations with various wind speeds, wave heights, and wave directions are implemented. The simulation results provide a good insight into the effect of aero-hydrodynamics and fluid hydrodynamics loads on both the motion and deformation responses of the FOWT, which would contribute to improving its design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) experience unbalanced loads and platform motion due to the coupling of variable wind and wave loads, which leads to output power fluctuation and increased fatigue loads. This paper introduces a new blade pitch control strategy for FOWTs that combines fuzzy logic with a linear quadratic regulator (LQR) and a proportional-integral (PI) controller. The fuzzy PI controller dynamically adjusts the PI control gains to regulate rotor speed and stabilize output power. Fuzzy LQR is employed for individual pitch control, utilizing fuzzy logic to adaptively update feedback gains to achieve stable power output, suppress platform motion, and reduce fatigue load. Co-simulations conducted with OpenFAST (Fatigue, Aerodynamics, Structures, and Turbulence) and MATLAB/Simulink under diverse conditions demonstrate the superiority of the proposed method over traditional PI control. The results show significant reductions in platform pitch, roll, and heave motion by 17%, 27%, and 48%, respectively; blade out-of-plane, pitch, and flapwise bending moments are reduced by 38%, 44%, and 36%; and the tower base roll and pitch bending moments are reduced by up to 29% and 22%, respectively. The proposed control scheme exhibits exceptional environmental adaptability, enhancing FOWT's power regulation, platform stability, and reliability in complex marine environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, ultra-large-scale offshore wind turbines have attracted widespread attention. However, accurately evaluating the motion responses of offshore wind turbines under extreme conditions, especially for semisubmersible floating off-shore wind turbines, is often challenging. In order to assess the operational behavior of wind turbines under wind and wave loads, this paper adopted a numerical analysis method to solve the motion responses under extreme conditions. It specifically examines the motion responses of the IEA 15 MW wind turbine in terms of surge, heave, and pitch direction, focusing on environmental loads that occur once every 50 years. The results show that the wind turbine can still operate normally under the Ultimate condition. However, the average amplitude increased by 7% in the pitch direction and decreased by 4% in the heave direction compared to the rated condition. Under extreme conditions (occurring once every 50 years), with the wind turbine parked, the average amplitude in the surge direction reduced by 33%, while the average amplitude in the pitch direction reduced by 106%. Thus, it is essential to pitch the blades and brake the generator in extreme environmental conditions to ensure the safety of the wind turbine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the current status and future potential of the offshore wind sector. Offshore wind is pivotal in transitioning to a low-carbon society and meeting rising energy demands, despite being capital-intensive. The industry aims to develop larger-scale wind farms in deeper ocean locations, with projections indicating significant cost reductions. To explore deeper ocean areas, specialized foundations like floating platforms moored to the seabed are required. This study proposes helical piles anchored in the seabed as a method to secure mooring lines. Using Plaxis 3D, a parametric examination was conducted on helical piles with two plates: one fixed at the pile's toe and the other varying in position between 0.5 and 13 m from the seabed surface. Load inclination angles (0, 20, 40, and 60 degrees) were used to simulate mooring line loads. Results indicate the optimal Zh/Z ratios for maintaining load-bearing capacity and stability: 0.12 (10 mm movements), 0.22 (25 mm), and 0.26 (50 mm) for small shaft diameters; and 0.34 (10 mm), 0.38 (25 mm), and 0.46 (50 mm) for large shaft diameters. These findings highlight the importance of specific load inclination angles based on shaft diameter and allowable movement for effective performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) exhibit complex motion with multiple degrees of freedom due to the interaction of wind and waves. The aerodynamic performance and wake characteristics of these turbines are highly intricate and challenging to accurately capture. In this study, dynamic fluid body interaction (DFBI) and overset grid technology are employed to investigate the dynamic motion of a 5 MW FOWT. We use the volume of fluid (VOF) method and improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) model to investigate the aerodynamic performance and wake evolution mechanism for various wave periods and heights. According to the findings, the magnitude of the pitch motion increases with the period and height of the waves, leading to a decrease in both the power output and thrust; the maximum power was reduced by nearly 6.8% compared to a wind turbine without motion. The value of power and thrust reduction varies for different wave periods and heights, and is influenced by the relative speed and pitch angle, which play a crucial role. Wind–wave coupling has a significant impact on the evolution of both wake and vortex structures for FOWT. The wake shape downstream is also