Hybrid Scaled Testing of a 5MW Floating Wind Turbine Using the SiL Method Compared With Numerical Models

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felipe Vittori ◽  
Faisal Bouchotrouch ◽  
Frank Lemmer ◽  
José Azcona
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Hydrodynamic Forces ◽  
Irregular Waves ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Global Dynamics ◽  
Aerodynamic Forces ◽  
Wave Tank ◽  
Aerodynamic Damping ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

The design of floating wind turbines requires both, simulation tools and scaled testing methods, accurately integrating the different phenomena involved in the system dynamics, such as the aerodynamic and hydrodynamic forces, the mooring lines dynamics and the control strategies. In particular, one of the technical challenges when testing a scaled floating wind turbine in a wave tank is the proper integration of the rotor aerodynamic thrust. The scaling of the model based on the Froude number produces equivalent hydrodynamic forces, but out of scale aerodynamic forces at the rotor, because the Reynolds number, that governs the aerodynamic forces, is not kept constant. Several approaches have been taken to solve this conflict, like using a tuned drag disk or redesigning the scaled rotor to provide the correct scaled thrust at low Reynolds numbers. This work proposes a hybrid method for the integration of the aerodynamic thrust during the scaled tests. The work also explores the agreement between the experimental measurements and the simulation results through the calibration and improvement of the numerical models. CENER has developed a hybrid testing method that replaces the rotor by a ducted fan at the model tower top. The fan can introduce a variable force which represents the total wind thrust by the rotor. This load is obtained from an aerodynamic simulation that is performed in synchrony with the test and it is fed in real time with the displacements of the platform provided by the acquisition system. Thus, the simulation considers the displacements of the turbine within the wind field and the relative wind speed on the rotor, including the effect of the aerodynamic damping on the tests. The method has been called “Software-in-the-Loop” (SiL). The method has been applied on a test campaign at the Ecole Centrale de Nantes wave tank of the OC4 semisubmersible 5MW wind turbine, with a scale factor of 1/45. The experimental results have been compared with equivalent numerical simulations of the floating wind turbine using the integrated code FAST. Simple cases as only steady wind and free decays with constant wind showed a good agreement with computations, demonstrating that the SiL method is able to successfully introduce the rotor scaled thrust and the effect of the aerodynamic damping on the global dynamics. Cases with turbulent wind and irregular waves showed better agreement with the simulations when mooring line dynamics and second order effects were included in the numerical models.

scholarly journals Proposal of a Novel Mooring System Using Three-Bifurcated Mooring Lines for Spar-Type Off-Shore Wind Turbines

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (24) ◽  
pp. 8303
Author(s):  
Shi Liu ◽  
Yi Yang ◽  
Chengyuan Wang ◽  
Yuangang Tu ◽  
Zhenqing Liu
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Line Length ◽  
Torsional Stiffness ◽  
Irregular Waves ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Mooring System ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Mooring Lines ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

Floating wind turbine vibration controlling becomes more and more important with the increase in wind turbine size. Thus, a novel three-bifurcated mooring system is proposed for Spar-type floating wind turbines. Compared with the original mooring system using three mooring lines, three-bifurcated sub-mooring-lines are added into the novel mooring system. Specifically, each three-bifurcated sub-mooring-line is first connected to a Spar-type platform using three fairleads, then it is connected to the anchor using the main mooring line. Six fairleads are involved in the proposed mooring system, theoretically resulting in larger overturning and torsional stiffness. For further improvement, a clump mass is attached onto the main mooring lines of the proposed mooring system. The wind turbine surge, pitch, and yaw movements under regular and irregular waves are calculated to quantitatively examine the mooring system performances. A recommended configuration for the proposed mooring system is presented: the three-bifurcated sub-mooring-line and main mooring line lengths should be (0.0166, 0.0111, 0.0166) and 0.9723 times the total mooring line length in the traditional mooring system. The proposed mooring system can at most reduce the wind turbine surge movement 37.15% and 54.5% when under regular and irregular waves, respectively, and can at most reduce the yaw movement 30.1% and 40% when under regular and irregular waves, respectively.

Non-Linear 3D Hydrodynamics of Floating Wind Turbine Compared Against Wave Tank Tests

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolai F. Heilskov ◽  
Ole Svenstrup Petersen
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
Wave Structure ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Body Motion ◽  
Irregular Waves ◽  
Floating Body ◽  
Wave Tank ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

