Floating hybrid composite wind turbine platform and tower system with suspended mass
AssigneeUniversity of Maine System Board of Trustees
InventorsHabib J. Dagher, Anthony M. Viselli, Andrew J. Goupee
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A wind turbine platform configured to float in a body of water and support a wind turbine thereon includes a buoyant hull platform. A wind turbine tower is centrally mounted on the hull platform and a wind turbine is mounted to the wind turbine tower. An anchor is connected to the hull platform and to the seabed, and a weight-adjustable mass is suspended from the hull platform.
Claims7
A wind turbine platform configured to float in a body of water and support a wind turbine thereon, the wind turbine platform comprising:
- a buoyant hull platform, wherein the hull platform includes a central portion and three buoyant legs extending radially outwardly from the central portion;
- a wind turbine tower centrally mounted on the central portion of the hull platform;
- a wind turbine mounted to the wind turbine tower;
- a plurality of anchors connected to the hull platform and to the seabed wherein each of the three legs is connected to one of the plurality of anchors by a catenary mooring line;
- a weight-adjustable mass;
- and
- a cable extending between a distal end of each of the three buoyant legs and the weight-adjustable mass, thus suspending the weight-adjustable mass from the hull platform.
A semi-submersible wind turbine platform configured to float semi-submerged on a body of water and support a wind turbine thereon, the wind turbine platform comprising:
- a central buoyant pontoon;
- a wind turbine tower mounted on the central buoyant pontoon;
- a wind turbine mounted to the wind turbine tower;
- three outer buoyant pontoons, the outer pontoons being connected to the central pontoon by structural members, with the central buoyant and outer buoyant pontoons having sufficient buoyancy to support a wind turbine tower;
- a plurality of anchors connected to the wind turbine platform and to the seabed wherein each of the three outer pontoons is connected to one of the plurality of anchors by a catenary mooring line;
- a weight-adjustable mass;
- and
- a cable extending between each of the three outer buoyant pontoons and the weight-adjustable mass, thus suspending the weight-adjustable mass from the wind turbine platform
- wherein a longitudinal axis of the central buoyant pontoon and longitudinal axes of the outer buoyant pontoons are substantially parallel to each other and substantially perpendicular to a surface of the body of water in which the semi-submersible wind turbine platform floats;
- and
- wherein the wind turbine is configured to operate while the semi-submersible wind turbine platform floats, semi-submerged, in the body of water.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.