3. Loads transmitted to the ground

3.1 Loads applied to the ground in the absence of wind

The calculations presented in this paragraph concern a wind turbine not subjected to wind loads.

The weight of the wind turbine (F _VE ) is usually between 200 and 450 T.

The diameter of the footings varies from 16 m for wind turbines of around 2 MW to almost 25 m for the most powerful, i.e. surfaces of between 200 and 400 m ² , leading to an average vertical surcharge of between 10 and 20 kPa.

The footing, 2.5 to 3.5 m high, combines heavily reinforced concrete (density 2.5) with an overlying ballast backfill (density between 1.8 and 2.0). The average density of the footing...