Load consequences when sweeping blades - A case study of a 5 MW pitch controlled wind turbine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Verelst, D.R.S.; Larsen, Torben J.

2010-08-15

The generic 5 MW NREL wind turbine model is used in Risoe's aeroelastic simulator HAWC2 to investigate 120 different swept blade configurations (forward and backward sweep). Sensitivity for 2 different controllers is considered as well. Backward sweep results in a pitch to feather torsional moment of the blade, effectively reducing blade twist angles under increased loading. This behaviour results in decreased flap-wise fatigue and extreme loads, an increase for edge-wise fatigue loading and status quo or slight decrease in extreme loads (depending on the controller). Tower base and shaft-end bending moments are reduced as well. Forward sweep leads to an increase in angle of attack under loading. For a pitch controlled turbine this leads to an increase in fatigue and extreme loading in all cases. A controller inflicted instability is present for the more extreme forward swept cases. Due to the shape of considered sweep curves, an inherent and significant increase in torsional blade root bending moment is noted. A boomerang shaped sweep curve is proposed to counteract this problematic increased loading. Controller sensitivity shows that adding sweep affects some loadings differently. Power output is reduced for backward sweep since the blade twist is optimized as a rigid structure, ignoring the torsional deformations which for a swept blade can be significant. (author)

Full Scale Test SSP 34m blade, Combined load. Data report

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Per Hørlyk; Nielsen, Magda; Jensen, Find Mølholt

This report is part of the research project entitled “Eksperimentel vingeforskning: Strukturelle mekanismer i nutidens og fremtidens store vinger under kombineret last” where a 34m wind turbine blade from SSP-Technology A/S was tested in combined flap and edgewise load. The applied load is 55...... of e.g. transverse shear distortion. The global and local deformation of the blade as well as the blades’ respond to repeated tests has been studied and the result from these investigations are presented, including the measurements performed....

A zero torsional stiffness twist morphing blade as a wind turbine load alleviation device

Science.gov (United States)

Lachenal, X.; Daynes, S.; Weaver, P. M.

2013-06-01

This paper presents the design, analysis and realization of a zero stiffness twist morphing wind turbine blade. The morphing blade is designed to actively twist as a means of alleviating the gust loads which reduce the fatigue life of wind turbine blades. The morphing structure exploits an elastic strain energy balance within the blade to enable large twisting deformations with modest actuation requirements. While twist is introduced using the warping of the blade skin, internal pre-stressed members ensure that a constant strain energy balance is achieved throughout the deformation, resulting in a zero torsional stiffness structure. The torsional stability of the morphing blade is characterized by analysing the elastic strain energy in the device. Analytical models of the skin, the pre-stressed components and the complete blade are compared to their respective finite element models as well as experimental results. The load alleviation potential of the adaptive structure is quantified using a two-dimensional steady flow aerodynamic model which is experimentally validated with wind tunnel measurements.

Combining Unsteady Blade Pressure Measurements and a Free-Wake Vortex Model to Investigate the Cycle-to-Cycle Variations in Wind Turbine Aerodynamic Blade Loads in Yaw

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moutaz Elgammi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Prediction of the unsteady aerodynamic flow phenomenon on wind turbines is challenging and still subject to considerable uncertainty. Under yawed rotor conditions, the wind turbine blades are subjected to unsteady flow conditions as a result of the blade advancing and retreating effect and the development of a skewed vortical wake created downstream of the rotor plane. Blade surface pressure measurements conducted on the NREL Phase VI rotor in yawed conditions have shown that dynamic stall causes the wind turbine blades to experience significant cycle-to-cycle variations in aerodynamic loading. These effects were observed even though the rotor was subjected to a fixed speed and a uniform and steady wind flow. This phenomenon is not normally predicted by existing dynamic stall models integrated in wind turbine design codes. This paper couples blade pressure measurements from the NREL Phase VI rotor to a free-wake vortex model to derive the angle of attack time series at the different blade sections over multiple rotor rotations and three different yaw angles. Through the adopted approach it was possible to investigate how the rotor self-induced aerodynamic load fluctuations influence the unsteady variations in the blade angles of attack and induced velocities. The hysteresis loops for the normal and tangential load coefficients plotted against the angle of attack were plotted over multiple rotor revolutions. Although cycle-to-cycle variations in the angles of attack at the different blade radial locations and azimuth positions are found to be relatively small, the corresponding variations in the normal and tangential load coefficients may be significant. Following a statistical analysis, it was concluded that the load coefficients follow a normal distribution at the majority of blade azimuth angles and radial locations. The results of this study provide further insight on how existing engineering models for dynamic stall may be improved through