dynamically influenced by the waves. In the presence of wind and wave coupling, the interaction between the wind turbine and the wake is heightened, leading to the merger of two unstable vortex rings into a single, larger vortex ring. The research unveils a comprehensive picture of the offshore wind energy dynamics and wake field, which holds immense significance for the design of floating wind turbines and the optimization of wind farm layout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green hydrogen presents a sustainable and environmentally friendly solution for clean energy production and transportation. This study aims to identify the optimal profile of green hydrogen transportation risers originating from a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) integrated with a hydrogen production facility. Employing the Cummins equation, a fully coupled dynamic analysis for FOWT with a flexible riser was conducted, with the tower, mooring lines, and risers described using a lumped mass line model. Initially, motion response amplitude operators (RAOs) were compared with openly published results to validate the numerical model for the FOWT. Subsequently, a parametric study was conducted on the length of the buoyancy module section and the upper bare section of the riser by comparing the riser’s tension and bending moment. The results indicated that as the length of the buoyancy module increases, the maximum tension of the riser decreases, while it increases with the lengthening of the bare section. Furthermore, shorter buoyancy modules are expected to experience less fatigue damage, with the length of the bare section having a relatively minor impact on this phenomenon. Consequently, to ensure safety under extreme environmental conditions, both the upper bare section and the buoyancy module section should be relatively short.

As the number of offshore wind-power installations increases, collision accidents with vessels occur more frequently. This study investigates the risk of collision damage with operating vessels that may occur during the operation of an offshore wind turbine. The floater used in the collision study is a 15 MW UMaine VolturnUS-S (semi-submersible type), and the colliding ships are selected as multi-purpose vessels, service operation vessels, or anchor-handling tug ships based on their operational purpose. Collision analysis is performed using ABAQUS and substantiation is performed via a drop impact test. The collision analyses are conducted by varying the ship velocity, displacement, collision angle, and ship shape. By applying this numerical model, the extent of damage and deformation of the collision area is confirmed. The analysis results show that a vessel with a bulbous bow can cause flooding, depending on the collision conditions. For damage caused by collision, various collision angles must be considered based on the internal stiffener arrangement. Additionally, the floater can be flooded with relatively small collision energy when the colliding vessel has a bulbous bow.

Floating structures are subject to complex marine conditions. To ensure their safety, reliability analysis needs to be conducted during the design phase. However, because of the complexity of traditional full long-term analysis, the environmental contour method (ECM) based on the inverse reliability method, which can combine accuracy and efficiency, is extensively used. Due to the unique environment in the South China Sea, the probabilistic characteristics of three-dimensional (3D) environmental parameters of wind, wave and current are investigated. The ECs of the target sea are established via the ECM based on both the inverse first-order reliability method (IFORM) and inverse second-order reliability method (ISORM). It is found that the sea state forecasted by ISORM is more extreme and may lead to a more conservative design than IFORM. Furthermore, the wind–wave–current combination coefficient matrixes developed using the 3D ECs are proposed for the design of FOWTs in the South China Sea. The validity and practicality of the contours and matrixes are tested by using a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) as a numerical example. Then, the short-term response of the structure under the combined wind, wave and current conditions is calculated, providing a theoretical reference for the design of FOWTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper details the transformation of the velocity or position-tracking problem of a class of uncertain systems using finite time stability control for first-order uncertain systems. A new composite extended-state observer sliding mode (ESOSM) scheme is proposed, which includes an adaptive super-twisting-like ESO and an adaptive super-twisting controller. The adaptive super-twisting controller is implemented through a barrier function-based second-order sliding mode algorithm. To further reduce control chattering and improve control performance, the adaptive super-twisting-like ESO, which employs high-order terms in the super-twisting algorithm to accelerate convergence, is designed to observe the lumped uncertainty in real time. The advantages of the proposed scheme are verified by a numerical example and application with regard to floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) pitch control. Compared with proportional integral (PI) and adaptive super-twisting sliding mode (ASTSM) schemes, better results are obtained in velocity tracking and