Plymouth researchers use Free Access Scheme for Towing Tank tests

Researchers from the University of Plymouth’s Maritime Simulation and COAST laboratories used the NWTF Towing Tank at the University of Southampton in late August, conducting a week of towing experiments with a model floating wind turbine. Access was granted through the NWTF free access initiative.  

A 1:70th scale model of the open-source IEA 15 MW turbine on the VolturnUS-S semi-submersible platform was used in the experiments, which considered different towing arrangements in a range of sea conditions, including regular, irregular, and focused waves, as well as calm waters.

Data gathered included turbine motions and towline tension, which has subsequently been used to validate a full-scale mathematical model of the IEA 15 MW and VolturnUS-S within the Maritime Simulation Laboratory’s ship simulator.

The experience also extended the researchers’ physical modelling skills, helped develop an understanding of how other laboratories operate, and provided a data source regarding the behaviour of a reference 15 MW turbine under tow.

These findings will be of great benefit for future R&D into the installation, operation, maintenance, and decommissioning of floating wind turbines, with experimentally validated models from the ship simulator expected to play a key role in the optimisation of offshore operations like towing and crew transfers.