The wind industry advances towards more efficient and sustainable management with the WILLOW project

Ceit to lead the WILLOW project, which seeks to revolutionise management of offshore wind farms via an integrated data- and open source-based solution.

With a 5.8 million Euro budget, it is hoped that the project will contribute to a 50% reduction in inspection costs, a 5-year lifespan extension of offshore wind farms and a reduction in noise pollution and levelized cost of energy.

Ceit will be taking part in the international Wind Europe 2024 fair from 20th to 22nd March 2024, in the course of which it will present its solutions for the wind industry.

Wind energy is gaining ground on the energy market and wind farms are playing an increasingly important role in the stability of the electric system. A new perspective is being explored in which they not only maximise energy production, but also actively contribute towards the stability of the electric system by making their production smarter.

Conventional methods currently being used to adjust energy production, such as uniformly reducing the power of all turbines or bringing some turbines to a complete standstill may not be optimum solutions and can shorten the lifespan of assets. Moreover, the complexity of integrating wind energy in the electric grid and the dividing up of responsibilities between turbine manufacturers and wind farm operators make it difficult to bring about change.

Balance between production and lifespan

The WILLOW project, emerged within this context as a European initiative led by the Ceit Technology Centre. The aim of this project is to revolutionise the management of offshore wind farms via an integrated data- and open source-based solution that seeks to attain a balance between energy production and the lifespan of structures.

Specifically, WILLOW constitutes an attempt to design a novel structural health monitoring system capable of providing high-quality data and reliability with a view to carrying out an accurate assessment of turbine lifespan at offshore wind farms. To this end, physical models and artificial intelligence methods will be used to assist decision-making and programming of wind turbine maintenance activities. This will help to reduce costs and increase both wind farm production and their operational life beyond fifty years.

Courses of action that focus on efficiency

The project focuses on several strategic lines with a view to improving the efficiency and safety of offshore wind farms. An integrated monitoring system will be designed to enable structural damage to be accurately detected in order to guarantee the integrity of systems in operation. Moreover, an artificial intelligence tool will be developed to improve the diagnostic capacity of structures, the concept of virtual sensing will be researched to reduce the number of sensors deployed, and a methodology will be defined to assess the lifespan of the turbine fleet. Lastly, models will be developed to predict structural wear-and-tear and fatigue and a tool will be designed for decision-making in matters relating to the wind farm as a whole.

Ceit – project leader

In addition to coordinating the project, Ceit is also heading the work package that focuses on the design of a structural monitoring system that combines a range of sensorization technologies, physical models and data-based models. Moreover, the centre will be working on the design of cybersecurity strategy applied on different levels at offshore wind farms.

Reduction in costs and extension of lifespan

WILLOW, with a 5.8 million Euro budget subsidised within the framework of the Horizon Europe programme, is expected to contribute towards a 50% reduction in costs, a 5-year extension in lifespan of offshore wind farms, and a reduction in noise pollution from 4% to 10% in the levelized cost of energy.

The WILLOW project is made up of a consortium that brings together 12 partners from 4 European countries: Ceit, Flanders Make, SINTEF, SIRRIS, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, ALERION, C-CUBE, TSI, WÖLFEL, 24SEA, NORTHER and Clúster de Energía de Euskadi.

Wind Europe 2024

Ceit will be presenting the WILLOW project and other solutions on which it is currently working at the international Wind Europe fair from 20th to 22nd March, where it will maintain a prominent presence at its stand (Hall 1 – A80) alongside that of the Basque Energy Cluster. Ceit will be presenting its solutions for the energy sector from this stand, and this will include the design and development of new mechanical, structural and electronic components, ranging from the digitalisation of operations and maintenance such as the setting up of new remote monitoring and corrosion detection systems and communications in hostile environments such as subaquatic environments, to the recycling of components – thus fostering the circular economy.