Removal of biofouling from offshore structuresCopy Link

The OWiX challenge competition, delivered by the KTN, is supporting a wind farm owner (the Challenger) to identify innovative solutions to its innovation challenges. The winning business(es) in this competition will be given a commercial opportunity to deliver their solution, and receive support from the KTN and the wider InnovateUK network.

Background

Offshore wind turbine foundations have fixed access ladders for crew transfer. Fender pipes flank each side of the ladders, providing a surface for a crew transfer vessel to interface with. Birds and marine life use the structures as a habitat and leave excrement and other residues on the structure. The amount of residue from marine growth and mess caused by birds can be a major health hazard because it is unhygienic and can cause a slip hazard when wet.

Currently offshore wind turbine foundations must be cleaned routinely to ensure consistent access and prevent H&S incidents. It is commonly completed using vessel-mounted pressure washers. The KTN is looking for solutions to this issue for the Challenger.

Whilst not limiting the technologies from solution providers, it is expected that solutions would consider innovations from some of the following areas:

• Nuclear
• Aerospace
• Marine
• Rail
• Chemicals
• Surface coatings
• Piping technologies
• Construction and bridges
• Water and wastewater
• Shipping
• Robotics
• Artificial intelligence
• Drones
• Crawlers
• Ultrasonics
• Autonomous vehicles

To meet the desired timescale and risks, it is preferred that the proposed solution (or the key part(s) of the solution) has been demonstrated in an industrial environment. The solution should be in line with health and safety requirements and regulations.

Solution Requirements

Functional Requirements

• Solutions must focus on solving this issue for operating assets, rather than focus on new build sites. If successful on operating sites, the solution will also be considered for new-build sites.
• Current methods for cleaning turbines include the use of a crew transfer vessel with pressure washers, focussing activity on the fenders and ladders and transition piece walkway.
• The challenger is open to biofouling prevention methods (e.g. a novel coating) and biofouling remediation methods (e.g. pressure washing), as long as the new innovation is competitive with existing procedures.
• Any major campaigns to retrofit a wind farm with solutions must be completed at sea, and in offshore conditions.
• It is required that applicants will have a way to offer this commercially to the challenger within the required timeframe, offered on a standard contract agreement or as desired by both parties.
• The challenger has full control over the design of foundations and tower bases. 

Technical Characteristics

• Foundations on operational turbine sites range from 4.5 m to 6.5m diameter, although the focus of this competition is foundations of the 4.5m diameter magnitude.
• Transition piece walkways are approximately 20m above sea level.
• The focus of the biofouling is the splash zone of the monopile, boat landing and ladder, which is roughly 10m from top to bottom. This part of the foundation tends to attract biofilms, algae, crustacea and molluscs. The transition piece on the other hand attract birds more than sea creatures.
• Any solution should not lead to paint loss.
• Biofouling types include biofilms, arthropods, molluscs, bird excrement, partly-digested fish parts.
• Solutions must be in line with national QHSE process and regulations.
• Solutions must be marine toxicology/contamination compliant.

Deployment Timescale

• The solution should be ready to test in 6 months.
• Ideally a solution will reach sea trials before the end of November 2019 (before the winter season).

Operating Conditions

• Solutions must be able to be operated safely and reliably in typical UK offshore conditions.
• Solutions that seek major retrofit campaigns (e.g. new coatings) must overcome the challenge that there are very few days per year when sea conditions are calm enough to carry out a campaign.
• Simple, fast retrofittable solutions will be preferred.

Cost requirement and market opportunity

• Current solutions cost £900 per year per turbine and new solutions must offer a big cost saving on current levels to cover the cost of switching.
• As of 2017 there were 4,872 structures installed in the world, indicating a current market of £4.385m. The market will also grow at a rate of 9% per year, with around 600 structures installed per year until 2025.

Eligibility and assessment criteria

Entrants to this competition must be:

• Established businesses, startups, SMEs or individual entrepreneurs
• UK based or have the intention to set up a UK base

Applications will be assessed on:

• Relevance to the topic
• Innovative nature of the subject
• Coherence of the proposed business model
• Feasibility/ economic viability
• Development potential
• Maturity of project/solution
• Ability to launch project quickly/Ease of implementation
• Price/quality ratio

IP and Potential Commercial Route

• Existing background IP associated with a potential solution will remain with Solution Provider(s). Where any new IP generation is envisaged, it will be subject to the mutual IP agreement of the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenge Owner
• Any commercial deployment of transferred solution or newly developed solution, through licensing, joint venture, partnership or direct investment, will be subject to the commercial agreement between the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenge Owner
• Where necessary, a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) may be signed to uphold confidentiality in the engagement between the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenge Owner
• Innovate UK and KTN do not take any share of IP ownership or enter into commercial venture through the OWiX programme