Minimum thrust load control for floating wind turbine

Offshore wind energy capitalizes on the higher and less turbulent wind at sea. Shallow water sites are profitable for deployment of monopile wind turbines at water depths of up to 30 meters. Beyond 30 meters, the wind is even stronger and less turbulent. At these depths, floating wind turbines become profitable, capable of accessing unexploited wind resources while reaching regions of new consumers. However, floating wind turbines are subject to reduced structural stiffness which results in instabilities when standard wind turbine control systems are applied. Based on optimal control, this paper presents a new minimum thrust control strategy capable of stabilizing a floating wind turbine. The new control strategy explores the freedom of variable generator speed above rated wind speed. A comparison to the traditional constant speed strategy, shows improvements in structural fore-aft oscillations and power stability when using the new control strategy.