MSc Offshore Wind Energy

This module aims to provide:

• principles and methodologies to analyse and evaluate pertinent issues concerning the use of engineering materials and structural integrity in the marine environment
• practical tools for considering structural integrity and structural fitness-for-service problems throughout the design life cycle in the marine environment

The module will teach the following:

1. Introduction:

1. Structural design philosophies
2. In service failure modes (fracture, fatigue, creep and corrosion) (overview)
3. Application of materials testing (tools of failure analysis)
4. Methodologies of materials and process selection

2. Materials specification and sourcing:

1. Metallic materials (Steels, Aluminium, and Metal Matrix Composite (MMC))
2. Mechanical properties, manufacturing methods, deformation and materials forming, standards and Industrial applications
3. Composite (Polymer Matrix Composite (PMC))
4. Composite materials in offshore structure

3. Joining and welding:

1. Advanced manufacturing process
2. Joining and Welding in metals and composites
3. Residual stress: origins and measurement of residual stress in Metallic and Composite component

4. Fracture mechanics:

1. Stress analysis of cracks
2. Fracture toughness
3. Connecting the fracture theories, critical crack sizes (ductile vs brittle) & NDE
4. Limitations of LEFM, Crack Tip Plasticity
5. Mixed-mode fracture problems, KIc testing
6. Elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM), J-Integral, JIc testing, Application Case Studies
7. Fractography

5. Fatigue:

1. Fatigue life analysis
2. Stress-Life and how to develop and use S-N curve
3. Cyclic stress/strain behaviour leading to hardening or softening (microstructure origins)
4. Fatigue crack initiation, damage tolerant lifetime
5. Corrosion fatigue
6. Notch effects on fatigue, fatigue crack growth testing
7. Fatigue fractography case studies

6. Corrosion:

1. Corrosion prevention and mitigation
2. Embrittlement mechanisms
3. Environmentally assisted crack growth

7. Creep and stress rupture:

1. Time-dependent mechanical behaviour
2. Mechanisms of creep deformation
3. Structural changes during creep
4. Creep-fatigue interaction
5. Creep under combined stresses

8. Nondestructive evaluation:

1. Introduction to methods for determining the presence of defects and their size
2. Structural health monitoring
3. Inspection reliability
4. Defect and remaining life assessment

On completion of the module, you're expected to be able to:

• show a systematic understanding of structural integrity and fitness-for-service issues
• demonstrate an in-depth awareness of the current practice and its limitations in aspects of structural integrity
• develop a critical and analytical approach towards the engineering aspects of structural integrity
• be able to confidently assess the applicability of the tools of structural integrity to new problems and apply them appropriately

Assessment and feedback are in the form of coursework.

This module aims to introduce the principles of risk management and reliability engineering and solve relevant engineering problems through widely applied methods and tools.

The module will teach the following:

• Introduction and Fundamentals of Risk and Reliability Engineering
• Risk Management Process
• Statistics, Probabilities and Mathematics for Risk Analysis
• Failure mode, effects, and criticality analysis (FMEA/FMECA)
• Hazard and operability study (HAZOP) Analysis
• Qualitative Reliability Analysis (FTA/ETA)
• Systems modelling using Reliability Block Diagrams
• Quantitative Reliability Analysis, Introduction to MCS
• Risk Control and Decision Support Systems, Failure Consequences
• Insurance and Certification of Engineering Applications

On completion of the module you're expected to be able to:

• demonstrate a systematic knowledge of the fundamentals of risk management and reliability engineering and a critical awareness of their application on relevant engineering problems
• evaluate and select appropriate techniques for risk analysis (qualitative and quantitative), failure consequences assessment, and methods for control/mitigation through decision support systems and other relevant methods/tools
• develop a critical and analytical approach to the collection and stochastic modelling of data in the application of stochastic modelling
• demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the development and use of commonly used methods and standards related to asset integrity management (including Reliability-Centred Maintenance and Risk-based Inspection)

Assessment will be in the form of a one-hour closed-book oral exam.

