Posters
Come meet the poster presenters to ask them questions and discuss their work
We would like to invite you to come and see the posters at our upcoming conference. The posters will showcase a diverse range of research topics, and will give delegates an opportunity to engage with the authors and learn more about their work. Whether you are a seasoned researcher or simply curious about the latest developments in your field, we believe that the posters will offer something of interest to everyone. So please join us at the conference and take advantage of this opportunity to learn and engage with your peers in the academic community. We look forward to seeing you there!
PO252: Drilling solutions for offshore wind foundations and export cable landfalls
Marc Peters, Head of Business Division Energy, Herrenknecht AG
Abstract
The development of renewable energies is the focus for future energy supply. Large offshore wind farms are to be constructed and connected to a high-capacity transmission grid. Due to the public environmental awareness, smart installation methods are required for fast and safe construction of offshore foundations and the eco-friendly landfall installation for the export cables, with minimal impact on surroundings. The installation of offshore foundations requires drilled installation methods, especially in non-drivable soil conditions in medium to higher water depths. In addition to limitations in certain ground conditions, conventional pile-driving has a deep environmental impact and reaches its limits with increasing turbine sizes. Noise emissions can either require complex and expensive noise mitigation systems or cause lasting damage to flora and fauna. In the past, offshore drilling rigs have only been a non-performance driven backup options for pile-driving installations. Today, the Offshore Foundation Drilling (OFD) technology provides a completely drilled installation of offshore foundations. Based on 40 years of drilling experience, the OFD full-face concept represents a customized drilling technique for monopiles and partly-standardized solution for pin-piles and anchor piles, according to foundation diameter and specific project conditions. Furthermore, offshore installed energy generation capacities have to be connected to onshore grid infrastructure. In the offshore section, cables are laid on or trenched into the sediment layer on the seabed. The landfall sections of export cables are usually located in sensitive coastal areas where the operation of heavy construction equipment is not possible due to environmental protection requirements. Also, when dyke structures have to be crossed, this sets further increased demands on the respective installation methods. Trenchless solutions like Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), Direct Pipe or microtunnelling methods offer a wide range of environmental and safety benefits and a high degree of flexibility for project planners.
