In this article, we give an overview of the latest additions to the Youwind web-based solution:
- Exclusion zones and multiple development areas added to park layout design
- Wind speed bias can be edited directly with inputs of Weibull parameters
- Visualization of rotor diameter spacing and exclusion zones in the park layout
- Direct edit of offshore substation and turbine positions
- Project portfolio overview
- Power and Thrust curve download option
- Bathymetry slope visualization
- Fixed Bottom and Floating foundation filtering on the map
- Area screening map possibility to make as fullscreen
As always, you can write to info@youwindrenewables.com to get further information or help from our offshore wind experts.
Exclusion zones and multiple development areas
For the offshore wind farm layout design it is important to ensure the exclusion zones are accounted for. This applies to the actual positions of the turbines, but also to the array and export cables, mooring lines, anchors, and offshore substations.
The exclusion zones can be for instance UXOs, existing pipelines, cables, or simply the area in which the developer should not plan for any offshore wind components.
Now the users can upload an area that includes already the exclusion zones, or edit them directly on the map before generating a layout. When there is a need to take exclusion areas into account the users can use the "Cut Layers" tool on the map.
Then on the current development area that might look like the one below, we would need to account for one pipeline corridor that the blades can not overhang the area, and a buffer to the offshore substation.
By adding the exclusion zones, the polygon automatically updates and becomes the development area for the layout design.
When you add the exclusion zone it is automatically excluded from the layout design development area and when running the layout generator the turbines are placed taking these buffers into account. The constraint is set under park layout design:
And then the layout is generated:
After finalizing the turbine layout, the cable layout can be set automatically. The cable layout can then be adjusted to minimize cable crossings of the pipeline.
The result is a layout optimized for yield and electrical infrastructure.
The users can also upload an area consisting of multiple polygons that are to be joined for one wind farm. The same applies there as the layout automatically generates within those areas.
Wind speed bias
As standard then Youwind extracts Weibull parameters from Vortex to estimate the wind resource.
Under Site wind resource details it is now possible to manually customize the Weibull parameters to do sensitivities of the wind speed. By ticking the box the custom parameters are used to define the Weibull distribution.
Note that the pixel area wind speed does not change but Park Layout Design and Scenario Overview and Finance do.
Rotor diameter spacing visualization
In the park layout design, it is now possible to use ellipse visuals for rotor diameter spacing.
By default, the spacing and direction are set based on the generated layout spacing.
The user can however also set the spacing differently by adding the major and minor ellipse spacing and editing the wind direction.
The result is a layout that shows the spacing ellipses around each turbine.
Around the turbine itself, the rotor diameter is shown in the inner circle.
It is then also possible to move the turbines around to see the spacing impact on the production.
Direct edit of offshore substation and turbine positions
It is now possible to edit directly the coordinates of the offshore substation. By clicking the icon the user can manually add the longitude and latitude coordinates.
The same now also applies to the turbine positions. After uploading or generating a layout the coordinates appear as editable and the users can manually add the coordinates and re-run the yield calculations.
Project portfolio overview
Under projects, it is now possible to see the project portfolio in map view.
This applies to all projects so it is possible to view the different projects in various stages and markets.
Power and Thrust curve download option
Under turbines, it is now possible to download the turbine power curve with a button on the right top of the graph. The format is .csv and the variables are wind speed, power curve, and thrust curve.
This is the same format that can be used for uploading directly for a turbine library item.
Bathymetry slope
Under maps, it is now possible to add the bathymetry contour to see the variability of GEBCO data.
Foundation technology filtering
Under maps, it is now possible to open "Offshore wind technical potential" and evaluate the technical potential of areas if it is for fixed bottom or floating technologies.
The limit is set at 50m bathymetry and the background GEBCO data is then retrieved per area or per position when drawing an area or generating a layout.
This can also be done very high level for wind farm area screening for wind siting purposes.
Area screening map enlarged to full screen
For the area screening map, a button has been added so the users can see the map in full screen for better navigation around the projects.
About Youwind Renewables
Youwind is a web-based solution for accelerating offshore wind development.
Founded in 2018 by industry engineers with over 15 years of experience in offshore wind development, Youwind's innovative technology streamlines and optimizes the initial phases of offshore wind project development, reducing early-stage development timelines by 80%.
By leveraging our database, critical decision-making in project development, including design, can be rapidly made. We look at offshore wind developments holistically as our approach integrates engineering and cost data to efficiently model key technical and financial indicators and assess the viability of projects.
To find out more request a demo now.
