 Optimization of composite material tower for offshore wind turbine structuresKieran O'Leary, Vikram Pakrashi and Denis Kelliher Renewable Energy, 2019, vol. 140, issue C, 928-942 Abstract: The focus of this study was to investigate the application of lightweight fiber reinforced composite materials in the construction of offshore wind turbine support structures. A composite tower design suitable for the NREL 5 MW reference wind turbine is presented. The design is based on the most automated and low cost composite manufacturing methods (pultrusion and filament winding) and the conclusions of this study may not be applicable for offshore structures using different composite material construction techniques. The mass of the tower was minimized using gradient based optimization approach. The cost of a composite tower was calculated and levelized cost of energy (LCOE) projections are discussed in comparison with the existing steel tower cost. The study determined that while the composite tower is technically feasible and has a lower mass than a comparable steel tower, uncertainty remains in how it compares economically in terms of LCOE. Keywords: Composite materials; Offshore wind support structure; Optimization (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:140:y:2019:i:c:p:928-942 DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2019.03.101 Access Statistics for this article Renewable Energy is currently edited by Soteris A. Kalogirou and Paul Christodoulides More articles in Renewable Energy from Elsevier |
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