SEISMIC PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF WIND TURBINE STRUCTURES UNDER DIFFERENT GROUND-SHAKING CONDITIONS

Abstract

With the rising demand for sustainable energy, there has been a rise in the deployment of large-scale wind turbines in areas of different seismic hazards. This study explores the seismic response of a 2MW wind turbine under various ground shaking conditions under the influence of soil–structure interaction effects, dynamic wind loading and different soil strata. A detailed finite element model of a 106 m tall wind turbine was created using the quadrilateral element in the tower and the foundation system. The SSI's were incorporated using equivalent spring constants for the interaction between the foundation and underlying soils. Three real site soil investigation reports were used to assess the structural response of the wind turbine for various seismic conditions and soil properties. The variation of the foundation deflection, dynamic response and the dominant frequency in different seismic intensity zones were evaluated in the analysis. The results show that wind turbine systems built on competent soils and in low seismic zones demonstrate better seismic performance. Under seismic loading, soft soil conditions, in contrast, markedly raise the vulnerability of the structures. The results suggest that SSI and site-specific soil conditions should be taken into account for seismic design of wind energy infrastructure.