fatigue load suppression. For the FOWT pitch control application, the platform roll, pitch, and yaw are decreased by 3%, 2%, and 4%, respectively, compared to the PI scheme at an average turbulent wind speed of 17 m/s and turbulence intensity of 17.27%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study evaluates the feasibility of using a fully suspended inter-array cable system for an offshore wind farm. It includes both numerical simulations and a scaled-down experiment, conducted at a 1:49 scale, to validate the numerical results. To achieve the goal, a 15 MW floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) and a floating offshore substation (FOSS) are involved to simulate the wind farm array. This study incorporates the 50-year return period conditions of the Taiwan Hsinchu offshore area, which has a water depth of about 100 m, to validate the specifications related to the platform motion and mooring line tension. Additionally, an analysis of the tension, curvature, and fatigue damage of the dynamic cable system is discussed in this research. Because a fully suspended cable is a relatively new concept and may be more frequently considered in a deeper water depth area, numerical simulation software Orcina Orcaflex 11.4 has been chosen to conduct the fully coupled simulation, determining whether the fully suspended cable system could effectively withstand the challenges posed by extreme sea conditions. This is due to the reason that a fully suspended cable would occupy a larger space in the ocean, which may pose a risk by influencing the navigation of the vessels. Therefore, the cable laying depth under normal sea states is also discussed to evaluate the influence over vessel navigation. This study also collects the long-term environmental data from the Central Weather Bureau, Taiwan, to calculate the accumulative cable fatigue damage under different sea states. To integrate the results, this research applies fitness parameters to evaluate the feasibility of each cable configuration. Covering the cable performance under extreme sea states and regular operating sea states offers valuable insights for applications in ocean engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive review of advanced control methods specifically designed for floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) above the rated wind speed. Focusing on primary control objectives, including power regulation at rated values, platform pitch mitigation, and structural load reduction, this paper begins by outlining the requirements and challenges inherent in FOWT control systems. It delves into the fundamental aspects of the FOWT system control framework, thereby highlighting challenges, control objectives, and conventional methods derived from bottom-fixed wind turbines. Our review then categorizes advanced control methods above the rated wind speed into three distinct approaches: model-based control, data-driven model-based control, and data-driven model-free control. Each approach is examined in terms of its specific strengths and weaknesses in practical application. The insights provided in this review contribute to a deeper understanding of the dynamic landscape of control strategies for FOWTs, thus offering guidance for researchers and practitioners in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offshore wind farms on the east offshore of Korea to produce multi-GW power from floating wind platforms are being planned. The objectives of the present study are to develop a new TLP-type floating wind platform with a 15 MW turbine for the planned site and to confirm the feasibility of the TLP design under extreme typhoon environments. The concept design of the 15 MW TLP floating platform was completed for installation at a water depth of 137 m. The platform was vertically moored with highly pretensioned wire rope tendons. The platform and tendons were designed to withstand extreme conditions for up to 50 years. Additionally, a platform with an integrated turbine was designed to be wet-towable from the quayside without dedicated vessels to minimize the pre-service cost and risk. An extreme response analysis was conducted to evaluate the platform motion, acceleration, airgap and tendon tension for wave variation, intact and damaged condition of the tendon, environment heading change, and water level variation. The platform design results were validated using the design criteria from the industry standards and recommendations, and the design was verified to comply with the design requirements for the planned sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ever-increasing consumption of electrical energy due to increasing requirements arising in parallel with the developing technology forces manufactures and users to seek new and environmentally compatible energy resources. Due to it endless energy potential and continuity, wind energy, which has been used by humanity for various purposes for centuries, continues its journey, which started with windmills that transform one form of mechanical energy into another, with offshore wind energy turbines. In this study, installation site selection, which is the first step for floating offshore wind turbine installation, is carried out. First, a Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (F-AHP) is applied to obtain the weights of criteria. Transformed alternatives and criteria in a fuzzy decision matrix through triangular fuzzy numbers are used to obtain a database