Flow performance of highly loaded axial fan with bowed rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, L.; Liu, X. J.; Yang, A. L.; Dai, R.

2013-12-01

In this paper, a partial bowed rotor blade was proposed for a newly designed high loaded axial fan. The blade was positively bowed 30 degrees from hub to 30 percent spanwise position. Flows of radial blade and bowed blade fans were numerically compared for various operation conditions. Results show that the fan's performance is improved. At the designed condition with flow coefficient of 0.52, the efficiency of the bowed blade fan is increased 1.44% and the static pressure rise is increased 11%. Comparing the flow structures, it can be found that the separated flow in the bowed fan is reduced and confined within 20 percent span, which is less than the 35 percent in the radial fan. It means that the bowed blade generates negative blade force and counteracts partial centrifugal force. It is alleviates the radial movements of boundary layers in fan's hub region. Flow losses due to 3D mixing are reduced in the rotor. Inlet flow to downstream stator is also improved.

Modelling of Vortex-Induced Loading on a Single-Blade Installation Setup

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skrzypinski, Witold Robert; Gaunaa, Mac; Heinz, Joachim Christian

2016-01-01

the same procedure. The reference time series were significantly different, depending on the inflow angle. This made the modelling of all the time series with a single and relatively simple engineering model challenging. In order to find model parameters, optimizations were carried out, based on the root-mean-square......Vortex-induced integral loading fluctuations on a single suspended blade at various inflow angles were modeled in the presents work by means of stochastic modelling methods. The reference time series were obtained by 3D DES CFD computations carried out on the DTU 10MW reference wind turbine blade...... varied depending on the inflow angle. None the less, the modelled and reference time series showed a satisfactory general agreement in terms of their visual and frequency characteristics. This indicated that the proposed method is suitable to model loading fluctuations on suspended blades....

A zero torsional stiffness twist morphing blade as a wind turbine load alleviation device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lachenal, X; Daynes, S; Weaver, P M

2013-01-01

This paper presents the design, analysis and realization of a zero stiffness twist morphing wind turbine blade. The morphing blade is designed to actively twist as a means of alleviating the gust loads which reduce the fatigue life of wind turbine blades. The morphing structure exploits an elastic strain energy balance within the blade to enable large twisting deformations with modest actuation requirements. While twist is introduced using the warping of the blade skin, internal pre-stressed members ensure that a constant strain energy balance is achieved throughout the deformation, resulting in a zero torsional stiffness structure. The torsional stability of the morphing blade is characterized by analysing the elastic strain energy in the device. Analytical models of the skin, the pre-stressed components and the complete blade are compared to their respective finite element models as well as experimental results. The load alleviation potential of the adaptive structure is quantified using a two-dimensional steady flow aerodynamic model which is experimentally validated with wind tunnel measurements. (paper)

Investigation of the effect of bending twisting coupling on the loads in wind turbines with superelement blade definition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gözcü, M O; Kayran, A

2014-01-01

Bending-twisting coupling in the composite blades is exploited for load alleviation in the whole turbine system. For the purpose of the study, inverse design of a reference blade is performed such that sectional beam properties of the 3D blade design approximately match the sectional beam properties of NREL's 5MW turbine blade. In order to appropriately account for the bending-twisting coupling effect, dynamic superelement of the blade is created and introduced into the multi-body dynamic model of the wind turbine system. Initially, a comparative study is conducted on the performance of wind turbines which have blades defined as superelements and geometrically nonlinear beams, and conclusions are inferred with regard to the appropriateness of the use of superelement blade definition in the transient analysis of the 5MW wind turbine system that is set up in the present study. Multi-body dynamic simulations of the wind turbine system are performed for the power production load case with the constant wind and the normal turbulence model as external wind loadings. For the internal loads, fatigue damage equivalent load is used as the metric to assess the effect of bending-twisting coupling on the load alleviation in the whole wind turbine system. Results show that in the overall, through the bending-twisting coupling induced with the use of off-axis plies in the main spar caps of the blade, damage equivalent loads associated with the critical load components can be reduced in the wind turbine system

