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In the SWiM project, six partners join forces to conduct research into the combination of marine technologies in the Belgian North Sea. The focus is on an ecologically sustainable integration of floating solar panels in wind farms.

The technology for floating photovoltaics has made great progress in recent years. Systems for lakes and reservoirs are being rolled out at gigawatt scale worldwide. Several approaches have been developed for offshore use, and a first number of demonstrators are being installed for this innovative technology.

Owing to the harsh environment with its strong waves, wind, and risks of corrosion and fouling, this requires an entirely new structural development. Covering an area of less than 10% of a wind farm, photovoltaic systems with a nominal power approximately matching that of the wind turbines can be connected sharing the same grid connection, which helps reduce costs.

The exact limits and curtailment losses have to be worked out by detailed analysis. A major beneficial factor is the complementarity of electricity generation between wind and solar throughout the year, as both energy sources are most productive at different times of the day and the year.

Concept

The SWiM project, which stands for Solar and Wind in the Belgian Marine Zone, is funded by the Energy Transition Fund of the Federal Public Service of the Economy and strives to draw up technical guidelines and policy recommendations towards multi-use of commercial zones at sea in so-called Mariparks.

In this concept, different technologies will be combined taking into account the possible effects of these parks on the marine environment, with effective and efficient integration of electricity generation by offshore wind and photovoltaics playing a key role.

The results will be disseminated broadly to serve as a basis for decisions of commercial players and authorities alike.

Approach

• The strengths and weaknesses of existing structures will be analysed, and options for the placement of floating solar panels within wind farms and ecological effects will be mapped out.  The rules for deployment within wind farms need to be refined to consider different requirements and the interests of all users. Stakeholders will be consulted to work out rules that are safe and effective.
• The electrical performance of the solar panels will be modelled in detail based on an existing framework for simulating energy yields. Specific measures will be identified to ensure reliability of components in harsh offshore conditions.
• The detailed limits are determined by the thermal load of cables, and corresponding models will be refined to ensure best scaling while maintaining safe operating conditions.
• Apart from the dimensions, the anchoring and mooring design determines to a large extent how the space at sea can best be used. This is complemented by requirements for safety distances and dedicated spaces for other uses. . In addition, biological effects need to be taken into account.
• A distinct goal of the project is to draw up policy advice and have an impact on marine spatial planning and permission rules. A series of workshops will therefore be held where stakeholders from all relevant areas can provide input. The project thus aims to develop guidelines that allow effective and safe co-use of the marine area designated for commercial purposes.

Johan Driesen, Professor of Electrical Engineering at KU Leuven and affiliated with EnergyVille: “With the complementary expertise of the partners, we will determine the boundary conditions for the integration of solar and wind energy offshore. We will engage with stakeholders to work out pathways for effective deployment of this exciting combination of technologies. This can help to put Belgium firmly on the map when it comes to innovative renewable energy generation.”

Partners

The project brings together six research, policy and industry partners:

• Laborelec has broad expertise in renewables and electrical systems and infrastructure, including offshore wind, solar energy, energy storage, power conversion systems and electric cable testing. The renewables team has been conducting internal research projects on offshore wind and floating solar energy for several years, financed by ENGIE Research&Innovation.
• With a sustainable blue economy as its core business, Blue Cluster has built up considerable expertise in (international) marine policy and gives advice to policy makers based on the experience of innovative technologies in its projects. We are involved in various innovative projects dealing with multi-use of marine spaces as well as Marine Spatial Planning, and provide a strong link to the business community.
• The Institute of Natural Sciences possesses significant expertise in marine ecology, covering hydrodynamic and biogeochemical modelling, experimental work, and field studies. The competences in quantifying and evaluating the environmental impacts of floating solar panels at sea, and more generally of human activities at sea (including offshore wind farms), were developed and applied in several previous research projects.
• Imec/EnergyVille runs and develops a modelling framework allowing to calculate the energy yield of several integrated photovoltaic applications as a function of environmental conditions and installation constraints. By extending a model established in the ‘MarineSPOTS’ project, the energy system will build further on degradation models for PV systems under different stressors, which can be refined with the unique environment of offshore photovoltaics.
• UHasselt / EnergyVille has broad expertise in the domain of energy systems reliability within the department imo-imomec, in collaboration with imec. In previous projects, this research group worked on reliability modelling and testing of solar modules and power electronic systems under different thermal, mechanical and electrical stresses, as well as PV system design, in-situ sensing and energy optimisation.
• On top of existing broad know-how in marine structural design, KU Leuven / EnergyVille has gained significant expertise in offshore photovoltaics over the past two years, not least through the ‘MarineSPOTS’ project. The electrical backbone of renewable energy systems, both in terms of power electronic converters and power system integration, forms part of their background, as do grid design and market aspects.

