ENGI41030 Group Design Project: Design Brief 2025-2026
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ENGI41030 Group Design Project: Design Brief 2025-2026
H1KD09 Electrical Engineering
Offshore Wind Farm Electrical System
Background
You are a small engineering consultancy asked to design the electrical system for a new UK offshore wind farm. Your job is to set out a buildable design that is safe, reliable and good value, and that will meet UK connection rules and standards at the onshore substation and grid connection.
Project context
Work to a notional 800 MW site located roughly 60–85 km from shore in 30–50 m water. Assume modern turbines in the 12–18 MW range on a 66 kV array. The onshore point of connection is at 400 kV near an existing substation. Treat these as starting values. You may adjust them if you explain why and keep the rest of the design consistent.
Objectives
Consider the following objectives for the project:
• Choose the collection and export architecture (HVAC or HVDC) and explain the choice using distance, losses, voltage control and cost.
• Design the array, inter-array cables, offshore substation(s), export link and onshore interface to the grid.
• Show that the design works across normal operation and one credible outage (e.g. one array string out, or one export circuit out).
• Provide a clear cost estimate and a short, realistic plan for build and commissioning.
Focus on electrical design, not foundations or wind resource assessment beyond what is needed to size the system.
Specific requirements
These are the requirements both for the design of the electrical system, and for preparing your final report:
1. Drawings: Single-line diagrams for the array, offshore substation(s), export system and the onshore substation interface. Include a cable schedule with lengths, cross-sections, current ratings and voltage drop margins.
2. Calculations and checks: Cable ampacity under seabed conditions, losses and voltage profile. Show how you will control reactive power. If you choose HVAC, deal with cable charging and voltage rise. If you choose HVDC, state converter ratings and what you need on the AC side. Include a simple time-series power flow for a typical week, plus one N-1 case.
3. Costing: A bill of quantities and prices for major items (for example, cables by length and size, transformers, switchgear, offshore platforms at concept level, converters if used, compensation equipment, installation). Cite price sources or assumptions.
4. Build and operation: A short installation and commissioning plan, highlighting activities that drive risk or downtime.
5. Compliance: A short statement on how your design will meet UK Grid Code expectations at the point of connection, and what vendor data would be needed at later stages.
6. References for all data, figures and prices used.
Tools and methods
Use tools you are comfortable with, for example MATLAB/Simulink, Python packages such as pandapower or PyPSA, DIgSILENT PowerFactory or OpenDSS. Keep models traceable from the assumptions in the report. Where data are missing, make a pragmatic assumption and record it.
2025-10-25
Offshore Wind Farm Electrical System