Aeroelastic response and blade loads of a composite rotor in forward flight

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Edward C.; Chopra, Inderjit

1992-01-01

The aeroelastic response, blade and hub loads, and shaft-fixed aeroelastic stability is investigated for a helicopter with elastically tailored composite rotor blades. A new finite element based structural analysis including nonclassical effects such as transverse shear, torsion related warping and inplane elasticity is integrated with the University of Maryland Advanced Rotorcraft Code. The structural dynamics analysis is correlated against both experimental data and detailed finite element results. Correlation of rotating natural frequencies of coupled composite box-beams is generally within 5-10 percent. The analysis is applied to a soft-inplane hingeless rotor helicopter in free flight propulsive trim. For example, lag mode damping can be increased 300 percent over a range of thrust conditions and forward speeds. The influence of unsteady aerodynamics on the blade response and vibratory hub loads is also investigated. The magnitude and phase of the flap response is substantially altered by the unsteady aerodynamic effects. Vibratory hub loads increase up to 30 percent due to unsteady aerodynamic effects.

Effect of blade flutter and electrical loading on small wind turbine noise

Science.gov (United States)

The effect of blade flutter and electrical loading on the noise level of two different size wind turbines was investigated at the Conservation and Production Research Laboratory (CPRL) near Bushland, TX. Noise and performance data were collected on two blade designs tested on a wind turbine rated a...

Flow performance of highly loaded axial fan with bowed rotor blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, L; Liu, X J; Yang, A L; Dai, R

2013-01-01

In this paper, a partial bowed rotor blade was proposed for a newly designed high loaded axial fan. The blade was positively bowed 30 degrees from hub to 30 percent spanwise position. Flows of radial blade and bowed blade fans were numerically compared for various operation conditions. Results show that the fan's performance is improved. At the designed condition with flow coefficient of 0.52, the efficiency of the bowed blade fan is increased 1.44% and the static pressure rise is increased 11%. Comparing the flow structures, it can be found that the separated flow in the bowed fan is reduced and confined within 20 percent span, which is less than the 35 percent in the radial fan. It means that the bowed blade generates negative blade force and counteracts partial centrifugal force. It is alleviates the radial movements of boundary layers in fan's hub region. Flow losses due to 3D mixing are reduced in the rotor. Inlet flow to downstream stator is also improved

Full Scale Test of SSP 34m blade, edgewise loading LTT

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Magda; Jensen, Find Mølholt; Nielsen, Per Hørlyk

This report is a part of the research project “Eksperimentel vingeforskning: Strukturelle mekanismer i nutidens og fremtidens store vinger under kombineret last” where a 34m wind turbine blade from SSP-Technology A/S has been tested in edgewise direction (LTT). The applied load is 60......% of an unrealistic extreme event, corresponding to 75% of a certificated extreme load. This report describes the background, the test set up, the tests and the results. For this project, a new solution has been used for the load application and the solution for the load application is described in this report...... as well. The blade has been submitted to thorough examination. More areas have been examined with DIC, both global and local deflections have been measured, and also 378 strain gauge measurements have been performed. Furthermore Acoustic Emission has been used in order to detect damage while testing new...

