For the operation of future wind farms, precise information on the condition and dynamic behavior of the support structure and rotor blades as well as knowledge of the effects of changing environmental and operating conditions is required for each individual turbine throughout its entire service life. Classical simulation models are usually identical for all turbines in a wind farm and focus primarily on load-bearing capacity. Aspects such as manufacturing, installation, and operation and dismantling, on the other hand, are given secondary consideration.
The advances made during the first funding period convinced the DFG to continue funding the CRC 1463 for another four years. Among other things, the researchers have so far provided an initial digital twin which takes into account the associated loads – the impacts of air, wave and current forces, as well as the interaction with the seabed – to which megastructures in the ocean are exposed. In doing so, they have made significant progress towards the real-time capability of the non-linear model. They have also developed new methods for detecting damage at an early stage. These are based on machine-learning algorithms that are enhanced by physics-based knowledge.
In the second funding period, the focus will primarily be the validation and verification of newly developed methods. In addition to other locations, the research will be carried out at the Coastal Research Centre’s Large Wave Flume (GWK+) in Hannover, which was newly expanded during the first funding period and is one of a kind in the world. Measurements will also be taken at a new onshore research wind park and an offshore wind park.
Five research institutions have joined forces under the leadership of Leibniz Universität Hannover for the Collaborative Research Centre 1463 ‘Offshore Megastructures’. In addition to LUH, the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, the German Aerospace Centre and the Technical Universities of Braunschweig, Darmstadt and Dresden are also involved. At Leibniz University, the Faculties of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics and Physics are involved. The majority of the participating institutes at Leibniz University Hannover and Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg are already networked in the ForWind research association. The CRC has already been funded with around 8.5 million Euros from 2021 to 2024. The second funding period runs from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2028, with a further extension possible until 2032.
