Key Technology Areas
FLAGSHIP Project covers the whole value chain and facilitates interaction between stakeholders notably through standardization, common design and work procedures, harmonizing strategies, digitalization tools and common agile reporting methods.
The initiative addresses the natural step that the wind sector must take to achieve economies of scale in floating wind power through better integration along the entire value chain starting with a single FOW solution at unit scale.
It will be followed by its industrialisation at wind farm scale for mass production and, finally, the project will ensure the versality and long-term feasibility of the proposed solution by concept scalability and lifetime extension.
Key Technology Areas (KTA) are defined at each level as part of the development that integrate the full solution.
FOW solution at 1:1 scale
KTA1 Floating platform concept.
The elements that integrate the floater solution at unit scale will be described under the this KTA. The floating platform design for FLAGSHIP Project is a simple, robust and cost-effective semisubmersible concrete structure for floating offshore wind. It has a central tower for wind turbine connection and 3 symmetrical pontoons that connect with one column each.
The pontoons remain buoyant during the inshore assembly phase but filled with water and connected to sea during operation. The floating platform is fully designed in concrete, moving forward from steel or hybrid solutions currently used in existing floating demonstration projects, turning into the first 1:1 fully concrete semisubmersible platform demonstrated. It is designed to have a moderate draft in operation and very shallow minimum draft allowing for completion and testing while floating at quayside.
KTA2 Turbine and Control System.
This KTA will prove for the first time a large capacity wind turbine (MVOW) installation at 1:1 scale on a concrete-floater, allowing to demonstrate the feasibility of the floating platform to support this high rated turbine with optimised elements in the Transition Piece (TP) for the connection tower‐platform to facilitate assembly and reduce fatigue effect as well as the implementation of the required holistic combination of control methodologies.
KTA3 Electrical Connection
This KTA includes innovations in the dynamic cable consisting of a new aluminium-based section and accessories that promises they will bring costs down.
KTA4 Mooring and anchoring
It’s envisaged to include an innovative anchor concept as an alternative to suction anchor that simplifies construction and installation, and the connection to the floating platform above water to simplify inspection.
Industrialisation at wind farm scale
KTA5 Fabrication & Assembly.
This KTA will include the use of innovative methods for the construction of the floating platform and the assembly with the wind turbine within the demonstration phase.
KTA6 Transport & Installation
No offshore heavy lifts are required for transport, and the symmetric and simplified mooring configuration will contribute to cost reduction. In this regard, the possibility to implement novel tensioning systems will be considered. Finally, improvements for concept take off to ensure upcoming market demands towards commercialisation will be also studied.
Scalability and lifetime extension
KTA7 Scalability towards Commercial Wind Farms
Through this KTA, the large capacity floating wind turbine will be upscaled to more powerful platforms as much as 20 MW. This also implies upscaling the floater and the mooring system, which is innovative as it is currently not known how a floater and mooring system upscales for different water depths, different wave conditions and different turbine capacities. Floater and wind turbine rotor sizes at different turbine capacities for floating wind farms at different water depths for Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea and NorthSea will be formulated.
KTA8 O&M and lifetime extension
The O&M and lifetime extension will also be studied during the project, through digital twins, monitoring systems and preventive maintenance.