EFFECTS OF SLOTTED BLADING ON SECONDARY FLOW IN HIGHLY LOADED COMPRESSOR CASCADE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

RAMZI MDOUKI

2013-10-01

Full Text Available With the aim to increase allowable blade loadings and enlarge stable operating range in highly loaded compressor, this work is carried out in order to explore the potential of passive control via slotted bladings in linear cascade configurations under both design and stall conditions. Through an extensive 2D-numerical study, the effects of location, width and slope of slots were analysed and the best configuration was identified. Based on the optimal slot, the 3D aerodynamic performances of cascade were studied and the influence of slotted blading to control endwall flow was investigated. Both 2D and 3D calculations are performed on steady RANS solver with standard k-epsilon turbulence model and low Mach number regime. The total loss coefficient, turning angle and flow visualizations on the blade and end-wall surfaces are adopted to describe the different configurations. The obtained results show, for 2D situation, that a maximum of 28.3% reduction in loss coefficient had been reached and the flow turning was increased with approximately 5°. Concerning 3D flow fields the slots marked their benefit at large incoming flow angles which delays the separation on both end wall and blade suction surface at mid span. However, at design conditions, the slotted blades are not able to control secondary flows near the wall and so, lose their potential.

Material matters: Controllable rubber trailing edge flap regulates load on wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aagaard Madsen, Helge

2010-01-01

In wind farms, nearby wind turbines exert considerable influence and generate turbulence on turbine blades. Because the blades are so long, there can be considerable differences in localized loading from the gusts along the blade. The Risø DTU researchers has developed a controllable rubber trail...... in an open jet wind tunnel shows promising results. In the wind tunnel, it is possible to regulate the wind speed as well as turn the blade profile to simulate a change in wind direction in relation to the profile....

Loading Analysis of Composite Wind Turbine Blade for Fatigue Life Prediction of Adhesively Bonded Root Joint

Science.gov (United States)

Salimi-Majd, Davood; Azimzadeh, Vahid; Mohammadi, Bijan

2015-06-01

Nowadays wind energy is widely used as a non-polluting cost-effective renewable energy resource. During the lifetime of a composite wind turbine which is about 20 years, the rotor blades are subjected to different cyclic loads such as aerodynamics, centrifugal and gravitational forces. These loading conditions, cause to fatigue failure of the blade at the adhesively bonded root joint, where the highest bending moments will occur and consequently, is the most critical zone of the blade. So it is important to estimate the fatigue life of the root joint. The cohesive zone model is one of the best methods for prediction of initiation and propagation of debonding at the root joint. The advantage of this method is the possibility of modeling the debonding without any requirement to the remeshing. However in order to use this approach, it is necessary to analyze the cyclic loading condition at the root joint. For this purpose after implementing a cohesive interface element in the Ansys finite element software, one blade of a horizontal axis wind turbine with 46 m rotor diameter was modelled in full scale. Then after applying loads on the blade under different condition of the blade in a full rotation, the critical condition of the blade is obtained based on the delamination index and also the load ratio on the root joint in fatigue cycles is calculated. These data are the inputs for fatigue damage growth analysis of the root joint by using CZM approach that will be investigated in future work.

Full Scale Test SSP 34m blade, edgewise loading LTT. Extreme load and PoC_InvE Data report

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Magda; Roczek-Sieradzan, Agnieszka; Jensen, Find Mølholt

This report is the second report covering the research and demonstration project “Eksperimentel vingeforskning: Strukturelle mekanismer i nutidens og fremtidens store vinger under kombineret last”, supported by the EUDP program. A 34m wind turbine blade from SSP-Technology A/S has been tested...... in edgewise direction (LTT). The blade has been submitted to thorough examination by means of strain gauges, displacement transducers and a 3D optical measuring system. This data report presents results obtained during full scale testing of the blade up to 80% Risø load, where 80% Risø load corresponds to 100...... stresses in the adhesive joints. Test results from measurements with the reinforcement have been compared to results without the coupling. The report presents only the relevant results for the 80% Risø load and the results applicable for the investigation of the influence of the invention on the profile...

A simplified model predicting the weight of the load carrying beam in a wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Lars Pilgaard

2016-01-01

from 20 to 90 m. In addition, it can be seen that for a blade using glass fibre reinforced polymers, the design is controlled by the deflection and thereby the material stiffness in order to avoid the blade to hit the tower. On the other hand if using aluminium, the design will be controlled...... to predict the weight of the load carrying beam when using glassfibre reinforced polymers, carbon fibre reinforced polymers or an aluminium alloy as the construction material. Thereby, it is found that the weight of a glass fibre wind turbine blade is increased from 0.5 to 33 tons when the blade length grows...... by the fatigue resistance in orderto making the material survive the 100 to 500 million load cycles experience of the windturbine blade throughout the lifetime. The aluminium blade is also found to be considerably heavier compared with the composite blades....

