ABSTRACT

The planned offshore wind farms in the German parts of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea will be constructed in water depths varying from approximately 15 to 40 m. By means of suitable foundation constructions, the large horizontal forces and bending moments resulting from wind and wave loads must be economically and safely transferred to the sea soil. Monopile foundations can be used as one of these foundation types. This foundation method was already implemented for OWECs in the North and the Baltic Sea, but only in water depths of less than about 15 m. Its application is expected to be extendable for water depths up to about 25 to 30 m. However, the diameters of such monopiles will then vary between 5.0 and 7.5 m (Fig. 1).