Prototypes of wind turbines of the megawatt class are to be built and tested until 2008 within a German offshore wind energy test field in the North Sea (ALPHA VENTUS). To ensure a high operational reliability of offshore wind turbines with economically acceptable repair and maintenance efforts, comprehensive diagnosis and supervision concepts are required. Automatic monitoring systems will be an

This paper establishes the model basis regarding the ultimate limit state consisting of structural, loading, and probabilistic models of the support structure of offshore wind energy converters together with a sensitivity study. The model basis is part of a risk based assessment and monitoring framework and will be applied for establishing the "as designed and constructed" reliability as prior inf

This paper develops the models for the structural performance of the loading and probabilistic characterization for the fatigue and the serviceability limit states for the support structure of offshore wind energy converters. These models and a sensitivity study are part of a risk based assessment and monitoring framework and will be applied for establishing the "as designed and constructed" relia

The fatigue deterioration modeling for welded steel structures subjected to high cycle fatigue is presented in the current document. The aim of this paper is to formulate approaches based on actual research results for the phases fatigue crack initiation, fatigue propagation and fatigue failure. The physical characteristics of the approaches are discussed in combination with the associated uncerta

A reliability-based approach to inspection planning for welded steel structures subjected to high cycle fatigue is presented in the current document. Inspections are an effective means to control the progress of fatigue deterioration and the presented approach allows to determine the minimum required inspection effort so that the considered structure complies with the given risk acceptance criteri

This paper contains a summary of the joint research project "OGOWIN: Optimisation of support structures for offshore wind turbines regarding the material consumption, the construction and production sequence as well as new production methodologies". The results comprise (1) a modal analyses of various types of offshore wind turbine support structures, (2) the fatigue strength testing of the cast s

This paper contains recent research results in the field of monitoring supported structural integrity management. The structural integrity management aims at ensuring the functioning of a structure throughout the life cycle by compliance with the target reliabilities. Building upon research results concerning the characteristics of monitoring techniques and data within the framework of reliability

To ensure a high operational reliability of offshore wind turbines (OWEC) with economically acceptable repair and maintenance efforts, comprehensive diagnosis and supervision concepts are required. Automatic monitoring systems will be an essential part of such concepts. Because of the fact, that during operation there will be static and dynamic interaction between the components 'structure', 'mach

In her book, ‘Bad Feminist’, Roxane Gay claims this label shamelessly, embracing the contradictory aspects of enacting feminist practice while fundamentally being ‘flawed human[s]’. This article tells a story inspired by and enacting Roxane Gay’s approach in academia, written by five cis-gendered women geographers. It is the story of a proactive, everyday feminist initiative to survive as women in

This paper examines the implementation of smart specialization in Europe and exposes challenges arising from moving towards a more strategic (directional and non-neutral), place-based, and bottom-up mode of regional innovation policy. The analysis focuses on two small European nations – Wales and Estonia – and discusses the challenges that they have experienced with designing and implementing dire

Regional roles of universities in the Global South have been under-explored, and it is not clear how relevant are concepts originating from the Global North when applied in this context. The paper interrogates the concept of the ‘entrepreneurial university’ and its regional impact and engagement via a case study in Brazil. It is found that, in addition to purely entrepreneurial and economic activi

In this paper we make three points about the current state and promising future directions of qualitative research in our field of innovation policy research. First, we argue that research design and methods are dealt with quite superficially in most innovation policy studies papers and journals providing little guidance to new scholars as to how to approach their research. Secondly we argue that

This paper considers a concept gaining popularity: entrepreneurial ecosystems. It finds a significant lacuna in the concept as it stands as it does not sufficiently consider learning within regional ecosystems. Considering the established centrality of learning for entrepreneurial activity and regional development, it is surprising that the entrepreneurial ecosystem literature does not yet incorpo

This paper examines the use of European Union Structural Funds to support the development of innovation policy within Wales during the period 2000–06. Drawing on data from the Welsh government and interviews with key stakeholders, it focuses specifically on the Technium programme, a high-profile technology-based innovation intervention that took a predominantly supply-side approach to supporting i

The student of innovation studies is faced with a vast, multi-national and interdisciplinary field on which she must gain an overview and make a novel contribution. There exist a plethora of academic journals, networks, conferences and fora wherein researchers of innovation discuss and advance the topic. How to manage and understand this is a major challenge. This paper helps to make sense of this

This paper considers the recent developments in regional innovation policy pertaining to the smart specialisation agenda from the perspective of a peripheral and semi-autonomous region – Wales in the UK. Through a case study of innovation policy developments in Wales over the past 20 years, and also a consideration of extant literature pertaining to regional innovation policy and smart specialisat

The root-associated habit has evolved on numerous occasions in different fungal lineages, suggesting a strong evolutionary pressure for saprotrophic fungi to switch to symbiotic associations with plants. Species within the ubiquitous, saprotrophic genus Mycena are frequently major components in molecular studies of root-associated fungal communities, suggesting that an evaluation of their trophic