Experimental and numerical study on the hydrodynamic characteristics of a cube fish cage integrated into a wind turbine jacket foundation

Abstract

The integrated development model combining aquaculture cages and offshore wind turbines has become the focus of current research, as it plays an important role in promoting the marine economy and fostering marine ecological sustainability. This study proposes an innovative wind-aquaculture integration structure that integrates a cube fish cage into the jacket foundation. A mathematical model of the wind-aquaculture integration structure was developed based on the lumped-mass method. A model experiment was carried out at a scale of 1/25 to verify the accuracy of the model. The results indicate that under conditions of large wave height, long wave period, and small current velocity, the main peak and secondary peak of the upper windward cable tension appear alternately. The secondary peak increases with increasing wave height, decreases with increasing current velocity and submergence depth, and exhibits an initial increase followed by a decrease with increasing period. The trajectory range of the connection point between the upper windward cable and the cage increases with the increase of wave height and submergence depth, and deviates as the period and current velocity increase.