Probabilistic SSME blades structural response under random pulse loading

Science.gov (United States)

Shiao, Michael; Rubinstein, Robert; Nagpal, Vinod K.

1987-01-01

The purpose is to develop models of random impacts on a Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) turbopump blade and to predict the probabilistic structural response of the blade to these impacts. The random loading is caused by the impact of debris. The probabilistic structural response is characterized by distribution functions for stress and displacements as functions of the loading parameters which determine the random pulse model. These parameters include pulse arrival, amplitude, and location. The analysis can be extended to predict level crossing rates. This requires knowledge of the joint distribution of the response and its derivative. The model of random impacts chosen allows the pulse arrivals, pulse amplitudes, and pulse locations to be random. Specifically, the pulse arrivals are assumed to be governed by a Poisson process, which is characterized by a mean arrival rate. The pulse intensity is modelled as a normally distributed random variable with a zero mean chosen independently at each arrival. The standard deviation of the distribution is a measure of pulse intensity. Several different models were used for the pulse locations. For example, three points near the blade tip were chosen at which pulses were allowed to arrive with equal probability. Again, the locations were chosen independently at each arrival. The structural response was analyzed both by direct Monte Carlo simulation and by a semi-analytical method.

Evaluation of MOSTAS computer code for predicting dynamic loads in two bladed wind turbines

Science.gov (United States)

Kaza, K. R. V.; Janetzke, D. C.; Sullivan, T. L.

1979-01-01

Calculated dynamic blade loads were compared with measured loads over a range of yaw stiffnesses of the DOE/NASA Mod-O wind turbine to evaluate the performance of two versions of the MOSTAS computer code. The first version uses a time-averaged coefficient approximation in conjunction with a multi-blade coordinate transformation for two bladed rotors to solve the equations of motion by standard eigenanalysis. The second version accounts for periodic coefficients while solving the equations by a time history integration. A hypothetical three-degree of freedom dynamic model was investigated. The exact equations of motion of this model were solved using the Floquet-Lipunov method. The equations with time-averaged coefficients were solved by standard eigenanalysis.

Full Scale Test of SSP 34m blade, edgewise loading LTT. Data Report 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nielsen, Magda; Jensen, Find M.; Nielsen, Per H. (and others)

2010-01-15

This report is a part of a research project where a 34m wind turbine blade from SSP-Technology A/S has been tested in edgewise direction (LTT). The applied load is 60% of an unrealistic extreme event, corresponding to 75% of a certificated extreme load. This report describes the background, the test set up, the tests and the results. For this project, a new solution has been used for the load application and the solution for the load application is described in this report as well. The blade has been submitted to thorough examination. More areas have been examined with DIC, both global and local deflections have been measured, and also 378 strain gauge measurements have been performed. Furthermore Acoustic Emission has been used in order to detect damage while testing new load areas. The global deflection is compared with results from a previous test and results from FEM analyses in order to validate the solution as to how the gravity load on the blade was handled. Furthermore, the DIC measurement and the displacement sensors measurements are compared in order to validate the results from the DIC measurements. The report includes the results from the test and a description of the measurement equipment and the data acquisition. (author)

Loadings in thermal barrier coatings of jet engine turbine blades an experimental research and numerical modeling

CERN Document Server

Sadowski, Tomasz

2016-01-01

This book discusses complex loadings of turbine blades and protective layer Thermal Barrier Coating (TBC), under real working airplane jet conditions. They obey both multi-axial mechanical loading and sudden temperature variation during starting and landing of the airplanes. In particular, two types of blades are analyzed: stationary and rotating, which are widely applied in turbine engines produced by airplane factories.

