System of anchoring and mooring of floating wind turbine towers and corresponding methods for towing and erecting thereof

Abstract

A system of floating and weight-stabilized wind turbine towers with separately floodable compartments and aerodynamic overwater encasement and the appertaining semisubmersible mooring structures including anchorage on the seabed, a horizontally floating underwater mooring meshwork and an actinomorphic buoy-cable-mooring to the wind turbine towers. Also, a method to transport wind turbine towers from the manufacturing plants on-shore to the final off-shore destination by towing the vented towers in a horizontal position with towboats. Further, a method to erect the wind turbine towers at the final destination, including the assembly of the wind turbines. The worldwide potentials of off-shore wind farming in deep waters to produce electricity in an ecologically and economically sound way in order both to satisfy men's requirements and to help to reduce the need to rely on critical fossil and nuclear resources being immense.

1 . System of anchoring and mooring of floating wind turbine towers in waters typically deeper than 30 meters, forming a windpark-structure, comprising:
 anchors, vertical mooring lines, border mooring lines, major buoys, a floating meshwork, and ropes.   
     
     
         2 . System according to  claim 1 , wherein each wind turbine tower comprises an upper part exposed to the winds, a submerged lower part or shaft, compartments, a sliding ring, a stabilizing bottom weight, an aerodynamic encasement with openings, a water-air-pipe system and connective valves. 
     
     
         3 . Method for towing the wind turbine towers with one single or several vented compartments in horizontal position with towboats from on-shore construction and assembling sites to the off-shore sites of electricity production. 
     
     
         4 . Method for erecting wind turbine towers at a final destination by flooding successively one or more compartments, starting with a compartment next to a lower end respectively next to a stabilizing bottom weight of a shaft, until an upper part of each wind turbine tower reaches a working level from which the entire nacelle is mounted to a top end of the respective wind turbine tower and from which also blades are fixed. 
     
     
         5 . Method according to  claim 4 , further comprising the following step: after having fully assembled the wind power station one or more compartments are at least partially vented until the wind power station reaches its final operational position to produce electrical energy. 
     
     
         6 . System according to  claim 1  further including signal buoys. 
     
     
         7 . System according to  claim 1  wherein the ropes have weights. 
     
     
         8 . System according to  claim 2  wherein the compartments includes a center compartment. 
     
     
         9 . Method according to  claim 3  wherein the compartments includes a center compartment. 
     
     
         10 . Method according to  claim 4  wherein the final destination is an off-shore site of electricity production. 
     
     
         11 . Method according to  claim 5  wherein there are plural compartments and more than one compartment is vented. 
     
     
         12 . Method according to  claim 5  wherein at least one compartment is fully vented. 
     
     
         13 . Method according to  claim 5  wherein a water level in at least one compartment is above a surrounding water level and the water within the at least one compartment is simply being released.