Floating Offshore Wind Array Systems Optimization off the US West Coast using an Extended Pattern Search Algorithm

Graduation date: 2016The large wind resource off the United States West Coast has the potential to generate wind power for millions of homes, yet the high cost of energy for offshore wind power compared to traditional sources has slowed the development of offshore wind farms in the US. The four studies presented in this work explore optimal layouts for floating offshore wind energy systems off the US west coast in order to drive down costs. A moderately stochastic optimization method known as an Extended Pattern Search (EPS) is applied to a unidirectional, single wind speed case, and a multidirectional, multiple wind speed case. Another study is presented that evaluates commonly-implemented and symmetrical wind farm layouts in both unidirectional and multidirectional wind cases. Lastly, a study is presented that explores the use of seeded initial layouts in the optimization of wind energy systems.\ud Three advanced models are incorporated into the EPS: (1) a cost model developed specifically for this work, (2) a power development model that selects hub height and rotor radius to optimize power production, and (3) a wake propagation and interaction model that determines aerodynamic effects. Results from this work derive best practices that can be employed by offshore wind farm developers to improve the layout of platforms, and may contribute to reducing barriers to implementation, enabling developers and policy makers to have a clearer understanding of the resulting cost and power production of computationally optimized farms