Current status and future trends for mooring systems of floating offshore wind turbines

Abstract

With the increasing demand of energy and the limitation of bottom-fixed wind turbines in moderate and deep waters, floating offshore wind turbines are doomed to be the right technical choice and they are bound to enter a new era of rapid development. The mooring system is a vital system of a floating wind turbine for station-keeping under harsh environmental conditions. In terms of existing floating wind turbine projects, this paper is devoted to discussing the current status of mooring systems and mooring equipment. This paper also presents the mooring analysis methods and points out the technical difficulties and challenges in mooring design, installation, operation and maintenance stages. Finally, the developing trends of the mooring system are summarized, aiming to provide a reference for future mooring research.