Sustainable Design of Onshore Wind Turbine Foundations

[EN] In recent times, wind power has emerged as a prominent contributor to electricity production. Minimizing the costs and maximizing sustainability of wind energy is required to improve its competitiveness against other non-renewable energy sources. This communication offers a practical approach t...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Masanet, Claudio, Collado, Maria, Navarro -Martinez, Ignacio Javier, Yepes, V.|||0000-0001-5488-6001
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV)
Repositorio:RiuNet. Repositorio Institucional de la Universitat Politécnica de Valéncia
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:riunet.upv.es:10251/228807
Acceso en línea:https://riunet.upv.es/handle/10251/228807
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Wind power
Wind energy
Non-renewable energy sources
Wind turbine generator foundations
09.- Desarrollar infraestructuras resilientes, promover la industrialización inclusiva y sostenible, y fomentar la innovación
Descripción
Sumario:[EN] In recent times, wind power has emerged as a prominent contributor to electricity production. Minimizing the costs and maximizing sustainability of wind energy is required to improve its competitiveness against other non-renewable energy sources. This communication offers a practical approach to assess the sustainability of wind turbine generator foundations from a 3-dimensional holistic point of view. Specifically, the main goal of this study is to analyse the life cycle impacts of one shallow foundation design comparing three different concrete alternatives: conventional concrete, concrete with 66-80% of blast furnace slags and concrete with 20% fly ash, and then to apply a Multi-Criteria Decision-Making model based on TOPSIS method to evaluate and compare the resulting sustainability of each alternative considered. The study results in a methodology for quantifying sustainability rather than simply qualifying it. Therefore, this methodology can be employed for design optimization, such as geometry and materials, with a sustainable perspective in mind. Specifically in this study, concrete with blast furnace slags emerges as the top-ranked sustainable alternative, followed by conventional concrete in second place, and fly ash option in third position.