Nonlinear Irregular Wave ForcesOn the Support Structure of Wind Energy Turbines

摘要

Offshore wind energy can only be economical if adequate design methods are available fordeveloping highly optimized and robust structures with a long lifespan. To achieve this there is a need forreliable methods to determine wave loading during extreme events and also for fatigue calculation.Natural sea states are far from regular wave theory and so procedures for irregular wave simulation areessential for a realistic wave load determination. Here we describe a method for non-linear, irregularwave load calculation with application to support structures of offshore wind energy converters.