About the Project
Principle Investigator: Dr Saeid Lotfian
The project aims to develop innovative methodologies for assessing and optimising the structural integrity of offshore renewable energy structures. The project will focus on structural foundations for wind turbines as these constitute a substantial portion of offshore wind project costs. This research has the potential to enhance the reliability, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of offshore renewable energy, thereby supporting the global transition to a low-carbon future.
The project will conduct a comprehensive post-mortem analysis of decommissioned foundation sections to quantify residual stresses and their effects on fatigue life. The research will employ cutting-edge techniques including strain gauging, neutron diffraction, contour method, and finite element analysis to measure and analyse residual stresses induced during manufacturing, installation, and operation. By leveraging unique access to decommissioned offshore wind foundation sections and comparing results from these with newly manufactured sections, the ASAMES project will isolate the impacts of different lifecycle stages on stress distributions.
The project will take an innovative approach, combining advanced experimental techniques with sophisticated computational modelling simulating modelling manufacturing, installation, and cyclic loading processes. This will enable parametric studies to optimise design and installation procedures for enhanced fatigue performance and revolutionise our understanding of residual stresses in structural foundations.
The project aims to challenge current conservative design assumptions, potentially extending foundation fatigue life by up to 40%. This research will offer key contributions to structural integrity assessment, design optimisation and improved reliability whilst influencing design standards, life extension strategies, and reducing costs.