via a Geographic Information System (GIS). Finally, the installation site and study area are determined. This area is located in the Northeast Aegean Sea, between Çanakkale and Gökçeada, 12 km to the northeast of Gökçeada, and 12 square kilometers. The minimum distance of the area to ship routes is 3000 m, and its minimum distance to fault lines is 2000 m. The average sea depth is 110 m, and the average wind speed is 9.26 m/s (18 knots). With this potential, enough energy can be generated for settlements on Gökçeada and the coastlines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerical investigations of floating platforms with different outer column inclined angles under two operating conditions of regular wave and irregular wave are presented in this paper. A coupled aero-hydrodynamic computational fluid dynamics in-house solver FOWT-UALM-SJTU is applied for the calculation. First, the validation for wave and wind generation are conducted to determine mesh distribution strategy. Based on these, the hydrodynamic motion response, aerodynamic performance and wake flow are analyzed to explore the impact of inclined angle. Conduct spectral analysis on the motion response under wave action, discuss the aerodynamic attack angle and inflow wind velocity along the blade spanwise direction in detail, reveal different trends in wake development and recovery. The results show that for the regular wave condition with the increase of inclined angles, the equilibrium position of surge motion is constantly rising, while pitch is decreasing. The maximum root mean square (rms) value occurs at angle = 30°, compared with the original OC4 FOWT, the rms in power and thrust increase 0.35%, 0.71%. And there are two low regions of attack angle and high regions of axial inflow velocity, corresponding to aerodynamic loads. The spectral analysis indicates that the natural frequency of pitch motion will increase with inclined angle. Besides, from the middle to far region of wake flow, the velocity recovery of FOWT with inclined angle will become faster, which is beneficial for downstream turbines to enhance more wind energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, semisubmersible floating offshore wind turbine technologies have received considerable attention. For the coupled simulation of semisubmersible floating offshore wind energy, the platform is usually considered a rigid model, which could affect the calculation accuracy of the dynamic responses. The dynamic responses of a TripleSpar floating offshore wind turbine equipped with a 10 MW offshore wind turbine are discussed herein. The simulation of a floating offshore wind turbine under regular waves, white noise waves, and combined wind-wave conditions is conducted. The effects of the tower and platform flexibility on the motion and force responses of the TripleSpar semisubmersible floating offshore wind turbine are investigated. The results show that the flexibility of the tower and platform can influence the dynamic responses of a TripleSpar semisubmersible floating offshore wind turbine. Considering the flexibility of the tower and platform, the tower and platform pitch motions markedly increased compared with the fully rigid model. Moreover, the force responses, particularly for tower base loads, are considerably influenced by the flexibility of the tower and platform. Thus, the flexibility of the tower and platform for the coupled simulation of floating offshore wind turbines must be appropriately examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The offshore wind sector is moving into deep waters and using floating platforms to harness the higher wind speeds in exposed locations. There are various floating platform types currently in development, but semi-submersibles are considered the most prominent early movers. Such floaters need to be towed to and from wind farm locations for installation, special cases of repair and decommissioning. As with any other offshore activity, metocean limits exist for towing operations which can impact the development of a wind farm. It is important to calculate the motion and loads of the platform before commencing the towing operations and to check whether they exceed the defined limits to enable safe execution. In this paper, two approaches using two different numerical tools to predict the motion of a fully assembled floating wind platform under tow are presented and compared. A potential flow-based method derived from a low forward speed approach and a hybrid approach combining potential flow and Morison equation methods are investigated, and the numerical predictions are compared and validated against experimental results. Both methods demonstrate accurate predictions, depending on the wave condition and towing speed, albeit differing in execution time and the simplicity of the simulation setup. The first method was found to provide good predictions of the motion in low-speed (0.514–1.543 m/s) towing conditions. The second method provides better results for all the towing speeds and wave heights. As the wave height and towing speed increase, deviations from experiments were observed, signifying non-linear phenomena that are difficult to analyse using the mentioned potential-flow-based methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The floating offshore wind turbine provides a feasible solution for the development of renewable ocean energy. However, the sizeable rotor diameter of the wind turbine results in large