Assessment of wave-structure interaction in terms of combined hydrodynamic stability and structural survivability is paramount in extreme wave conditions. Components of CFD methodologies needed for accurately capturing the detailed motion of a floating wind turbine (FWT) in survival sea-state is the focus of the study. Physical wave tank tests of a Tension Leg Platform (TLP) concept with four moorings are applied as a first validation, due to its simplicity from a CFD point of view. Two different codes have been objects of study, namely the open source code OpenFOAM® with a flexible mesh approach and the commercial CFD code StarCCM+ with the overset mesh method. The influence of the surface capturing algorithm (VOF method) and the two-way coupling of the six degrees-of-freedom body motion solver and the hydrodynamic solver have been identified as the crucial components in CFD simulation of the FWT. A major advantage of StarCCM+ was that it does not suffer from the same sensitivity as OpenFOAM to the fact that motion of the floating body is strongly coupled to the solution of the hydrodynamics (a stiff FSI problem) which led to instability of the numerical solution. The results obtained with StarCCM+ are comparable with the measured motion of and tension forces on the TLP in both in regular waves and irregular waves.

scholarly journals Dynamic Response of Floating Wind Turbine Under Consideration of Dynamic Behavior of Catenary Mooring-Lines

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuangxi Guo ◽  
Yilun Li ◽  
Min Li ◽  
Weimin Chen ◽  
Yiqin Fu
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Response ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Nonlinear Dynamic ◽  
Ocean Waves ◽  
Wave Frequency ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Mooring Lines ◽  
Restoring Force ◽  
Dynamic Behaviors ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

Recently, wind turbine has been developed from onshore area to offshore area because of more powerful available wind energy in ocean area and more distant and less harmful noise coming from turbine. As it is approaching toward deeper water depth, the dynamic response of the large floating wind turbine experiencing various environmental loads becomes more challenge. For examples, as the structural size gets larger, the dynamic interaction between the flexible bodies such as blades, tower and catenary mooring-lines become more profound, and the dynamic behaviors such as structural inertia and hydrodynamic force of the mooring-line get more obvious. In this paper, the dynamic response of a 5MW floating wind turbine undergoing different ocean waves is examined by our FEM approach in which the dynamic behaviors of the catenary mooring-line are involved and the integrated system including flexible multi-bodies such as blades, tower, spar platform and catenaries can be considered. Firstly, the nonlinear dynamic model of the integrated wind turbine is developed. Different from the traditional static restoring force, the dynamic restoring force is analyzed based on our 3d curved flexible beam approach where the structural curvature changes with its spatial position and the time in terms of vector equations. And, the modified finite element simulation is used to model a flexible and moving catenary of which the hydrodynamic load depending on the mooring-line’s motion is considered. Then, the nonlinear dynamic governing equations is numerically solved by using Newmark-Beta method. Based on our numerical simulations, the influences of the dynamic behaviors of the catenary mooring-line on its restoring performance are presented. The dynamic responses of the floating wind turbine, e.g. the displacement of the spar and top tower and the dynamic tension of the catenary, undergoing various ocean waves, are examined. The dynamic coupling between different spar motions, i.e. surge and pitch, are discussed too. Our numerical results show: the dynamic behaviors of mooring-line may significantly increase the top tension, particularly, the peak-trough tension gap of snap tension may be more than 9 times larger than the quasi-static result. When the wave frequency is much higher than the system, the dynamic effects of the mooring system will accelerate the decay of transient items of the dynamic response; when the wave frequency and the system frequency are close to each other, the displacement of the spar significantly reduces by around 26%. Under regular wave condition, the coupling between the surge and pitch motions are not obvious; but under extreme condition, pitch motion may get about 20% smaller than that without consideration of the coupling between the surge and pitch motions.

Low‐frequency dynamics of a floating wind turbine in wave tank–scaled experiments with SiL hybrid method

Wind Energy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 1402-1413 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Azcona ◽  
Faisal Bouchotrouch ◽  
Felipe Vittori
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Hybrid Method ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Wave Tank ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

scholarly journals Mooring Line Damping Estimation for a Floating Wind Turbine

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongsheng Qiao ◽  
Jinping Ou
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Estimation Method ◽  
Excitation Amplitude ◽  
Dynamic Responses ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Offshore Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Excitation Period

The dynamic responses of mooring line serve important functions in the station keeping of a floating wind turbine (FWT). Mooring line damping significantly influences the global motions of a FWT. This study investigates the estimation of mooring line damping on the basis of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory 5 MW offshore wind turbine model that is mounted on the ITI Energy barge. A numerical estimation method is derived from the energy absorption of a mooring line resulting from FWT motion. The method is validated by performing a 1/80 scale model test. Different parameter changes are analyzed for mooring line damping induced by horizontal and vertical motions. These parameters include excitation amplitude, excitation period, and drag coefficient. Results suggest that mooring line damping must be carefully considered in the FWT design.

