In a new report published on 11 March, The Carbon Trust has announced that expertise by Frazer-Nash Consultancy quantifying the impact of the mean static pitch angle of floating wind farm turbines on loads and the loss of annual energy production (AEP) will enable wind farm developers to derisk product design at the very earliest stages of a project. As a result of the report, floating wind farm developers will quickly and confidently be able to navigate the trade-off between AEP, loads and impact on floating foundation design: a capability which is becoming ever more important in a challenging market.
As an island nation, floating wind could be a good option for the UK, to maximise available locations for new energy generation technologies which will enable energy transition away from fossil fuels. There are undoubted upsides to adopting floating wind, but also technical, strategic and commercial challenges to overcome, which is why offshore wind developers are working on technology research programmes with industry experts to analyse technology challenges and market opportunities for the sector.
For the past five years, Frazer-Nash has been a key contributor to the Floating Wind Joint Industry Programme: a world-leading collaborative research and development (R&D) initiative between The Carbon Trust and 17 leading international offshore wind developers dedicated to overcoming technological challenges and advancing commercialisation of floating offshore wind. The Carbon Trust appointed Frazer-Nash Consultancy to investigate the highly discussed topic of mean static pitch angle in floating wind: to understand the trade-off between allowing larger static pitch angles of floating offshore wind turbine generators – which reduces costs - and the resulting power production loss, increased loads and motions during power production.
Applying its deep domain knowledge of floating wind from turbine to farm level and proven expertise in yield, load analysis and early-stage design, Frazer-Nash provided a set of industry recommendations for floating wind developers and stakeholders to consider. The core finding, based on the project scope, was that the optimal mean static pitch angle is expected to be in the range of 3-6 degrees, in-line with current commercial guidelines. This is primarily driven by the fact that above a mean static pitch of 6 degrees the dominating effect on the levelised cost of energy is the AEP variation noting any expected design changes (the mass saving on floating foundation and wind turbine generator tower redesign) is nominal in comparison.
Jonathan Samson Group Leader, Renewables Technology Group at Frazer-Nash Consultancy said: “Frazer-Nash has been a proud supporter of The Carbon Trust’s world-leading collaborative research and development programmes for offshore wind, working on the Offshore Wind Accelerator Programmes for over 15 years and the last five years on the Floating Wind Joint Industry Programme.”
“We are pleased to be providing continued support to these programmes as a trusted consultant to The Carbon Trust through our expert teams. The endurance of these programmes has contributed to the progression of the offshore wind market, making key contributions across industry identified needs in supporting the efficient development and performance of offshore wind projects.”
“Frazer-Nash is re world-renowned for its unrivalled experience of commercial floating wind projects across the breadth of the technology development stages and the full life cycle. This project is the latest example of us applying our holistic and deep expertise to support the development of the next generation of wind turbines and guide the industry to develop more efficient projects.”
To find out more, book an appointment: contact p.mather@fnc.co.uk
