Modelling Rock Adapter Foundations

CTE Wind acted as an independent reviewer of an onshore rock adapter wind turbine foundation design for a wind farm in a Scandinavian country. During the analysis it was observed that including the tower stiffness in the numerical models was critical to accurately capture the structure’s behaviour. The tower stiffness was taken into account by modelling a segment of its actual geometry. The simulations showed that the rock anchors in the original design did not meet the safety requirements in terms of tensile strength. The reasons for the divergence in results are explored in this article.