Effects of Seabed Scour on the Structural Performance and Safety of Fixed-Bottom Offshore Wind Turbine Foundations: A Review

Abstract

Offshore wind power has expanded rapidly in recent decades and is expected to continue growing through the deployment of larger turbines in deeper waters. The safe and stable operation of offshore wind turbines (OWTs) depends critically on foundation performance, which is severely threatened by seabed scour. To better understand these threats, this paper reviews recent studies on the effects of seabed scour on the structural performance and safety of fixed-bottom offshore wind turbine foundations (OWTFs), focusing on four aspects: (1) the changes induced by scour in both the seabed morphology and the soil mechanical state, which form the basis for the subsequent analyses; (2) the effects of scour on the bearing capacity and natural frequency of the foundation, covering both its static and dynamic performance; (3) the behavior of scoured foundations under long-term cyclic loading during normal operation and under transient seismic action during extreme events; and (4) the role of scour protection in enhancing structural safety. Several future research directions are also highlighted. This review offers helpful insights for assessing scour-induced risk and for designing scour protection from a structural safety perspective, thereby supporting the safe operation of OWTs.