The SWiM project is funded by the Energy Transition Fund of the FPS Economy, SMEs, Self-employed and Energy, and will be guided by an Advisory Board of ten industry members active in the marine space and renewable energies.

From 9 to 13 September 2024, the surveillance aircraft of the Institute of Natural Sciences carried out its annual Tour d’Horizon (TdH) mission to monitor the offshore oil and gas platforms in the wider North Sea region. Despite the rough weather conditions, eight contaminations were documented.

The Tour d’Horizon is carried out annually in the context of the Bonn Agreement. For this, Belgium cooperates with other countries around the central and northern North Sea, and the Belgian aircraft also visits Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian and British waters. The aircraft is flown by pilots from Defence and manned by aerial operators from the Institute of Natural Sciences.

The TdH contributions from the various North Sea countries are coordinated according to a predetermined schedule and fixed route points. This guarantees optimal coverage and monitoring of the offshore oil and gas infrastructure.

Eight pollutions

During the Belgian TdH ’24 mission, eight slicks were observed, which is significantly less than in recent years. This can mainly be attributed to the rough weather at sea, which causes any pollutions to break down naturally almost immediately.

The observed pollutions concerned six oil spills, five of which could be linked to oil rigs. One oil spill was observed without a polluter in the vicinity. This was also the only spill of significant size (with an estimated volume of more than 1 m³). The remaining two spills were linked to an oil rig, but due to time and fuel constraints it could not be visually verified whether or not it concerned oil. All detections were reported to the competent national authorities in accordance with the procedures laid down in the Bonn Agreement.

Taking international responsibility

Thanks to the many years of experience of the crew, the functionality and deployability of the surveillance aircraft, Belgium continues to meet its commitments under the Bonn Agreement. As such, the Institute of Natural Sciences continues to demonstrate its commitment to better protection of the North Sea.

From 2018 to 2022, an enthusiastic team of specialists from 11 organisations around the North Sea – including the MARECO-team of the Institute of Natural Sciences (represented by underwater noise specialist and scientific diver Alain Norro), worked on the JOMOPANS project (Joint Monitoring of Ambient Noise in the North Sea). The project was nominated for the European REGIOSTARS 2024 Awards.

The aim of JOMOPANS was to develop a framework for a fully operational joint monitoring programme for ambient noise in the North Sea, and the project effectively developed tools to incorporate the effects of ambient noise in assessments of the environmental status of the North Sea and to evaluate measures to improve the environment.

This accomplishment has received a wide recognition and finally resulted in JOMOPANS becoming a finalist in the European REGIOSTARS 2024 Awards. A great achievement in itself, as only 25 finalists were chosen from a total of 262 entries ! These were divided into five categories, for JOMOPANS this was the category ‘A Green Europe’.

On October 9, 2024, the winners were announced. JOMOPANS ultimately did not win an award, but the true prize is that the project has put the topic of underwater noise on the map and helps to generate more attention for the marine environment and the problem of underwater noise. As such, JOMOPANS has a lasting impact on European policies on the marine environment.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Français and Nederlands.

The Institute of Natural Sciences, through its Management Unit of the Mathematical Model of the North Sea (MUMM), has successfully completed its ECA 2024 Border Campaign. The campaign was conducted from July 29 to August 2, 2024. This critical aerial mission aimed to monitor compliance with Annex VI of the MARPOL Convention, focusing on atmospheric pollution from ships in the Emission Control Area (ECA) along the southern border of the North Sea and in the English Channel.