A Two-Bladed Teetering Hub configuration for the DTU 10 MW RWT: loads considerations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bergami, Leonardo; Aagaard Madsen, Helge; Rasmussen, Flemming

2014-01-01

study on an alternative downwind two-bladed rotor configuration. The study is based on a model representative of next generation multi-MW wind turbines: the DTU 10-MW Reference Wind Turbine (RWT). As a first design iteration, the aerodynamic characteristics of the original rotor are maintained......As the size of wind turbine rotors continuously grows, the need for innovative solutions that would yield to lighter rotor configurations becomes more urgent. Traditional wind turbine designs have favored the classic three-bladed upwind rotor configuration. This work presents instead a concept...... in load variations, and hence in fatigue damage, affects the turbine blades, shaft and tower, and originates from the aerodynamic unbalance on the rotor, as well as from aeroelastic interaction with the tower frequency. To mitigate the load amplification caused by the interaction between the tower...

Performance of Savonius Blade Waterwheel with Variation of Blade Number

Science.gov (United States)

Sule, L.; Rompas, P. T. D.

2018-02-01

The utilization of water energy source is mainly used as a provider of electrical energy through hydroelectric power. The potential utilization of water flow energy is relatively small. The objective of this study is to know the best blade of Savonius waterwheel with various variables such as water discharge, blade number, and loading. The data used the efficiency of waterwheel, variation of blade number, variable water discharge, and loading in the shaft. The test results have shown that the performances of a top-water mill with the semicircular curve where the variation in the number of blades are 4, 6, and 8 at discharge and loading of 0.01587 m3/s and 1000 grams respectively were 9.945%, 13.929%, and 17.056% respectively. The blades number of 8 obtained the greatest performance. The more number of blades the greater the efficiency of the waterwheel Savonius.

Along-wind response of a wind turbine tower with blade coupling subjected to rotationally sampled wind loading

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Murtagh, P J; Basu, B; Broderick, B M [Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland)

2005-07-15

This paper proposes an approach to investigate the along-wind forced vibration response of a wind turbine tower and rotating blades assembly subjected to rotationally sampled stationary wind loading. The wind turbine assembly consists of three rotating rotor blades connected to the top of a flexible annular tower, constituting a multi-body dynamic entity. The tower and rotating blades are each modelled as discretized multi-degree-of-freedom (MDOF) entities, allowing the free vibration characteristics of each to be obtained using a discrete parameter approach. The free vibration properties of the tower include the effect of a rigid mass at the top, representing the nacelle, and those of the blade include the effects of centrifugal stiffening due to rotation and blade gravity loadings. The blades are excited by drag force time-histories derived from discrete Fourier transform (DFT) representations of rotationally sampled wind turbulence spectra. Blade response time-histories are obtained using the mode acceleration method, which allows for the quantification of base shear forces due to flapping for the three blades to be obtained. This resultant base shear is imparted into the top of the tower. Wind drag loading on the tower is also considered, with a series of spatially correlated nodal force time-histories being derived using DFTs of wind force spectra. The tower/nacelle is then coupled with the rotating blades by combining their equations of motion and solving for the displacement at the top of the tower under compatibility conditions in the frequency domain. An inverse Fourier transform of the frequency domain response yields the response time-history of the coupled system. The response of an equivalent system that does not consider the blade/tower interaction is also investigated, and the results are compared. (Author)

Beamstrahlung Photon Load on the TESLA Extraction Septum Blade(LCC-0104)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seryi, A

2003-10-02

This note describes work performed in the framework of the International Linear Collider Technical Review Committee [1] to estimate the power load on the TESLA extraction septum blade due to beamstrahlung photons. It is shown, that under realistic conditions the photon load can be several orders of magnitude higher than what was estimated in the TESLA TDR [2] for the ideal Gaussian beams, potentially representing a serious limitation of the current design.

