Project

The Doctoral Network (DN) “RESCUER“ (Resilient Solutions for Coastal, Urban, Estuarine and Riverine Environments) will focus on the training of young researchers (Fellows) in the general area of coastal oceanography, hydraulic and coastal engineering, applied mathematics, and scientific computation. The network will leverage advances in the numerical treatment of hydrodynamic equations in the past decade to create multi-physics models able to address pressing needs in practical modeling of various phenomena in the coastal zone with the goal of improving overall safety of coastal areas.

Ensuring the safety of property and commercial developments onshore and offshore requires an integrated approach, including phase-resolving wave modeling, tracking and mitigation of morphological changes, potential flooding in urban areas and monitoring of water quality. While protective structures and emergency plans for catastrophic storm waves and storm surges are well established, the confluence of global warming and sea level rise with other known natural risk factors and increasing human activity create a new set of hazards and requires new thinking in coastal modeling and the planning of mitigation strategies.

To address the challenges outlined above, we will rely on numerical techniques which are in each case tested against existing models and validated with experiments and field measurements. In our work with consulting companies and government agencies, we have identified a trend towards coupled models instead of traditionally used stand-alone models and a need for operational capabilities. These needs will be answered using new multi-physics models, state-of-the-art numerical methods, image recognition algorithms and innovative programming techniques such as GPU programming. The synergistic interplay of physical modelling, numerical analysis and large-scale simulation with lab experiments and field work plays an essential role in this network. Our project goes beyond the state of the art by improving existing numerical models, employing GPU programming and super-resolution techniques and building a unified suite of solvers that will allow us to address the multi-physics problems in coastal, estuarine, riverine and urban areas.

The decision to build the world's first two offshore energy islands (or hubs) is a cornerstone in reaching Denmark's climate targets and a beginning of a new era for green Danish technology export. With an estimated value of DKK 210bn, the offshore energy islands will create significant business opportunities for Danish stakeholders. In the Offshore Energy Hubs (OEH) project we develop technical solutions for:
a) tools and control solutions for stable and resilient hub operation,
b) cost-efficient design of wind power plants (WPPs) and
c) hub-optimized offshore Power-to-X (PtX).

The value creation of the OEH solutions is both direct and indirect. The developed solutions will reduce capital costs by DKK 20bn just for the first 10 GW islands, and, most importantly, will enable a future-proof expansion of the energy islands. This opens up immense global market opportunities for the technologies developed by the top Danish industry, who are partners to this project. Therefore, the technical solutions developed in the OEH project contribute to ensuring the profitability of the OEH, while also ensuring the stability of the hub and the connected power systems.

The OEH's execution ensures timely contributions to the partners' strategy and roadmaps. OEH will deliver a framework for Bornholm as a large-scale development and demonstration center for offshore energy island technology, supporting Danish industry in maintaining its first-mover position.