Response Characteristics of Flexible Risers in Offshore Compressed Air Energy Storage Systems

With the rapid development of marine renewable energy technologies, the demand to mitigate the fluctuation of variable generators with energy storage technologies continues to increase. Offshore compressed air energy storage (OCAES) is a novel flexible-scale energy storage technology that is suitable for marine renewable energy storage in coastal cities, islands, offshore platforms, and offshore renewable energy farms. For deep-water applications, a marine riser is necessary for connecting floating platforms and subsea systems. Thus, the response characteristics of marine risers are of great importance for the stability and safety of the entire OCAES system. In this study, numerical models of two kinds of flexible risers, namely, catenary riser and lazy wave riser, are established in OrcaFlex software. The static and dynamic characteristics of the catenary and the lazy wave risers are analyzed under different environment conditions and internal pressure levels. A sensitivity analysis of the main parameters affecting the lazy wave riser is also conducted. Results show that the structure of the lazy wave riser is more complex than the catenary riser; nevertheless, the former presents better response performance.