Dynamic Behavior of a Flexible Multi-Column FOWT in Regular Waves

A tank experiment using a flexible multi-column floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) model in regular waves was carried out to clarify the floater elastic response and its influence on the floater motion. The model motion response from the experiment was compared with the numerical simulations by NK-UTWind and WAMIT codes. The dynamic elastic deformation of the model was also compared between the experiment and NK-UTWind. The experiment observed significant elastic deformation for the decks and columns of the model around the wave period corresponding to the natural period of the structural vibration. Furthermore, comparing the heave response amplitude operator (RAO) between experiments and numerical simulations, a small peak appeared around this period in the experiment and NK-UTWind simulation instead of WAMIT simulation. These results indicated that dynamic elastic deformation affected the heave response of the model. The change in the model rigidity revealed that such elastic deformation could affect the motion response statistics in an actual sea condition if the peak period of the onsite wave spectrum is close to the floater natural vibration period. These investigations indicated the importance of considering the elastic behavior of a FOWT at its design stage.