Concrete Construction Technology News

The major limitation in offshore wind farms tapping the stronger, more consistent winds that lie farther out is the depth required to install the footing for the turbine foundations. The Norway-based company Hydro is developing a new concept that would use floating concrete construction technology developed for the North Sea oil industry and apply it to offshore wind turbines, according to Renewable Energy Access reports. Dubbed "Hywind," model testing is currently under way at Norwegian R&D institute Sintef Marintek's ocean basin laboratory in Trondheim. Hydro is using the ocean basin in Trondheim to simulate wind and wave conditions at sea.