During 10 flights lasting a total of over 21 hours, spread over five days, the SURV team conducted a total of 198 ship emission measurements on board the Belgian coastguard aircraft OO-MMM, equipped with an advanced airborne sniffer sensor. These measurements, focused on sulfur oxides (SOx) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), resulted in the identification of 17 potential violations of MARPOL Annex VI regulations, which were reported to the relevant authorities for further inspection. The 17 reports concerned 15 different ships (two ships were reported twice) and related to 12 FSC (Fuel Sulphur Content) alerts and three NOx alerts. Notably, seven of the reported vessels were inspected at their next port of call, demonstrating the functional link between OO-MMM and the port state inspection services of EU countries (+ Norway and Iceland) in the maritime enforcement chain, and thus confirming the role of the Belgian coastguard aircraft as a preliminary warning system.

This mission, executed in line with Belgium’s commitments under the Bonn Agreement, highlights the ongoing regional interest and effort to monitor and reduce maritime pollution in the North Sea region. Recommendations have been made to improve future campaigns, emphasizing better coordination with France and the United Kingdom and the inclusion of NOx pollutants in Thetis-EU, an EU platform developed by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) to record and exchange information on the results of individual compliance verifications carried out by Member States competent authorities under the Sulphur Directive.

Not only on land but also at sea, wind farms are becoming an increasingly important part of our gradual transition to renewable energy. On the other hand, generating wind energy at sea, like all human activities, also has consequences for the marine environment and the organisms that live there. However, at the start of the construction of the first offshore wind farms, there was little knowledge about this…

What effects do wind farms have on biodiversity in and on the seabed, in the water column and even above the water surface? Can we limit aspects of negative impact and promote positive aspects, and how? Can multiple use of space at sea (such as a combination of offshore wind farms with, for example, solar energy generation, oyster farming and also nature restoration) contribute to keeping our growing human claim on marine space within limits?

In the documentary ‘Offshore wind farms, can they coexist with nature?’ ARTE examines these questions and shows how the scientific monitoring is carried out.

In Belgium, the research and monitoring programme WinMon.BE has been investigating the ecological consequences of offshore wind farms for 15 years, right from the start of the installation of the first turbines. WinMon.BE is coordinated by the Institute of Natural Sciences and carried out in collaboration with various partners, and inspires similar programmes worldwide. Our scientists and the research vessel RV Belgica are therefore prominently featured in the ARTE documentary.

While challenges remain (such as limiting the impact on seabirds and migratory birds) and new challenges are expected (such as reducing underwater noise when larger offshore wind turbines are built in the future), the documentary makes it clear that the story of the ecological impact of offshore wind farms will never be a black and white story. We need to balance our efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (to halt global warming) against the undesirable consequences these efforts may have on certain species or ecosystems. The positive insights generated by monitoring the ecological impact of offshore wind farms should be further used to better ‘build with nature’ in the future, where nature development is integrated into human projects at sea as much as possible from the design phase.

Watch the 52-minute documentary here: https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/108979-000-A/offshore-wind-farms/

Sit back, relax and learn!

Sorry, this entry is only available in Français and Nederlands.

To study settlement patterns and preferences of the European flat oyster, custom-made oyster spat collectors were installed in the Belgian part of the North Sea in early June 2024. Reconciling commercial oyster cultivation with oyster restoration activities is the ultimate goal.

In early June 2024, the Institute of Natural Sciences and the Laboratory of Aquaculture and Artemia Reference Center at Ghent University have successfully deployed custom-made oyster spat collectors in a field experiment at the offshore windfarm Belwind, located 46 km off the coast of Ostend in the Belgian part of the North Sea. Additionally, one mini-tripod, equipped with a gabion holding mature European flat oysters (Ostrea edulis) was deployed near the spat collectors.

The installations were carried out with the research vessel Belgica as part of the Horizon Europe funded ULTFARMS project and supported by the activities of the Institute of Natural Sciences within the European Marine Biological Resource Centre Belgium (EMBRC Belgium).

