Methodology for Wind/Wave Basin Testing of Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather R. Martin ◽  
Richard W. Kimball ◽  
Anthony M. Viselli ◽  
Andrew J. Goupee
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Model Testing ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbine Aerodynamics ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines ◽  
Wave Basin

Scale model wave basin testing is often employed in the development and validation of large scale offshore vessels and structures by the oil and gas, military and marine industries. A basin model test requires less time, resources and risk than a full scale test while providing real and accurate data for model validation. As the development of floating wind turbine technology progresses in order to capture the vast deepwater wind energy resource, it is clear that model testing will be essential for the economical and efficient advancement of this technology. However, the scale model testing of floating wind turbines requires one to accurately simulate the wind and wave environments, structural flexibility and wind turbine aerodynamics, and thus requires a comprehensive scaling methodology. This paper presents a unified methodology for Froude scale testing of floating wind turbines under combined wind and wave loading. First, an overview of the scaling relationships employed for the environment, floater and wind turbine are presented. Afterward, a discussion is presented concerning suggested methods for manufacturing a high-quality, low turbulence Froude scale wind environment in a wave basin to facilitate simultaneous application of wind and waves to the model. Subsequently, the difficulties of scaling the highly Reynolds number-dependent wind turbine aerodynamics is presented in addition to methods for tailoring the turbine and wind characteristics to best emulate the full scale condition. Lastly, the scaling methodology is demonstrated using results from 1/50th scale floating wind turbine testing performed at MARIN’s (Maritime Research Institute Netherlands) Offshore Basin which tested the 126 m rotor diameter NREL (National Renewable Energy Lab) horizontal axis wind turbine atop three floating platforms: a tension-leg platform, a spar-buoy and a semi-submersible. The results demonstrate the methodology’s ability to adequately simulate full scale global response of floating wind turbine systems.

Methodology for Wind/Wave Basin Testing of Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather R. Martin ◽  
Richard W. Kimball ◽  
Anthony M. Viselli ◽  
Andrew J. Goupee
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Model Test ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Model Testing ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbine Aerodynamics ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Wave Basin

Scale-model wave basin testing is often employed in the development and validation of large-scale offshore vessels and structures by the oil and gas, military, and marine industries. A basin-model test requires less time, resources, and risk than a full-scale test, while providing real and accurate data for numerical simulator validation. As the development of floating wind turbine technology progresses in order to capture the vast deep-water wind energy resource, it is clear that model testing will be essential for the economical and efficient advancement of this technology. However, the scale model testing of floating wind turbines requires accurate simulation of the wind and wave environments, structural flexibility, and wind turbine aerodynamics and thus requires a comprehensive scaling methodology. This paper presents a unified methodology for Froude scale model testing of floating wind turbines under combined wind and wave loading. First, an overview of the scaling relationships employed for the environment, floater, and wind turbine are presented. Afterward, a discussion is presented concerning suggested methods for manufacturing a high-quality, low-turbulence Froude scale wind environment in a wave basin to facilitate simultaneous application of wind and waves to the model. Subsequently, the difficulties of scaling the highly Reynolds number–dependent wind turbine aerodynamics is presented in addition to methods for tailoring the turbine and wind characteristics to best emulate the full-scale condition. Lastly, the scaling methodology is demonstrated using results from 1/50th-scale floating wind turbine testing performed at the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) Offshore Basin. The model test campaign investigated the response of the 126 -m rotor diameter National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) horizontal axis wind turbine atop three floating platforms: a tension-leg platform, a spar-buoy, and a semisubmersible. The results highlight the methodology's strengths and weaknesses for simulating full-scale global response of floating wind turbine systems.

Design and Testing of Scale Model Wind Turbines for Use in Wind/Wave Basin Model Tests of Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Fowler ◽  
Richard W. Kimball ◽  
Dale A. Thomas ◽  
Andrew J. Goupee
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Model Tests ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Offshore Wind Turbines ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines ◽  
Wave Basin ◽  
Scale Design

