UC Davis

The offshore wind industry is constantly evolving, and this evolution is not limited to wind turbines, but extends to the production, installation, operation, maintenance, and decommissioning phases of offshore wind farm life cycles. To better understand how this evolving technology has been assessed in research, this study undertakes a systematic review of published life cycle assessment of offshore wind. The review interrogates how the life cycle phases of offshore wind farms are represented and modeled in LCA and identifies gaps between current practice in LCA and the latest technology used in the industry. Additionally, a review of siting parameters (e.g., geographic location and distance to shore), reference sources, phase assumptions, and impact categories evaluated is presented. The obtained results show the need for updated models that better reflect the industry's current practices and to conduct studies for developing markets where offshore wind has potential for growth, but comprise a small number of the previous studies conducted.