In “Secure offshore wind energy”, the Amrumbank West offshore wind farm exemplifies how geotextile sand containers (Secutex® Soft Rock) enable economical, technically sound and safe construction. Here, NAUE’s team summarizes the work and the beneficial impact geosynthetics are having on offshore wind energy.

The Amrumbank West offshore wind farm is located 35 km north of Helgoland and 37 km west of the North Frisian island of Amrum. It extends over 34 km². The energy company E.ON is installing 80 Siemens 3.6 MW class wind turbines to give the wind farm a future capacity of 288 megawatts. This is enough power to supply up to 300,000 homes and save more than 740,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

SCOUR PROTECTION FOR 80 MONOPILES

Monopiles (“Single piles”) are driven into the seabed under the latest soundproofing technology. They give the turbines a secure footing. E.ON uses NAUE geotextile container solution for scour protection. The film shows how NAUE Soft Rock Sand Containers, during installation, are supported by GPS for precise seabed placement prior to the monopile’s installation. This protects the turbine footing against seabed washout.

Secutex® Soft Rock from NAUE utilizes the highly robust, staple fibre, specially needle-punched nonwoven Secutex® geotextile. Containers are sewn together with a high-performance yarn. After sand filling, the container remains flexible and can thus adapt to variable seabeds. Secutex® Soft Rock offers outstanding long-term stability, a high contact angle of friction, high permeability and high abrasion resistance.

Scour protection of offshore wind turbines
Staging and filling of the geotextile sand containers took place very close to the installation. GPS technology ensured exact placement of bags ahead of monopile installation.

NAUE Soft Rock containers can be filled on site, which saves time and transport costs. Additionally, the sand containers allow a decoupled construction process, because they can be installed before ramming of the monopile. Secutex® Soft Rock containers can be drilled with the monopile without losing their function. This simplifies the construction process (saving cost).

Advantages of NAUE Secutex® Soft Rock Sand Container:

  • Decoupled construction process
  • Lower transport and construction costs
  • Long-term scour protection
  • Ecological (sustainable) construction
  • Easy – Fast – Safe

For more information, visit www.naue.com.

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