Author(s): Jan Thijssen; Mark Fuglem; Tony Kind; Mike Paulin
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: Sea Ice; Ice-Structure Interaction
Abstract: The possibility of using floating wind turbine platforms off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador is being assessed.This region has both pack ice and icebergs. While a number of floating wind turbine platform designs have been implemented or are being considered for regions without sea ice; sea ice loads can result in substantially different platform loads and responses and need an independent assessment. Sea ice interactions with floating offshore oil and gas production systems have been considered in the past, design return periods from 100 to 10,000 year return period loads are typically considered. The consequences of failure for wind turbines are mostly economic, hence shorter design return period of 50 years, with correspondingly smaller loads. This paper presents results of an analysis of 50-year interaction parameters for five example types of platforms at a range of locations with different water depths and sea ice conditions. The analysis includes a detailed assessment of conditions including incursion frequencies and durations; partial concentrations of different sea ice types, floe sizes and thicknesses and ice failure mode and strength. Models for sea ice interaction include consideration of water depth, mass and width of the platform, the stiffness of the mooring system, and a number of load models considering different combinations of sea ice concentration, speed and floe sizes. Key outputs include estimates of local loads on the structure, mooring loads and offsets. These outputs should provide designers with insights on the potential advantages and disadvantages of different platform design configurations. The work is part of a larger project to determine potential effects of sea ice, icebergs and icing if floating wind turbines were used to provide power for offshore oil and gas production operations in order to reduce use of methods based on burning of fuel.
Year: 2022