Model basin testing is a standard practice in the design process for offshore floating structures and has recently been applied to floating offshore wind turbines. 1/50th scale model tests performed by the DeepCwind Consortium at Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) in 2011 on various platform types were able to capture the global dynamic behavior of commercial scale model floating wind turbine systems; however, due to the severe mismatch in Reynolds number between full scale and model scale, the strictly Froude-scaled, geometrically similar wind turbine underperformed greatly. This required significant modification of test wind speeds to match key wind turbine aerodynamic loads, such as thrust. To execute more representative floating wind turbine model tests, it is desirable to have a model wind turbine that more closely matches the performance of the full scale design. This work compares the wind tunnel performance, under Reynolds numbers corresponding to model test Froude-scale conditions, of an alternative wind turbine designed to emulate the performance of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) 5 MW turbine. Along with the test data, the design methodology for creating this wind turbine is presented including the blade element momentum theory design of the performance-matched turbine using the open-source tools WT_Perf and XFoil. In addition, a strictly Froude-scale NREL 5 MW wind turbine design is also tested to provide a basis of comparison for the improved designs. While the improved, performance-matched turbine was designed to more closely match the NREL 5 MW design in performance under low model test Reynolds numbers, it did not maintain geometric similitude in the blade chord and thickness orientations. Other key Froude scaling parameters, such as blade lengths and rotor operational speed, were maintained for the improved designs. The results of this work support the development of protocols for properly designing scale model wind turbines that emulate the full scale design for Froude-scale wind/wave basin tests of floating offshore wind turbines.

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.

Influence of the Rotor Characterization on the Motion of a Floating Wind Turbine

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Gueydon ◽  
Guillaume Venet ◽  
Gerson Fernandes
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Rotation Speed ◽  
Model Tests ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Aerodynamic Damping ◽  
Common Solution ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Wave Basin ◽  
Low Reynolds

It is useful to complement model tests of a floating wind turbine with simulations mimicking the scaled-down turbine. Standard engineering tools have some short-comings to model a rotor at the very low Reynolds that Froude scaled wind and rotor’s rotation speed impose. The flow around an airfoil at the scale of a wave basin brings new distinct challenges than at full scale. The capacity of standard engineering tools for the design of wind turbines to capture this complexity may be questioned. Therefore, work-around solutions need to be proposed. This paper looks at a common solution that consists of optimizing the load coefficients of the rotor to reproduce the measured rotor loads. 3 variants of optimizations are applied to a semisubmersible floating wind turbine at scale 1/50th, the DeepCwind semisubmersible platform. The effects of the differences between these 3 methods on the motions of the floater in waves and wind are analyzed. In the absence of a controller for the rotor, no significant differences related to the induced aerodynamic damping was noticed, but an offset in the motion related to a thrust deficit was observed.

Additional Wind/Wave Basin Testing of the DeepCwind Semi-Submersible With a Performance-Matched Wind Turbine

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Goupee ◽  
Matthew J. Fowler ◽  
Richard W. Kimball ◽  
Joop Helder ◽  
Erik-Jan de Ridder
Keyword(s):  
Wind Speed ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Wind Wave ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Wave Basin ◽  
Global Performance ◽  
Thrust Forces ◽  
A Performance

In 2011 the DeepCwind Consortium, led by the University of Maine (UMaine), performed an extensive series of floating wind turbine model tests at the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) offshore basin. These tests, which were conducted at 1/50th scale, investigated the response of three floating wind turbine concepts subjected to simultaneous wind and wave environments. The wind turbine blades utilized for the tests were geometrically-similar models of those found on the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) 5 MW reference wind turbine and performed poorly in the Froude-scaled, low-Reynolds number wind environment. As such, the primary aerodynamic load produced by the wind turbine, thrust, was drastically lower than expected for a given Froude-scaled wind speed. In order to obtain appropriate mean thrust forces for conducting the global performance testing of the floating wind turbines, the winds speeds were substantially raised beyond the target Froude-scale values. While this correction yielded the desired mean thrust load, the sensitivities of the thrust force due to changes in the turbine inflow wind speed, whether due to wind gusts or platform motion, were not necessarily representative of the full-scale system. In hopes of rectifying the wind turbine performance issue for Froude-scale wind/wave basin testing, efforts have been made by UMaine, Maine Maritime Academy and MARIN to design performance-matched wind turbines that produce the correct thrust forces when subjected to Froude-scale wind environments. In this paper, an improved, performance-matched wind turbine is mounted to the DeepCwind semi-submersible platform investigated in 2011 (also studied in the International Energy Association’s OC4 Phase II Project) and retested in MARIN’s offshore basin with two major objectives: 1) To demonstrate that the corrective wind speed adjustments made in the earlier DeepCwind tests produced realistic global performance behaviors and 2) To illustrate the increased capability for simulating full-scale floating wind turbine responses that a performance-matched turbine has over the earlier, geometrically-similar design tested. As an example of this last point, this paper presents select results for coupled wind/wave tests with active blade pitch control made possible with the use of a performance-matched wind turbine. The results of this paper show that the earlier DeepCwind tests produced meaningful data; however, this paper also illustrates the immense potential of using a performance-matched wind turbine in wind/wave basin model tests for floating wind turbines.