wind heeling moments and pitch amplitude. It will increase the structural loads and cause safety problems. Additionally, the contradictory nature between the stability and the sea-keeping of the floating structure requires that the more flexible method should be adopted to reduce the motion response of the floating offshore wind turbine. Therefore, an innovative concept of a multibody anti-pitching semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine, named the MBAPSF, is proposed in this paper. The MBAPSF consists of a 5 MW braceless semi-submersible wind turbine and three wave energy converters. The multibody coupled numerical model is established by using an F2A tool, and the dynamic performance of the MBAPSF is compared with that of the traditional semi-submersible wind turbine named the TSSF. The results show that the innovative concept proposed in this paper can reduce pitch motion up to approximately 27% under different load cases, and the maximum bending moment and shearing force at the tower base are also reduced by more than 10%. Meanwhile, WECs are beneficial for increases in the total power generation capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unlike the fixed wind turbines, the structure of Floating Offshore Wind Turbines (FOWT) have the added motions of six degrees of freedom induced by the wind, wave and tidal loads. These motions lead to vibration and the degradation of the structure. This paper presents a novel approach to model and stabilize the FOWT by employing the Oscillating Water Columns (OWC) as active structural control system. The innovative concept involves designing a new floating barge-type platform with integrated OWCs on opposite sides of the platform to mitigate undesired oscillations of the system. These OWCs counteract the bending forces caused by wind on the tower and waves on the barge platform. To synchronize the opposing forces with the system’s tilting, a proposed Particle Swarm Optimization with Decreasing Inertia-based Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (PSODI-ANFIS) airflow control strategy is employed. Through manipulation of the barge platform’s pitch angle, the PSODI-ANFIS airflow control system adjusts the valves on either side, opening one and closing the other accordingly. Simulation results, compared with the standard FOWT as well as the Fuzzy-based airflow control system, demonstrate the effectiveness of the PSODI-ANFIS airflow control. It is shown to be superior in reducing platform pitching and the fore-aft translation of the top tower.

The ever-increasing consumption of electrical energy due to increasing requirements arising in parallel with the developing technology forces manufactures and users to seek new and environmentally compatible energy resources. Due to it endless energy potential and continuity, wind energy, which has been used by humanity for various purposes for centuries, continues its journey, which started with windmills that transform one form of mechanical energy into another, with offshore wind energy turbines. In this study, installation site selection, which is the first step for floating offshore wind turbine installation, is carried out. First, a Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (F-AHP) is applied to obtain the weights of criteria. Transformed alternatives and criteria in a fuzzy decision matrix through triangular fuzzy numbers are used to obtain a database via a Geographic Information System (GIS). Finally, the installation site and study area are determined. This area is located in the Northeast Aegean Sea, between Çanakkale and Gökçeada, 12 km to the northeast of Gökçeada, and 12 square kilometers. The minimum distance of the area to ship routes is 3000 m, and its minimum distance to fault lines is 2000 m. The average sea depth is 110 m, and the average wind speed is 9.26 m/s (18 knots). With this potential, enough energy can be generated for settlements on Gökçeada and the coastlines.

The emerging industry of offshore wind turbines mounted on floating bases has garnered significant attention from both academia and industry. The desire to understand the complex physics of these floating structures has led to the development of numerical and physical modelling techniques. While physical testing has traditionally been employed, there is a growing focus on cost-effective and accurate high-fidelity numerical modelling as a potential alternative or supplement. However, commonly used numerical engineering tools in the offshore industry are considered mid- to low-fidelity and may lack the desired precision for floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs). Given the complexity of these simulation codes, it is crucial to validate their accuracy. To address this, the International Energy Agency (IEA) Wind Technology Collaboration Programme initiated various research endeavors, including the Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration (OC3), Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation (OC4), Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation with Correlation (OC5), and the recent Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continued with Correlation and Uncertainty (OC6) projects. This study offers a comprehensive survey of the simulation tools available for FOWTs which were part of OC projects, focusing particularly on horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) and highlighting their capabilities and fundamental theories.

