Soil–Structure–Wave Interaction of Gravity-Based Offshore Wind Turbines: An Analytical Model

Abstract

The structural design of offshore wind turbines is based on the consideration of coupled dynamic phenomena. Wave loads cause the dynamic oscillation of the monopile, and the dynamic oscillation of the monopile affects the wave loads. The boundary conditions of the gravity-based foundation-monopile-turbine system are mostly affected by the flexural stiffness of the foundation plate, the elastic and creep behavior of the soil, and the inertia (translational and rotational) of the wind turbine mass. The design of the foundation should consider the dynamic response of the soil and the monopile, and the dynamic response of the soil and the monopile is affected by the design parameters of the foundation. The initial conditions of the system yield transient dynamic phenomena. A braking wave at t = 0 causes different dynamic response than the steady-state conditions due to a harmonic wave load. In the present work, an integrated analytical model simulating the above dynamic phenomena is proposed. With the aid of double integral transforms and generalized function properties, a solution of the corresponding differential equations for the monopile-soil-foundation system and the boundary and initial conditions is derived. A parametric study is carried out, and results of the effect of the design parameters and soil properties are presented and discussed.