Search results for "Turbine blade"
showing 10 items of 16 documents
Leading edge erosion of wind turbine blades: Effects of blade surface curvature on rain droplet impingement kinematics
2020
Abstract The issue of leading edge erosion (LEE) of wind turbine blades (WTBs) is a complex problem that reduces the aerodynamic efficiency of blades, and affects the overall cost of energy. Several research efforts are being made at the moment to counter erosion of WTBs such as-testing of advanced coating materials together with development of high-fidelity computational models. However, the majority of these studies assume the coated surfaces as flat, while the surface curvature and the shape of the aerofoil at the blade’s leading-edge exposed to such rain fields is neglected. The present study questions the assumption of a flat surface, in the context of LEE of WTBs, and provides guideli…
Proactive maintenance of offshore wind turbine blades using knowledge-based force analysis
2013
The operation and maintenance (O&M) costs of wind turbines constitute approximately 10-15% of the lifecycle cost in onshore installations and up to 30% in offshore installations. The O&M costs for offshore wind power plants are higher than the onshore ones due to greater logistical challenges of maintaining and servicing, and the less mature state of offshore wind energy technology. Wind turbine blades suffer from various faults, for example, blade angle asymmetry, icing, and bends. These faults may cause wind turbines to a standstill. Replacement of rotor blades will normally result in a long downtime since the replacement process involves heavy transportation (vessel, crane) and dependenc…
Comparison of numerical modelling techniques for impact investigation on a wind turbine blade
2019
Wind turbine blades are exposed to numerous impact risks throughout their lifetimes. The impact risks range from bird collisions during operation to impacts with surrounding structures at the time of transportation and installation. Impact loads on the fibre composite blades can induce several complex, simultaneously interacting and visually undetectable damage modes and have a high potential to reduce the local and global blade stiffness. An assessment of such impact-induced damages is therefore necessary and usually involves high computational costs using numerical procedures, especially when analysing large composite components. To minimise this computational expense, different numerical…
Minimum Leading Edge Protection Application Length to Combat Rain-Induced Erosion of Wind Turbine Blades
2021
Leading edge erosion (LEE) repairs of wind turbine blades (WTBs) involve infield application of leading edge protection (LEP) solutions. The industry is currently aiming to use factory based LEP coatings that can applied to the WTBs before they are shipped out for installation. However, one of the main challenges related to these solutions is the choice of a minimum LEP application length to be applied in the spanwise direction of the WTBs. Generally, coating suppliers apply 10–20 m of LEP onto the blades starting from the tip of the blade using the “rule of thumb”, and no studies in the literature exist that stipulate how these LEP lengths can be calculated. In this study, we extend the sc…
Effects of Onshore and Offshore Environmental Parameters on the Leading Edge Erosion of Wind Turbine Blades: A Comparative Study
2021
Abstract The presence of rain-induced leading edge erosion of wind turbine blades (WTBs) necessitates the development of erosion models. One of the essential parameters for erosion modeling is the relative impact velocity between rain droplets and the rotating blade. Based on this parameter, the erosion damage rate of a WTB is calculated to estimate the expected leading edge lifetime. The environmental conditions that govern this parameter have site-specific variations, and thus, rain and wind loading on a turbine differ for onshore and offshore locations. In addition, there are wave loads present in the offshore environment. The present paper tries to provide guidelines for erosion modelin…
Numerical investigation of rain droplet impact on offshore wind turbine blades under different rainfall conditions: A parametric study
2020
The leading edge of a fiber composite wind turbine blade (WTB) is prone to erosion damages due to repeated rain droplet impact during its service life. Such damages are critical to the blade's aerodynamic as well as structural performance, ultimately resulting in substantial repair costs. An effective design of a coating material for WTB is necessary and its analysis must include variables associated with erosive rain droplets such as (1) droplet diameter, (2) impact velocity, and (3) droplet impact angle. The present paper develops and validates a coupled fluid structure interaction (FSI) computational model for simulating rain droplet impact on WTBs, where the structure domain is modelled…
Leading Edge Erosion of Wind Turbine Blades: Effects of Environmental Parameters on Impact Velocities and Erosion Damage Rate
2021
Abstract Leading edge erosion (LEE) of a wind turbine blade (WTB) is a complex phenomenon that contributes to high operation and maintenance costs. The impact between rain droplets and rotating blades exerts cyclic fatigue stresses on the leading edge — causing progressive material loss and reduced aerodynamic performance. One of the most important parameters for erosion modelling and damage prediction is the relative impact velocity between rain droplets and rotating blade and depends upon the environmental conditions. The environmental condition, in general, could vary for onshore and offshore wind turbines (OWTs) — for instance, the presence of wave-induced loads along with less turbulen…
Robust model calibration using determinist and stochastic performance metrics
2016
International audience; The aeronautics industry has benefited from the use of numerical models to supplement or replace the costly design-build-test paradigm. These models are often calibrated using experimental data to obtain optimal fidelity-to-data but compensating effects between calibration parameters can complicate the model selection process due to the non-uniqueness of the solution. One way to reduce this ambiguity is to include a robustness requirement to the selection criteria. In this study, the info-gap decision theory is used to represent the lack of knowledge resulting from compensating effects and a robustness analysis is performed to investigate the impact of uncertainty on…
Structural Safety Assessment of Marine Operations From a Long-Term Perspective: A Case Study of Offshore Wind Turbine Blade Installation
2019
Abstract A marine operation is a complex non-routine activity of limited duration carried out in offshore environment. Due to safety reasons, these operations are normally performed within specific sea state limits, which are derived from numerical modelling and analysis of hazardous events. In view of the uncertainties in the assessment of structural responses under stochastic environmental conditions, these limiting curves correspond to a target structural failure probability recommended in offshore standards (for example, 10−4 per operation as specified by DNV-GL). However, one of the main limitations is that these curves do not reflect site-specific safety assessment. The current paper …
Numerical study of a concept for major repair and replacement of offshore wind turbine blades
2020
Repair and replacement of offshore wind turbine blades are necessary for current and future offshore wind turbines. To date, repair activities are often conducted using huge jack-up crane vessels and by applying a reverse installation procedure. Because of the high costs associated with installation and removal of offshore wind turbine components and the low profit margin of the offshore wind industry, alternative methods forinstallation and removal are needed. This paper introduces a novel concept for replacement or installation of offshore windturbine blades. The concept involves a medium-sized jack-up crane vessel and a tower climbing mechanism. This mechanism provides a stable platform …