The Project
During the summer of 2023, ScanTech Offshore successfully completed the installation of 13 monopile foundation installations for a leading EPCI on the east coast of the US. This project is one of the first commercial-sized offshore wind farms in this region with many more planned over the coming years.
The requirements
ScanTech Offshore were requested to supply the compressed air to create an effective bubble curtain, which is an essential part of the wind farm installation process in the US.
A bubble curtain is a barrier that surrounds the piling of wind turbine foundations with bubbles to attenuate noise and protect marine wildlife. Air is sent down a hose to a flexible hose system which is pre-laid on the seabed with special a nozzle openings that release bubbles in strategic column formations.
The solution
ScanTech Offshore deployed 9 of their ST3100 containerised air compressors delivering a total of 787m3/min of class 0 compressed air for the project. This new technology recently developed in-house utilises a Caterpillar engine and an original radiator design by ScanTech Offshore to create a bubble curtain that reduces noise by up to 90%.
The ST3100’s air compressors were supported by expert personnel to commission, operate and maintain the air compressors on a 24-hour basis, 7 days a week.
The challenge
Big bubble curtain projects come with a range of challenges. Firstly, to deliver the volume of air required for a project the operator typically needs to install many air compressors which take up a large footprint on a vessel (20 – 30 air compressors can typically be required). This project was no different, but the available deck space was very limited. We were required to install the air delivery package into a very confined space, where traditional solutions simply would not suffice or fit to deliver the project successfully.
However, with the ST3100 we were able to deliver more than double the output compared to traditional solutions, whilst taking up half the footprint. This was achieved through the ST3100’s ability to not only be stackable but to stack whilst maintaining a more comfortable temperature between units for personnel to operate. When stacked (as per the design) the footprint savings are much greater providing up to 3-4 times more compressed air on the same footprint as some of the alternative solutions available in the market.
The outcome
The project was successfully completed in the summer of 2023, running to the pre-planned schedule and with 100% up time and no down time, exceeding all expectations from the client. The leading EPCI have further projects in the US running through to 2024/2025, all of which ScanTech Offshore will be supplying the big bubble curtain air delivery solution.