Beamstrahlung Photon Load on the TESLA Extraction Septum Blade(LCC-0104)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seryi, A

2003-01-01

This note describes work performed in the framework of the International Linear Collider Technical Review Committee [1] to estimate the power load on the TESLA extraction septum blade due to beamstrahlung photons. It is shown, that under realistic conditions the photon load can be several orders of magnitude higher than what was estimated in the TESLA TDR [2] for the ideal Gaussian beams, potentially representing a serious limitation of the current design

Structural Testing of the Blade Reliability Collaborative Effect of Defect Wind Turbine Blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Desmond, M. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Hughes, S. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Paquette, J. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2015-06-08

Two 8.3-meter (m) wind turbine blades intentionally constructed with manufacturing flaws were tested to failure at the National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) south of Boulder, Colorado. Two blades were tested; one blade was manufactured with a fiberglass spar cap and the second blade was manufactured with a carbon fiber spar cap. Test loading primarily consisted of flap fatigue loading of the blades, with one quasi-static ultimate load case applied to the carbon fiber spar cap blade. Results of the test program were intended to provide the full-scale test data needed for validation of model and coupon test results of the effect of defects in wind turbine blade composite materials. Testing was part of the Blade Reliability Collaborative (BRC) led by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). The BRC seeks to develop a deeper understanding of the causes of unexpected blade failures (Paquette 2012), and to develop methods to enable blades to survive to their expected operational lifetime. Recent work in the BRC includes examining and characterizing flaws and defects known to exist in wind turbine blades from manufacturing processes (Riddle et al. 2011). Recent results from reliability databases show that wind turbine rotor blades continue to be a leading contributor to turbine downtime (Paquette 2012).

Experimental evidence of inter-blade cavitation vortex development in Francis turbines at deep part load condition

Science.gov (United States)

Yamamoto, K.; Müller, A.; Favrel, A.; Avellan, F.

2017-10-01

Francis turbines are subject to various types of cavitation flow depending on the operating condition. To enable a smooth integration of the renewable energy sources, hydraulic machines are now increasingly required to extend their operating range, especially down to extremely low discharge conditions called deep part load operation. The inter-blade cavitation vortex is a typical cavitation phenomenon observed at deep part load operation. However, its dynamic characteristics are insufficiently understood today. In an objective of revealing its characteristics, the present study introduces a novel visualization technique with instrumented guide vanes embedding the visualization devices, providing unprecedented views on the inter-blade cavitation vortex. The binary image processing technique enables the successful evaluation of the inter-blade cavitation vortex in the images. As a result, it is shown that the probability of the inter-blade cavitation development is significantly high close to the runner hub. Furthermore, the mean vortex line is calculated and the vortex region is estimated in the three-dimensional domain for the comparison with numerical simulation results. In addition, the on-board pressure measurements on a runner blade is conducted, and the influence of the inter-blade vortex on the pressure field is investigated. The analysis suggests that the presence of the inter-blade vortex can magnify the amplitude of pressure fluctuations especially on the blade suction side. Furthermore, the wall pressure difference between pressure and suction sides of the blade features partially low or negative values near the hub at the discharge region where the inter-blade vortex develops. This negative pressure difference on the blade wall suggests the development of a backflow region caused by the flow separation near the hub, which is closely related to the development of the inter-blade vortex. The development of the backflow region is confirmed by the numerical

Comprehensive Forced Response Analysis of J2X Turbine Bladed-Discs with 36- Degree Variation in CFD Loading

Science.gov (United States)

Elrod, David; Christensen, Eric; Brown, Andrew

2011-01-01

At NASA/MSFC, Structural Dynamics personnel continue to perform advanced analysis for the turbomachinery in the J2X Rocket Engine, which is under consideration for the new Space Launch System. One of the most challenging analyses in the program is predicting turbine blade structural capability. Resonance was predicted by modal analysis, so comprehensive forced response analyses using high fidelity cyclic symmetric finite element models were initiated as required. Analysis methodologies up to this point have assumed the flow field could be fully described by a sector, so the loading on every blade would be identical as it travelled through it. However, in the J2X the CFD flow field varied over the 360 deg of a revolution because of the flow speeds and tortuous axial path. MSFC therefore developed a complex procedure using Nastran Dmap's and Matlab scripts to apply this circumferentially varying loading onto the cyclically symmetric structural models to produce accurate dynamic stresses for every blade on the disk. This procedure is coupled with static, spin, and thermal loading to produce high cycle fatigue safety factors resulting in much more accurate analytical assessments of the blades.

