The UK Government has put in place ambitious plans for energy generation from renewable sources for the next decade, and beyond. To achieve these targets a substantial contribution from offshore wind is required. At present there are almost five hundred offshore wind turbines installed and operating, with about 600 being constructed and plans to build many thousands more. Similar developments are expected in countries around Europe and elsewhere in the world, such as offshore China.
The foundation design is critical to the overall turbine design, influencing the structural layout, the turbine’s dynamic and fatigue response as well as the construction and installation approach. Not unexpectedly these all have significant effects on the overall project economics.
This lecture draws on recent work published in Géotechnique covering foundation design for offshore wind turbines. The lecture is split into two parts. The first half covers current foundation designs, concentrating particularly on the response of monopiles to cyclic lateral loading. A framework for calculating accumulated rotations, based on small scale laboratory tests, will be presented. The work has highlighted that the stiffness of the pile response can change with the number of cycles applied, an important consideration for the fatigue design.
The second part of the lecture looks forward to new designs, concentrating on suction installed foundations (suction caissons), a promising alternative to piled foundations, but as yet unused for offshore wind turbines. A wide ranging programme of research at Oxford has explored caisson design, from stiffness of response through to ultimate capacity, and the key outcomes of the research are presented.
For more information, please contact (recordedlectures@ice.org.uk)
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2011 Géotechnique Lecture - Foundation Design for Offshore Wind Turbines
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