Shallow-water mooring chains of floating offshore wind turbines pose challenges such as nonlinear tension characteristics, high cost and prominent fatigue issues, which seriously hinder the large-scale use of floating wind power. Based on the hydrological and meteorological data of an offshore wind farm in the South China Sea, a sensitivity analysis of the mooring chain fatigue of a semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine in shallow water was conducted with different environmental loads and mooring chain design parameters. It was found that mooring fatigue is mainly caused by the wave condition within diagonal distribution of the wave dispersion diagram. The mooring chain fatigue calculated using the main monochromatic wave was more conservative than that calculated using the wave scatter diagram with a difference of about 28%. The mooring fatigue calculated using turbulent wind spectrum was greater than that calculated using steady wind. In contrast, waves are the main source of mooring fatigue, and the second-order wave force has an undeniable impact on the mooring fatigue of a semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine, which accounts for approximately 26% of wave-induced mooring fatigue. In addition, the current-induced mooring fatigue should not be neglected, although its effect is not as large as that caused by the wave or wind loads. An increase in the cross-sectional diameter and the length of a mooring chain, as well as a reasonable clump weight arranged, all contribute to improving the fatigue life of mooring chains in shallow water, which provide useful technical references for the optimization of mooring lines fatigue in shallow-water areas.

The emerging industry of offshore wind turbines mounted on floating bases has garnered significant attention from both academia and industry. The desire to understand the complex physics of these floating structures has led to the development of numerical and physical modelling techniques. While physical testing has traditionally been employed, there is a growing focus on cost-effective and accurate high-fidelity numerical modelling as a potential alternative or supplement. However, commonly used numerical engineering tools in the offshore industry are considered mid- to low-fidelity and may lack the desired precision for floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs). Given the complexity of these simulation codes, it is crucial to validate their accuracy. To address this, the International Energy Agency (IEA) Wind Technology Collaboration Programme initiated various research endeavors, including the Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration (OC3), Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation (OC4), Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation with Correlation (OC5), and the recent Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continued with Correlation and Uncertainty (OC6) projects. This study offers a comprehensive survey of the simulation tools available for FOWTs which were part of OC projects, focusing particularly on horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) and highlighting their capabilities and fundamental theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design and optimization of substructure of a floating offshore wind turbines (FOWT) is an extremely challengeable work. Before this work, it is necessary to investigate the correlation of design variables of the FOWT substructure. The correlation analysis can help to reduce the dimensions of design parameters and output results, and provide insight into the nature of the design space. The subsequent design and optimization workload can therefore be reduced. This paper aims to provide a framework of parametric modeling and correlation analysis of the substructure design variables for a single-column FOWT with a slack catenary mooring system. The NREL offshore 5 MW baseline wind turbine is selected in this study, and various floating foundation configurations are designed to adapt to this wind turbine. In order to evaluate the main dynamic performances of the FOWT well and quickly, a reduced-degree-of-freedom model of the FOWT is constructed and verified. Then, the substructure design parameters are parameterized to facilitate modeling, and simulations based on design of experiments are performed to save evaluation time and cost. In simulations, three sets of steady wind speeds are applied to eliminate the influence of controller dynamics. The results showed that the correlation of dynamic performances of the FOWT is significant, indicating that it is enough to consider several outputs to represent the dynamic behavior of the system. Regarding the designing parameters, the draft generates the most significant influence on the FOWT dynamic performances. The column radius has different influences for the cases with and without heave plates. Additionally, whether or not the heave plate is added, the mooring line length mainly influences the 95th percentile of platform horizontal surge displacement and standard deviation of fairlead tension of the downwind mooring line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Operations and maintenance (O&M) of floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) require regular inspection activities to predict, detect, and troubleshoot faults at high altitudes and in harsh environments such as strong winds, waves, and tides. Their costs typically