With the ongoing development of offshore wind in cold regions where the foundations are exposed to sea ice, there is a strong need for data to validate the numerically predicted dynamic interaction between ice and structure used for design. Full-scale data is non-existent and only a limited number of experimental campaigns in ice tanks have been conducted for this specific problem. When compared to traditional structures subjected to sea ice loading like lighthouses and oil and gas platforms, the motion of the turbines at the ice action point is both in line with the ice drift direction but also significantly across due to the interaction of the turbine with the wind. Furthermore, the structure being slender overall and having a large top mass results in a very particular set of modes of oscillation where at least both the first and second global bending mode are expected to interact with the ice. To capture this complexity, a real-time hybrid test setup has been designed for basin tests in the SHIVER project and is presented in this paper. The setup uses two integrated linear actuators to control the motion of a rigid pile in two dimensions. Loads at the ice-action point are measured and used in a numerical model where these are combined with virtual loads, for example wind loading, to determine the response of the structure which is then applied in the physical setup by the actuators. The system allows to test a wide range of combinations of structural stiffness, mass, and damping, including structural properties typically associated with the relevant modes of oscillation of offshore wind turbines.

A versatile cell for X-ray and neutron scattering experiments on samples under shear has been designed. To our knowledge, it is the first shear cell which can be used for both SAXS and SANS in respectively synchrotron or reactor beamlines. The cell is mainly intended for scattering experiments in so-called “1–2 plane geometry” but can also be modified into cone–plate and plate–plate rheological geometries, giving access to the 1–3 scattering plane. The latter two geometries, however, can only be used with neutron scattering. The final cell design is compact, which allows it to be used even with lab-based X-ray sources. A special thermostatic shell allows for the temperature control of the samples under investigation in the range from 5 up to 100 °C. Several X-ray and neutron scattering experiments performed with the cell have helped in better understanding of the structuring under shear of food materials, such as: cellulose suspensions, fat crystal networks and milk proteins.