Investigation of carbon footprint and cost analysis of floating wind turbines with emphasis on the barge-type platform

Yildiz, Nurullah ORCID: 0000-0002-9750-4840 (2022). Investigation of carbon footprint and cost analysis of floating wind turbines with emphasis on the barge-type platform. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

There has been an incredible surge in interest in environmentally friendly technology during the last several decades. Furthermore, wind power is also one of the renewable energy sources that has seen tremendous expansion in recent years, with the installation of new wind farms taking place all over the globe and improvements in wind energy technology that have made this resource considerably more effective. This realisation, along with a greater emphasis on maintaining the long-term sustainability of wind energy systems, has encouraged many to evaluate the prospects wind energy regarding its potential future performance.

Floating wind turbines, a recent high-innovation advancement in the wind power industry, are located in deep oceans where fixed-bottom offshore wind turbines are not possible due to foundation costs and a lack of appropriate technology. Besides the design of these new wind turbine towers, the carbon emissions released during their manufacture, installation, operation, and disposal must also be taken into account. Given these new turbine structures, in this study, first the LCA analysis of the barge-type floating wind turbine was focused on and the results were examined. In light of these results, it is aimed to reduce the environmental impact by improving the maintenance and end-of-life steps, which are two important steps, including how to reduce the environmental impact of the turbine. And finally, the cost analysis of the scenarios used in the maintenance and end-of-life steps is made, and both environmental and economic analyses are made and compared.

The results of this study indicate that, overall, the barge-type floating wind turbine, which has a 30-year lifetime and utilises an onshore maintenance strategy, has lower environmental and economic impacts than other scenarios. With regard to end-of-life scenarios, the environmental impact of the mechanical recycling process and the cost analysis of incineration scenarios currently seem most appropriate.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):