Load simulation and local dynamics of support structures for offshore wind turbines
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The installation of the German offshore test field alpha ventus in the North Sea marks the beginning of a new era of offshore wind energy application. Fueled by European renewable energy targets and the increasing reliability of the technology, offshore wind energy has become a multi-billion euro market that attracts the interest of many stakeholders. Consequently, there is a potential of rapid growth of that market over the next decade. The successful deployment of offshore wind turbines in a large scale will require innovative, lightweight, safe, and cost-effective support structures. For the severe North Sea conditions in water depths around 30m and more, braced or lattice support structures like tripod or jacket seem to be the preferred solution. Taking into account the dynamic interrelation of those support structures and their internal dynamics with the wind turbine in numerical models for dynamic simulations becomes crucial for a reliable and cost-effective design. Therefore, in this thesis a new analysis approach is implemented and verified that takes the complete offshore wind turbine consisting of rotor nacelle assembly, tower, and substructure into account. This is achieved by coupling Poseidon, a finite element code specifically designed for the simulation of lattice offshore support structures by the author, to the quasi-industry standard wind turbine simulation code Flex5, which was available to the author in the version of the Endowed Chair of Wind Energy at the University of Stuttgart.