scholarly journals UNAFLOW: a holistic experiment about the aerodynamics of floating wind turbines under imposed surge motion

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Fontanella ◽  
Ilmas Bayati ◽  
Robert Mikkelsen ◽  
Marco Belloli ◽  
Alberto Zasso
Keyword(s):  
Wind Tunnel ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Unsteady Aerodynamics ◽  
Model Tests ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines ◽  
Sectional Model

Abstract. Floating offshore wind turbines are subjected to large motions because of the additional degrees of freedom offered by the floating foundation. The rotor operates in highly dynamic inflow conditions and this is deemed to have a significant effect on the aerodynamic loads, as well as on the wind turbine wake. Floating wind turbines and floating farms are designed by means of numerical tools, that have to model these unsteady aerodynamic phenomena to be predictive of reality. Experiments are needed to get a deeper understanding of the unsteady aerodynamics, and hence leverage this knowledge to develop better models, as well as to produce data for the validation and calibration of the existing tools. This paper presents a wind-tunnel scale-model experiment about the unsteady aerodynamics of floating wind turbines that followed a radically different approach than the other existing experiments. The experiment covered any aspect of the problem in a coherent and structured manner, that allowed to produce a low-uncertainty data for the validation of numerical model. The data covers the unsteady aerodynamics of the floating wind turbine in terms of blade forces, rotor forces and wake. 2D sectional model tests were carried to study the aerodynamics of a low-Reynolds blade profile subjected to a harmonic variation of the angle of attack. The lift coefficient shows an hysteresis cycle that extends in the linear region and grows in strength for higher motion frequencies. The knowledge gained in 2D sectional model tests was exploited to design the rotor of a 1/75 scale model of the DTU 10MW that was used to perform imposed surge motion tests in a wind tunnel. The tower-top forces were measured for several combinations of mean wind speed, surge amplitude and frequency to assess the effect of unsteady aerodynamics on the response of the system. The thrust force, that plays a crucial role in the along-wind dynamics of a floating wind turbine mostly follows the quasi-steady theory. The near-wake of the wind turbine was studied by means of hot-wire measurements, and PIV was utilized to visualize the tip vortex. It is seen that the wake energy is increased in correspondence of the motion frequency and this is likely to be associated with the blade-tip vortex, which travel speed is modified in presence of surge motion.

Experimental Comparison of Three Floating Wind Turbine Concepts

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Goupee ◽  
Bonjun J. Koo ◽  
Richard W. Kimball ◽  
Kostas F. Lambrakos ◽  
Habib J. Dagher
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Experimental Comparison ◽  
System Response ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Resource

Beyond many of Earth's coasts exists a vast deepwater wind resource that can be tapped to provide substantial amounts of clean, renewable energy. However, much of this resource resides in waters deeper than 60 m where current fixed bottom wind turbine technology is no longer economically viable. As a result, many are looking to floating wind turbines as a means of harnessing this deepwater offshore wind resource. The preferred floating platform technology for this application, however, is currently up for debate. To begin the process of assessing the unique behavior of various platform concepts for floating wind turbines, 1/50th scale model tests in a wind/wave basin were performed at the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) of three floating wind turbine concepts. The Froude scaled tests simulated the response of the 126 m rotor diameter National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) 5 MW, horizontal axis Reference Wind Turbine attached via a flexible tower in turn to three distinct platforms, these being a tension leg-platform, a spar-buoy, and a semisubmersible. A large number of tests were performed ranging from simple free-decay tests to complex operating conditions with irregular sea states and dynamic winds. The high-quality wind environments, unique to these tests, were realized in the offshore basin via a novel wind machine, which exhibited low swirl and turbulence intensity in the flow field. Recorded data from the floating wind turbine models include rotor torque and position, tower top and base forces and moments, mooring line tensions, six-axis platform motions, and accelerations at key locations on the nacelle, tower, and platform. A comprehensive overview of the test program, including basic system identification results, is covered in previously published works. In this paper, the results of a comprehensive data analysis are presented, which illuminate the unique coupled system behavior of the three floating wind turbines subjected to combined wind and wave environments. The relative performance of each of the three systems is discussed with an emphasis placed on global motions, flexible tower dynamics, and mooring system response. The results demonstrate the unique advantages and disadvantages of each floating wind turbine platform.

