University of Hull team leads end-of-life study into offshore wind turbines
A University of Hull study
into the end-of-life cycle of offshore wind turbines has been boosted by
£100,000 of funding. The team, led by Computer Science lecturer Dr Nina
Dethlefs, will focus on the role machine learning could play in helping
to monitor and predict the level of fatigue for any wind turbine within
an offshore farm.
A particular focus of the study is on the turbine's monopile – the foundation
which extends the turbine tower under water and into the seabed.
Dr Dethlefs, Principal Investigator of the new project, said: “Accurate
estimation of monopile fatigue is essential to help inform decisions which
are made into the potential decommissioning and replacement of offshore
wind turbines, as well as optimising future design and maintenance.
“Due to the challenging and unpredictable environments these turbines
are located in, accurate predictions on the fatigue and wear are often
subject to significant error.
“Using machine learning, we hope to be able to more accurately predict
the end-of-life stage of a turbine. A huge thank you must go to the Supergen
ORE Hub for its support in this vital research.”
Dr Dethlefs has been supported in the research by a team comprising of
Professor Lizzy Cross from the University of Sheffield, Hull post-doctoral
researcher Dr Agota Mockute, and project partners Atkins, Eleven-I, TECOSIM,
Jesmond Engineering and ORE Catapult.
Dr Mockute said: “This project has brought together a strong, interdisciplinary
team from both industry and academia to explore a very real challenge facing
the offshore wind industry.
“By furthering our understanding of monopile fatigue accumulation and
hence the end-of-life state of a wind turbine, we can massively increase
the efficiency at which these machines are either decommissioned, repaired
or replaced, or have their lifetime extended.
“The first offshore wind turbines to be installed in the UK are now only
several years away from the end of their estimated lifespan. This research
will therefore play a critical role in the next stage of their lives.”
The £100,000 funding for the University of Hull came as part of a wider
£800,000 allocated by the Supergen ORE Hub to eight projects at UK institutions
through its Flexible Funding Scheme, designed to support ambitious research
in offshore renewable energy.
