Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation (OC4), Phase I - Results of Coupled Simulations of an Offshore Wind Turbine with Jacket Support Structure

In this paper, the exemplary results of the IEA Wind Task 30 “Offshore Code Comparison Collaboration Continuation” (OC4) Project – Phase I, focused on the coupled simulation of an offshore wind turbine (OWT) with a jacket support structure, are presented. The focus of this task has been the verification of OWT modeling codes through code-to-code comparisons. The discrepancies between the results are shown and the sources of the differences are discussed. The importance of the local dynamics of the structure is depicted in the simulation results. Furthermore, attention is given to aspects such as the buoyancy calculation and methods of accounting for additional masses (such as hydrodynamic added mass). Finally, recommendations concerning the modeling of the jacket are given.