Foundation design

26-10-2021

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Foundation

The foundation’s only task is to ensure the stability for the wind turbine, and to do so over its
life-time. This is done by transferring and spreading the loads acting on the foundation to the
ground
Source Type of load
Dead load from tower, Vertical downward
nacelle & rotor
Wind Bending & little vertical load

Main design aspects are

• Structural – Load carrying capacity
• Geotechnical – Connection between the structure and the ground

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Limit states

The structure’s state of stress must be kept below the limit state in order to continue the
intended use of it.

Ultimate limit state (ULS) Serviceability limit state (SLS)

Prevents the structure from collapse Protects the structure’s appearance,
and occurrence of buckling, overturning durability and efficiency by preventing
and accidental damage deflection, cracking, fatigue etc.

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Foundation over plates
1. Stability
To ensure that a construction is not
turning over, the eccentricity of the load must
be within the perimeter of the foundation.
M is the bending moment acting at the
bottom of the structure
V is the vertical load on the structure
including the weight of the construction
B is the diameter of the construction
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2. Bearing capacity
The bearing capacity of the soil, which is
a calculation in the ultimate limit state (ULS),
can be calculated from the general bearing
capacity
q is the bearing capacity for the plate
c is the cohesion
q is the surrounding load at the foundation
level
γ ' is the effective bulk density of the soil
Rest all are correction factors
Effective foundation area

In eccentrically loaded foundations, where bending moment acts in one plane only, the
analysis assumes a uniform distribution of contact stress ‘σ’ applied only over a portion of the
foundation l1, which is less by twice the eccentricity ‘e’ compared to the total length l.

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