DNV has completed verification of a stage 3 floating LiDAR (light detection and ranging) system offshore Brazil.
Over a 55-day period, DNV conducted rigorous tests on the Fugro SEAWATCH buoy, equipped with a Zephir ZX300M LiDAR. It evaluated the floating LiDAR system’s performance against a reference LiDAR unit onshore to verify the system’s performance and accuracy in measuring wind and metocean data in various offshore conditions off the coast of Porto do Açu, Rio de Janeiro.
According to DNV, conventional wind measurement techniques offshore, such as the use of meteorological masts, can be expensive and complex to operate. Floating LiDAR systems are thought to be more cost-effective.
For this project, the verification showed a high data availability and low level of uncertainty in wind speed and direction measurements, DNV said, confirming that floating LiDAR technology can be reliable for offshore wind applications in Brazil.
The verification could be significant to the establishment of offshore wind in Latin America as a whole, DNV added.