A Model Wind Turbine Design-Build-Test Project

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Post ◽  
Curtis Boirum
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Cnc Milling ◽  
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine ◽  
Variable Resistor ◽  
Electric Generator ◽  
Design Build

This paper describes a semester-long class project for students in junior-level Fluid Mechanics courses. The goals of the project are to introduce students to engineering design and to incorporate material from other courses in engineering graphics, instrumentation and measurements, and manufacturing processes in a single project. Each team of 3–4 undergraduate students had to design, build, and test a scale model horizontal-axis wind turbine. The wind turbines were designed using solid modeling software, and constructed using either a rapid prototyping machine or a CNC milling machine. The wind turbines were about 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 inches) in diameter when built, and were placed in a wind tunnel for testing. A small DC motor was used as an electric generator and coupled to the wind turbines through a straight shaft. A variable resistor was incorporated into the circuit so that the rotational speed of the turbine-generator apparatus could be varied. Students were graded based on the efficiency of their wind turbines in converting wind kinetic energy into electrical energy. An additional requirement was for the students to perform a literature review to assess the state of the art in commercial wind turbine technology.

Guideline for Offshore Floating Wind Turbine Structures

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut O. Ronold ◽  
Vigleik L. Hansen ◽  
Marte Godvik ◽  
Einar Landet ◽  
Erik R. Jo̸rgensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Wind Farms ◽  
Oil And Gas Industry ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Offshore Wind Turbine ◽  
Technical Requirements ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines ◽  
Offshore Floating Wind Turbine

Floating offshore wind turbines is a field undergoing major development. Several companies and research institutes worldwide are engaged in research programs, pilot projects and even planning of commercial floating wind farms. Developing standards for design of floating wind turbine structures and a framework for prevailing rules are crucial and necessary for the industry to continue to grow. Det Norske Veritas (DNV) is an international provider of offshore standards for both the oil and gas industry and the wind energy industry. The standard DNV-OS-J101 “Design of Offshore Wind Turbine Structures” provides principles, technical requirements and guidance for design, construction and in-service inspection of offshore wind turbine structures. As a first step towards updating this standard to fully cover floating wind turbine structures, a DNV Guideline for Offshore Floating Wind Turbines has been established. This development is based on identification of current floating wind turbine concepts and the guideline includes an evaluation of what is required to make DNV-OS-J101 suitable for floating wind turbine structures. This paper presents the highlights of the new DNV Guideline for Offshore Floating Wind Turbine Structures.

Coupling of Two Tools for the Simulation of Floating Wind Turbines

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Gueydon ◽  
Koert Lindenburg ◽  
Feike Savenije
Keyword(s):  
Computer Program ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Time Domain ◽  
Domain Model ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Floating Body ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Floating Wind Turbine ◽  
Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

For the design of a floating wind turbine it is necessary to take the loading due to the wind, wave and current in equal consideration. The PHATAS computer program from ECN (Energy research Centre of the Netherlands) is a time-domain aero-elastic simulation program, that accounts for the complete mutual interaction of unsteady rotor aerodynamics, structural dynamics of the rotor blades and tower, and interaction with the turbine controller under influence of turbulent wind and wave loading for fixed wind turbines. The aNySIM computer program from MARIN is a multi rigid body time domain model that accounts for wave loadings, current loadings, wind loadings, floating body dynamics, mooring dynamics. The coupled computer program aNySIM / PHATAS accounts for all loadings acting on a floating wind turbine and its response whereas PHATAS can only be used for fixed wind turbines onshore and offshore. This paper reports on the dynamic coupling between PHATAS and aNySIM. As a typical case study, the controller for floating offshore wind turbines is evaluated. This new tool has been used to repeat phase IV of the Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration (OC3) within IEA Wind Task 23, regarding floating wind turbine modelling. The results of these simulations are presented in this paper.

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