Study on crashworthiness of offshore wind turbines under different wind loads
LIU Kunpeng
WANG Yujin
ZHAO Xinlei
LI Chun
YUE Minnan
Abstract：[Objective]Offshore wind turbines are exposed to the risk of collision with vessels,where the effect of wind loads cannot be ignored.However,existing studies tend to adopt steady-state wind loads,which are inconsistent with actual conditions.[Methods]By adopting transient wind loads that are more consistent with actual working conditions,the collision processes between three types of offshore wind turbines and vessels under various wind speeds and directions were simulated using the Ls-Dyna software,and the dynamic responses,crashworthiness,and their influencing factors of the wind turbine foundations during the collision were analyzed.[Results]The results show that the monopile foundation wind turbine exhibits the worst crashworthiness and the highest sensitivity to loads,while the jacket foundation wind turbine achieves the best overall crashworthiness.Compared with wind speed and direction,vessel speed has a more significant impact on the structural safety of wind turbines.When the vessel speed is not more than 4 m/s,wind turbines can still operate normally under the rated wind speed but with certain potential safety hazards.Once the vessel speed exceeds 4 m/s,the wind turbines will suffer severe structural damage.After a collision occurs,the kinetic energy of the wind turbine tower top increases with the increase of wind loads;the center of gravity of the tower top may deviate from the safe zone,leading to a risk of overturning.In addition,the wind turbine sustains the maximum structural damage when the vessel sails downwind,whereas the minimum structural damage occurs when the vessel sails upwind.
Keywords：Offshore wind turbineWind loadWind directionVesselCrashworthiness
Publication Date：2026-01-31
Online Publishing Date：2026-09-12(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：9( 150-158 )