account for more than 30% of the lifetime cost due to high labor costs and long downtime. Different inspection methods, including manual inspection, permanent sensors, climbing robots, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), can be employed to fulfill O&M missions. The UAVs, as an enabling technology, can deal with time and space constraints easily and complete tasks in a cost-effective and efficient manner, which have been widely used in different industries in recent years. This study provides valuable insights into the existing applications of UAVs in FOWT inspection, highlighting their potential to reduce the inspection cost and thereby reduce the cost of energy production. The article introduces the rationale for applying UAVs to FOWT inspection and examines the current technical status, research gaps, and future directions in this field by conducting a comprehensive literature review over the past 10 years. This paper will also include a review of UAVs' applications in other infrastructure inspections, such as onshore wind turbines, bridges, power lines, solar power plants, and offshore oil and gas fields, since FOWTs are still in the early stages of development. Finally, the trends of UAV technology and its application in FOWTs inspection are discussed, leading to our future research direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a coupled 6-DOF model of the NREL 5-MW floating offshore wind turbine is proposed. The model takes into account gravitational, aerodynamic, hydrostatic, hydrodynamic and mooring loads. Wind and sea waves influence is studied through a nonlinear dynamic analysis for two types of platform configurations: OC3-Hywind spar buoy and MIT/NREL TLP. Possible internal resonances were detected by calculating the natural frequencies of the system, with a one-to-one resonance condition for the OC3-Hywind spar buoy, and a two-to-one resonance condition for the MIT/NREL TLP, for the heave, roll and pitch motions. The application of the method of multiple scales to the heave and pitch dynamics confirmed the existence of these resonances. The obtained frequency response curves were validated by the use of a direct numerical method, based on the finite difference method combined with a pseudo-arclength continuation technique. Cyclic-fold and Hopf bifurcations are detected when the MIT/NREL TLP platform is used. For certain excitation frequencies, Poincaré sections generated smooth densely filled curves indicating the presence of higher-order quasiperiodic motion for the heave and pitch displacements. Large jumps of the motion amplitude for the frequency and force responses indicate the existence of potential damage to the mooring system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims to develop a simplified strength assessment method for the preliminary structural design of a semi-submersible floating offshore wind turbine platform. The method includes load cases with extreme wave load effects and a load case dominated by wind load. The extreme load effects due to waves are achieved using the design waves. Seven characteristic responses of the semi-submersible platform due to waves are chosen. The design waves for the extreme characteristic responses are all from extreme wave conditions where the significant wave heights are close to the one for a return period of 100 years. The extreme load effects dominated by wind loads are approximated using the modified environmental contour method. The load effects are the tower base shear force and bending moment. The two load effects are correlated, and a linear equation can approximate the relationship between their extreme values. The finite element analysis results show that the frame design of the bottom of the outer column is essential for structural strength. The wave load can also result in significant stress in the area close to the tower base. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the industry transitions toward Floating Offshore Wind Turbines (FOWT) in greater depths, conventional chain mooring lines become impractical, prompting the adoption of synthetic fiber ropes. Despite their advantages, these mooring lines present challenges in inspection due to their exterior jacket, which prevents visual assessment. The current study focuses on vibration-based Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) in FOWT synthetic mooring lines under uncertainty arising from varying Environmental and Operational Conditions (EOCs). Six damage detection methods are assessed, utilizing either multiple models or a single functional model. The methods are based on Vector Autoregressive (VAR) or Transmittance Function Autoregressive with exogenous input (TF-ARX) models. All methods are evaluated through a Monte Carlo study involving 1100 simulations, utilizing acceleration signals generated from a finite element model of the OO-Star Wind Floater Semi 10 MW wind turbine. With signals from only two measuring positions, the methods demonstrate excellent results, detecting the stiffness reduction of a mooring line at levels 10% through 50%. The methods are also tested for healthy cases, with those utilizing TF-ARX models achieving zero false alarms, even for EOCs not encountered in the training data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating offshore multi-wind turbines (FOMWTs) are an interesting alternative to the up-scaling of wind turbines. Since this is a novel concept, there are few numerical tools for its