Baseline Design of the Deep Turbine Installation-Floating, a New Floating Wind Concept

Abstract

This paper presents the preliminary design of the Deep Turbine Installation-Floating (DTI-F) concept. The DTI-F concept is a hybrid spar buoy-based floating offshore substructure capable of supporting a 7MW wind turbine with the uniqueness of being able to raise and lower the tower and nacelle, which simplifies construction, installation, maintenance, and decommissioning. A relevant subset of design load cases (DLCs) derived from the International Electrotechnical Commission (ICE) standards is simulated with NREL-FAST software, and the aero-elastic loads are used for the structural assessment. The paper presents the principal dimensions and crucial hydrostatic and hydrodynamic properties. The floating platform with three different mooring configurations is designed using ANSYS AQWA software, and the design is validated with experiments in laboratory conditions. The paper evaluates the design regarding the natural frequencies and the stability of the platform for a chosen site off the Scottish coast. Further, a novel construction method, the materials chosen for the construction, and the installation and assembly processes are also outlined.