An apparatus for yawing a turbine into the wind while reducing time-averaged loads has weight-balanced, aerodynamic fairings that cover structural elements of an offshore wind turbine. The aerodynamic fairings provide a rudder effect while a weight-balancing apparatus counters aeroelastic instability and buffers the effects of side gusts.

Disclosed herein are a floating platform and a floating offshore wind power generator with the same. The floating offshore wind power generator according to an embodiment includes a power generator disposed on an upper portion and configured to perform a wind power generation action, and a floating platform configured to support the power generator while floating on the sea. The floating platform includes a plurality of floats provided in the form of a hollow cylindrical shape and erected in a vertical direction, a connecting beam connecting and binding between the plurality of the floats, and a strake having a spiral shape and provided on an outer circumference of a lower region of each of floats while avoiding a connecting position of the connecting beam.

Disclosed is an offshore wind turbine, comprising: a base configured to be submerged when the turbine is in an upright generating position in open water; and, a tower attached to the base and having a longitudinal axis, wherein the tower and base are movable between a horizontal towing position in which the turbine is towable through a body of water, and an upright generating position in which the turbine is vertically orientated for use in the body of water. Also disclosed herein is a method of deploying a wind turbine comprising the steps of assembling the wind turbine in a horizontal or near horizontal orientation prior to deploying to an installation location, towing the assembled wind turbine in a horizontal or near horizontal position to the installation location and up righting the assembled wind turbine in the installation location.

An offshore wind turbine system is provided including a wind turbine in combination with a floating platform. The platform includes three buoyancy modules in corners of a triangular configuration. The tower is located off-centered near a baseline of the triangle midway between two buoyancy modules that are located at the ends of the baseline.

An offshore platform with a wind turbine is provided including three buoyancy modules arranged in a triangular configuration in corners of an equilateral triangle, in the center of which the tower support for the tower of the wind turbine is located. The tower support is fixed in a frame including three radial braces, each of the radial braces rigidly connecting the tower support with one of the three buoyancy modules. The radial braces are inclined upwards from the tower support towards the buoyancy modules.

An operations and maintenance arrangement for floating wind turbines (1), comprising a floating sub-structure (2) on which at least one wind turbine unit (3) is situated, a service operation vessel (11) and a portable crane (14), said floating sub-structure (2) having an interface capable of receiving and fixedly locking said crane (14) to said sub-structure (2), said service operation vessel (11) having a ship crane (12) capable of lifting said portable crane (14) from said vessel (11) and onto said sub-structure (2). A method for replacing components using the arrangement is also described.

A control system for a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT). The FOWT includes a floating base, a tower, a nacelle, and rotor with blades that harvest energy from wind passing the FOWT. Without a rigid support, however, the FOWT is able to move. The controller uses generator speed and platform pitch position of the FOWT as inputs and manipulates blade pitch and torque resistance to achieve stability.

A modular wind turbine assembly platform (WTAP) comprises a crane module and at least one work module for temporary storage of wind turbine components, and a modular floating hull assembly platform (FHAP) comprises a crane module and at least one work module for temporary storage of floating platform hull components and a large floating mat, wherein each of the modules comprises a rectangular hull and a plurality of retractable legs with each leg featuring a large-size footing in a water depth of 5 to 15 meters. A method for assembly of a floating offshore wind turbine comprises a floating wind assembly base (FWAB) including the modular FHAP and WTAP deployed at a near-shore site within a distance of 200 to 2000 meters from a shoreline. The method further comprises assembling a floating platform hull and lowering it into the water using the FHAP with the floating mat, then assembling and integrating a wind turbine with the floating platform hull using the WTAP.

A method of estimating a sea state, in particular wave spectrum, a offshore wind turbine has been subjected to includes: measuring a response quantity responding to the sea state, using at least one sensor associated with the offshore wind turbine; processing the response quantity to derive a measured response spectrum; deriving a calculated response spectrum based on a previously estimated wave spectrum; deriving an error between the measured response spectrum and the calculated response spectrum; adjusting the previously estimated wave spectrum based on the error, in order to derive an adjusted estimated wave spectrum.

A semi-submersible wind power platform includes a tower and a plurality of arms for stabilizing the tower, each arm having a float experiencing an anchoring force. Each arm consists of two elongated elements forming with part of the tower a triangle, and at least one of the elongated elements includes a catenary element.