Goals

The experiment aims to advance our understanding of the settlement patterns of European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis) larvae in the Belgian Part of the North Sea. It also seeks to explore the effect of habitat complexity on settlement preferences, with the ultimate goal of reconciling commercial oyster cultivation with oyster restoration activities.

By studying the settlement patterns of O. edulis, more effective conservation strategies can be created, potentially boosting oyster populations in the Belgian Part of the North Sea. After summer, the plates will be retrieved and analysed in the laboratory to evaluate oyster settlement rates and patterns. This information will provide new insights into how habitat complexity affects the settlement of European flat oysters, aiding future restoration efforts of this highly emblematic species and ecosystem engineer.

3D printing

Using state-of-the-art 3D printing technology and standardised clay plates, the spat collectors with varying levels of structural complexity were produced specifically to address ULTFARMS’ research questions.

The spat collectors are part of the Artificial Hard Substrate Garden, an offshore marine experimental facility, managed and provided by the Institute of Natural Sciences as a service of EMBRC Belgium to both the scientific community and the industry.

 

For further details, please visit the MARECO website or contact Wannes De Clercq (wdeclercq@naturalsciences.be).

EXA Infrastructure Begium has submitted an application for the authorization for the laying and an environmental permit for the exploitation of a telecommunication cable between Broadstairs – Joss Bay in the south east of England and Ostend. This application is subject to an environmental impact assessment procedure.

The application, the environmental impact statement and its annexes (concept of the appropriate assessment, non-technical summary and the report describing the effects on fisheries) can be consulted from 22 July to 28 August 2024 at the offices of MUMM at Brussels (Vautierstraat 29, 1000 Brussels; bmm@naturalsciences.be; tel 02/627 43 52) or at Ostend (3de en 23ste Linieregimentsplein, 8400 Ostend; bmm@naturalsciences.be; tel. 059/24 20 55), by appointment only and during office hours between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm. The application can also be consulted at every coastal community, during office hours.

The application is also available electronically:

• Application

1. RA23316_Vergunningsaanvraag_v3.0

• Environmental impact statement and annexes

2. RA23353_MER Q&E North_Niet technische samenvatting_v2.0

3. RA23131_MER Q&E North_v4.0

4. Externe bijlage 1_RA23288 OntwerpPB Q&E North_3.0

5. Externe bijlage 2_ILVO visserij-effectenrapport Q&E North

6. Externe bijlage 3_RA23344_Q&E North – Afvalbeheerplan_v3.0

 

Any interested party may submit its views, comments and objections to MUMM by letter or email until 12 September 2024:

MUMM

Vautierstraat 29

1000 Brussels

bmm@naturalsciences.be

The Institute of Natural Sciences and the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB) recently participated in the third “Cabauw Intercomparison of UV-Vis DOAS Instruments” (CINDI-3). This campaign took place in May-June 2024 and was organized by the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) at the Cabauw observatory, located between Rotterdam and Utrecht. More than 100 persons from 16 countries, with 44 instruments, were involved in the international measurement campaign, the largest of its kind in the world.

The main purpose of CINDI-3 is to test and compare different MAX-DOAS (Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) instruments that measure air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and ozone (O₃). These instruments use a technique that analyses the spectrum of scattered sunlight to determine the presence and concentration of various gases in the atmosphere.

As part of the Belgian contribution, the aerial surveillance aircraft of the Institute of Natural Sciences was equipped with various measuring instruments in the weeks before the exercise (including the BIRA SWING imaging DOAS system), while BIRA also supplied NO₂ and O₃ in-situ measuring equipment. Together with other measuring devices near the KNMI measuring mast in Cabauw, and operated on cars and bicycles, a complete picture of the distribution of pollutants in the industrial and urban areas around Rotterdam could be compiled. The NO₂ distribution over Antwerp was also mapped from the aircraft as part of the same campaign.

All flights were carried out in synchronisation with the Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite that carries the ESA TROPOMI instrument (Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument). This instrument maps various air quality and climate parameters. Thanks to the successful comparison of the observations of the measuring instruments on board the aircraft and on the ground, they can serve as a reliable reference for validating satellite instruments that measure air pollution from space.