Last month, we successfully completed the experimental phase of the GEOLAB Transnational Access project, “SAM-WT: Shared Anchor under Multidirectional Cyclic Loading for Floating Wind Turbines,” in our geotechnical test pit.

Led by Orianne Jenck, this project brought together a talented user group of 10 junior and senior researchers from Université Grenoble Alpes, Université Gustave Eiffel, and TU Darmstadt, alongside our dedicated technical staff.

Over the past year, we conducted five large-scale pile tests with both monotonic and cyclic lateral loading, in one and two directions. These tests were meticulously instrumented, including the use of Distributed Fibre Optic Sensing (DFOS) installed in the sand.

The insights gained are poised to enhance our understanding of pile behaviour under changing directional loads, crucial for shared anchor piles in floating wind turbines. Additionally, a portion of the experimental dataset will be instrumental in advancing geotechnical engineering practices through the GEOLAB Blind Prediction Contest and the GEOLAB Geotechnical Centrifuge Modelling Benchmark Exercise.

Thank you to everyone involved for your dedication and hard work!

Université Grenoble Alpes:

• Orianne Jenck
• Christophe Dano
• Rami Chalhoub
• Khayri Al-Katabi

Université Gustave Eiffel:

• Christelle Abadie
• Carlos Minatchy
• Fabien Szymkiewicz

TU Darmstadt:

• Hauke Zachert
• Alexander Kochnev
• Joaquín Liaudat