Physical Model Testing of the TetraSpar Demo Floating Wind Turbine Prototype

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Borg ◽  
Anthony Viselli ◽  
Christopher K. Allen ◽  
Matthew Fowler ◽  
Christoffer Sigshøj ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Model Testing ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Test Facility ◽  
Hydrodynamic Characteristics ◽  
Ocean Engineering ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

Abstract As part of the process of deploying new floating offshore wind turbines, scale model testing is carried out to de-risk and verify the design of novel foundation concepts. This paper describes the testing of a 1:43 Froude-scaled model of the TetraSpar Demo floating wind turbine prototype that shall be installed at the Metcentre test facility, Norway. The TetraSpar floating foundation concept consists of a floater tetrahedral structure comprising of braces connected together through pinned connections, and a triangular keel structure suspended below the floater by six suspension lines. A description of the experimental setup and program at the Alfond W2 Ocean Engineering Lab at University of Maine is given. The objective of the test campaign was to validate the initial design, and contribute to the development of the final demonstrator design and numerical models. The nonlinear hydrodynamic characteristics of the design are illustrated experimentally and the keel suspension system is shown to satisfy design criteria.

Parametric Study of Catenary Mooring System for a Semisubmersible Floating Wind Turbine in Intermediate Water Depth

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiawen Li ◽  
Qiang Zhang ◽  
Jiali Du ◽  
Yichen Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Water Depth ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Offshore Wind Turbine ◽  
Reference Structure ◽  
Intermediate Water ◽  
Mooring System ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

Abstract This paper presents a parametric design study of the mooring system for a floating offshore wind turbine. We selected the OC4 DeepCwind semisubmersible floating wind turbine as the reference structure. The design water depth was 50 m, which was the transition area between the shallow and deep waters. For the floating wind turbine working in this water area, the restoring forces and moments provided by the mooring lines were significantly affected by the heave motion amplitude of the platform. Thus, the mooring design for the wind turbine in this working depth was different from the deep-water catenary mooring system. In this study, the chosen design parameters were declination angle, fairlead position, mooring line length, environmental load direction, and mooring line number. We conducted fully coupled aero-hydro dynamic simulations of the floating wind turbine system in the time domain to investigate the influences of different mooring configurations on the platform motion and the mooring tension. We evaluated both survival and accidental conditions to analyze the mooring safety under typhoon and mooring fail conditions. On the basis of the simulation results, this study made several design recommendations for the mooring configuration for floating wind turbines in intermediate water depth applied in China.

VolturnUS 1:8: Conclusion of 18-Months of Operation of the First Grid-Connected Floating Wind Turbine Prototype in the Americas

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony M. Viselli ◽  
Andrew J. Goupee ◽  
Habib J. Dagher ◽  
Christopher K. Allen
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Large Data ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Mooring Line ◽  
Offshore Wind Turbine ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbine ◽  
The Past ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine

This paper presents an overview of the successful conclusion of 18 months of testing the first grid-connected floating offshore wind turbine prototype in the Americas. The prototype, called VolturnUS 1:8, was installed off Castine, Maine, USA. The prototype is a 1:8 scale prototype and serves to de-risk the deployment of a full-scale 6MW turbine. VolturnUS utilizes innovations in materials, construction, and deployment technologies such as a concrete semi-submersible hull and an advanced composite tower to reduce the costs of offshore wind. The prototype unit was designed following the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) “Guide for Building and Classing Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Installations”. Froude scaling was used in designing the 1:8-scale VolturnUS prototype so that the motions of the prototype in the relatively protected site represent those of the full-scale unit in an open site farther offshore. During the past year, a comprehensive instrumentation package monitored key performance characteristics of the platform during operational, extreme, and survival storm conditions. Data collected include: wind speed, turbine power, rotor angular frequency, blade pitch, torque, acceleration; tower bending moment, 6 DOF accelerations at tower top and base, mooring line tensions, and wave elevation at the platform. During the past year the prototype has experienced many environments representative of scaled ABS design conditions including operational wind and sea-states, 50-year sea states and 500-year survival sea states. This large data set provides a unique view of a near full-scale floating wind turbine subjected to its prescribed environmental conditions. Inspections of the concrete hull following removal provided confirmation of material durability. Marine growth measurements provide data for future design efforts.

Global Analysis of a Floating Wind Turbine Using an Aero-Hydro-Elastic Numerical Model: Part 2—Benchmark Study

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Luxcey ◽  
Harald Ormberg ◽  
Elizabeth Passano
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Model ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Global Analysis ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Irregular Waves ◽  
Benchmark Study ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Calm Water ◽  
Internal Forces ◽  
System Power

This paper describes and presents the results of a benchmark study of a floating wind turbine numerical model that includes aero- and hydro-elasticity. The modelled wind turbine is the NREL offshore 5 MW baseline wind turbine whose specifications are publicly available. The first part of this paper demonstrates the importance of including aeroelasticity and hydroelasticity in the system. Power production, internal forces and motion amplitudes are compared to results from models using a rigid tower and rigid blades. Comparisons are performed for different weather conditions such as calm water, regular and irregular waves, constant and varying wind. The consequences of including elasticity in the different parts of the model are studied. The second part of the paper presents a benchmark study against the codes of the Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration. The floater motions, blade and tower deflection and power generation are presented and discussed.

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