Modelling the Interaction of an Offshore Wind Farm with a Marine Dune Field: A Case Study in the Southern North Sea
Modelling the Interaction of an Offshore Wind Farm with a Marine Dune Field: A Case Study in the Southern North Sea
By the end of 2020, around 5,400 offshore wind turbines had been installed or were under construction in European waters, and this number is set to rise steadily to meet net-zero energy targets. This study focuses on a 600 MW offshore wind project off the coast of Dunkirk in northern France, an area characterised by strong tidal currents and winds from the Atlantic Ocean and North Sea. The presence of marine dunes in the wind farm area is notable, with recurrent bathymetric surveys indicating dune migration rates of up to 30 metres per year.
A process-based numerical model was developed to examine the interactions between currents, winds, and sediment transport processes. The impact of the wind farms fixed foundations on the dune field was studied over a two-year period. Situated in a complex environment, the wind farm is subject to spatial variations in flood and ebb flows, influenced by meteorological conditions, resulting in intricate sediment transport patterns and dune mobility. Turbines located in dynamic areas can influence regions more than a kilometre away, as their wake extends to adjacent turbines, which can have an impact on turbine siting strategies.
Noemie Durand; Walid Chaabouni; Pablo Tassi
5th International Symposium on Frontiers in Offshore Geotechnics (ISFOG2025)
1 - Site investigation strategies, geohazards and integrated studies
https://doi.org/10.53243/ISFOG2025-71
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