This module provides you with fundamental understanding of the control of electric generators via power electronics for wind power applications. The module revises all the relevant theory in electric machines and power electronics required to perform electrical and mechanical generator control. As such, this course is suitable for non-specialist engineers.

This module introduces the principles of wind turbine power conversion, including an introduction to turbine dynamics suitable for non-specialist engineers and scientists, and explain the evolution of contemporary wind turbine technology. You'll gain sufficient understanding to outline the design and operation of multi-megawatt machines, including modelling and control design methods of wind turbine control systems.

This module aims to provide you with the knowledge necessary to model and analyse:

• the marine environment (waves, currents, soil) characteristics
• the loads acting on the wind turbine sub-structure and foundation
• the dynamic response of the offshore wind turbine system as a whole

This module covers:

• marine environment modelling
• wind
• waves (regular, irregular)
• marine currents
• soil mechanics
• hydrodynamic loads on the substructure
• hydrostatics
• wave loading regime: diffraction parameter and Keulegan-Carpenter number
• loads on large volume bodies: potential approach (radiation and diffraction)
• loads on small volume bodies: Morison equation
• equations of motion: frequency approach
• environmental loads in the time domain:
• wind loading on fixed bodies and on rotor (Actuator Disk theory, Blade Element-Momentum theory, correction to the theory)
• hydrodynamics loads in time domain: Cummins equation
• mooring forces
• soil forces
• offshore wind turbine aero-hydro-servo-elastic analysis in the time domain:
• state of the art
• free decay, wave only (regular/irregular), wind and wave
• postprocessing: basic statistics, FFT, (pseudo) RAO

At the end of this module you'll be able to:

• propose the most suitable analytical and numerical approach to model the relevant aspects of the marine environment conditions (waves, currents, soil)
• evaluate how to model the loads acting on the substructure and foundation of the offshore wind turbine
• select how to model the dynamic response of the offshore system
• set up and run a numerical aero-hydro-servo-elastic coupled dynamics analysis of an offshore wind turbine, critically reviewing the results

Assessment and feedback are in the form of two coursework assignments, each one contributing to 50% of the final mark. The first assignment will be set in semester 1, week 10, and submitted in the semester 1 exam period. The second assignment will be set in semester 2, week 10, and submitted in the semester 2 exam period.

This module fully educates you on the operational challenges and solutions facing offshore wind operators. This will be approached both in terms of Operation & Maintenance planning for project development and final investment decision; post-warranty asset transfer; day-to-day operational decisions; and finally repowering and life extension. You'll be able to identify key operational choices and how these manifest in operational metrics (such as availability, OPEX, yield targets). Post-subsidy operation for offshore wind is also discussed.

The overall aim of the module is to provide you with an enriched experience in the selection, conceptualisation and designing of a novel vessel or an offshore asset. The group projects will also include a thorough market review, concept and focused design studies and techno-economic analysis in a simulated design project environment. It will also provide you with an opportunity to present their project outputs to a panel involving academic/industry staff.

This module covers:

• development of a broad but nevertheless critical review of prospects for techno-economic growth in maritime related activities in a particular context/area of the world
• proposal and evaluation of specific design-related activities with a view to developing a design project to a concept level but with substantial calculations in at least one design objective
• demonstration of analytical ability and understanding of engineering principles and problem-solving techniques, creativity and self-reflection
• the ability to present and defend the design choices to a panel.

At the end of this module you'll be able to:

• identify and prioritize the key-design issues along with their basic interrelations in the context of naval architecture
• materialize a design project according to a given timeline through design steps along the key-design-issues priority path
• work efficiently and openly in a collaborative context involving different cultures and expertise
• choose at each design step the proper rationally-based computation methods

Assessment and feedback are in the form of either design report or presentation. There will be five tasks: each task may include the submission of a design report or an oral presentation followed by questions from the lecturers and the advisory groups.