coupled dynamic assessment at the present time. In this work, a numerical framework is implemented for the simulation of multi-rotor systems under environmental excitations. It is capable of analyzing a platform using leaning towers that handle wind turbines with their own features and control systems. This tool is obtained by coupling the seakeeping hydrodynamics solver SeaFEM with the single wind turbine simulation tool OpenFAST. The coupling of SeaFEM provides a higher fidelity hydrodynamic solution, allowing the simulation of any structural design using the finite element method (FEM). Additionally, a methodology is proposed for the extension of the single wind solver, allowing for the analysis of multi-rotor configurations. To do so, the solutions of the wind turbines are computed independently using several OpenFAST instances, performing its dynamic interaction through the floater. This method is applied to the single turbine Hywind concept and the twin-turbine W2Power floating platform, supporting NREL 5-MW wind turbines. The rigid-body response amplitude operators (RAOs) are computed and compared with other numerical tools. The results showed consistency in the developed framework. An agreement was also obtained in simulations with aerodynamic loads. This resulting tool is a complete time-domain aero–hydro–servo–elastic solver that is able to compute the combined response and power generation performance of multi-rotor systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limited by scaling effects, the physical model tests of FOWTs (floating offshore wind turbines) cannot simulate the aerodynamic loads on rotors correctly. To solve this problem, the real-time hybrid model tests in wind tunnels were developed and provided a feasible solution for the aerodynamic simulation. To perform the wind tunnel tests, the design of aerodynamic equivalent rotor models is most critical. In this study, an innovative methodology of aerodynamic equivalent design for the wind turbine rotors is developed based on GA (genetic algorithm). The NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) 5 MW and DTU (Technical University of Denmark) 10 MW rotors are employed for the case studies to validate the proposed methodology. According to the results, the model-scale aerodynamic thrust performance can be accurately matched with the prototype in the entire region between cut-in and cut-out wind speeds, which allows the rotor model to provide correct thrust at different wind speeds. The variance of the aerodynamic torque with the wind speeds for the developed model is also in good agreement with the prototype, which could be beneficial for the design of the model-scale active pitch control strategy. Moreover, the applicability of the fitness functions of GA is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesian government are actively intensifying its efforts to achieve the ambitious target of attaining 23% renewable energy consumption for electricity supply. With Indonesia, its vast coastline and abundant wind resources, has enormous potential for developing offshore wind energy. As a result, floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) have become a promising solution to harness the wind energy potential in deeper waters. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the trends and challenges associated with Floating Offshore Wind Turbines (FOWTs), especially in Indonesia. A study of existing FOWTs technologies in the world was done to compare all advantages and disadvantages and the implementation in Indonesia. Studies of floater technology based on numerical and experiments to optimization the suitable platform and also identify potential sites for wind energy generation. The last is determining transportation and installations FOWTs. The result revealed that there are 10 regions with wind speed potential exceeding 5 m/s, with three areas having the best average energy capacity potential. The FOWTs floater platform designs are suitable for the depth range of 50–80 m, namely spar, semisubmersible, and TLP. Both the logistics and installation of offshore wind turbines are influenced by various factors such as port locations, wind farm locations, and manufacturing facilities.

Floating Offshore Wind has the potential to provide an effective solution for the increasing energy demand of coastal communities around the world if the specific risks associated with this novel technology are understood and evaluated. In this paper an enhanced risk matrix methodology was developed for the risk assessment of a generic FOWT through the introduction of a third risk parameter namely the ‘technology category’. The final risk score is calculated using the average value of all contributing parameters: consequence, likelihood and ‘technology category’ for the avoidance of identical risk values. Individual data collection will eliminate the biases associated with the conventional risk assessment process. The critical failure causes/hazards and failure modes, ranked based on the obtained risk scores, indicate the Floater Unit as the most hazardous of the supporting sub-structures with corrosion as its dominant failure cause. The proposed methodology validation is ascertained through the comparison of obtained results with two similar studies. Its flexibility of use and implementation, combined with its familiar background, facilitate the application of the proposed method for a technological risk assessment of any young sector.