New morphing blade section designs and structural solutions for smart blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karakalas, Anargyros A.; Machairas, Theodore; Solomou, Alexandros

2015-01-01

Within INNWIND.EU new concepts are investigated having the ultimate goal to reduce the cost per kilowatt-hour of the produced energy. With increasing size of wind turbines, new approaches to load control are required to reduce the stresses in blades. Experimental and numerical studies in the fields...... of helicopter and wind turbine blade research have shown the potential of shape morphing in reducing blade loads. Morphing technologies, along with other control concepts, are investigated under Task 2.3 of WP “Lightweight Rotor”, against aerodynamic compliance and requirements of the complete wind turbine...... the efforts performed within Task 2.2 “Lightweight structural design” of INNWIND.Eu work-package WP2 “Lightweight Rotor” regarding the structural solutions necessary to accommodate the requirements of smart blades developed within work-package WP2 Task 2.3 “Active and passive loads control and alleviation...

Using wind speed from a blade-mounted flow sensor for power and load assessment on modern wind turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Mads M.; Larsen, Torben J.; Madsen, Helge Aa

2017-01-01

In this paper an alternative method to evaluate power performance and loads on wind turbines using a blade-mounted flow sensor is investigated. The hypothesis is that the wind speed measured at the blades has a high correlation with the power and loads such that a power or load assessment can...... be performed from a few hours or days of measurements. In the present study a blade-mounted five-hole pitot tube is used as the flow sensor as an alternative to the conventional approach, where the reference wind speed is either measured at a nearby met mast or on the nacelle using lidar technology or cup...... anemometers. From the flow sensor measurements, an accurate estimate of the wind speed at the rotor plane can be obtained. This wind speed is disturbed by the presence of the wind turbine, and it is therefore different from the free-flow wind speed. However, the recorded wind speed has a high correlation...

Aero-structural optimization of wind turbine blades using a reduced set of design load cases including turbulence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sessarego, Matias; Shen, Wen Zhong

2018-01-01

Modern wind turbine aero-structural blade design codes generally use a smaller fraction of the full design load base (DLB) or neglect turbulent inflow as defined by the International Electrotechnical Commission standards. The current article describes an automated blade design optimization method...... based on surrogate modeling that includes a very large number of design load cases (DLCs) including turbulence. In the present work, 325 DLCs representative of the full DLB are selected based on the message-passing-interface (MPI) limitations in Matlab. Other methods are currently being investigated, e.......g. a Python MPI implementation, to overcome the limitations in Matlab MPI and ultimately achieve a full DLB optimization framework. The reduced DLB and the annual energy production are computed using the state-of-the-art aero-servo-elastic tool HAWC2. Furthermore, some of the interior dimensions of the blade...

Individual blade pitch for yaw control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Navalkar, S T; Van Wingerden, J W; Van Kuik, G A M

2014-01-01

Individual pitch control (IPC) for reducing blade loads has been investigated and proven successful in recent literature. For IPC, the multi-blade co-ordinate (MBC) transformation is used to process the blade load signals from the rotating to a stationary frame of reference. In the stationary frame of reference, the yaw error of a turbine can be appended to generate IPC actions that are able to achieve turbine yaw control for a turbine in free yaw. In this paper, IPC for yaw control is tested on a high-fidelity numerical model of a commercially produced wind turbine in free yaw. The tests show that yaw control using IPC has the distinct advantage that the yaw system loads and support structure loading are substantially reduced. However, IPC for yaw control also shows a reduction in IPC blade load reduction potential and causes a slight increase in pitch activity. Thus, the key contribution of this paper is the concept demonstration of IPC for yaw control. Further, using IPC for yaw as a tuning parameter, it is shown how the best trade-off between blade loading, pitch activity and support structure loading can be achieved for wind turbine design

Non-intrusive aerodynamic loads analysis of an aircraft propeller blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ragni, D.; Oudheusden, B.W. van; Scarano, F. [Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft (Netherlands)

2011-08-15

The flow field in a cross-sectional plane of a scaled Beaver DHC aircraft propeller has been measured by means of a stereoscopic PIV setup. Phase-locked measurements are obtained in a rotational frequency range from 18,900 to 21,000 rpm, at a relative Mach number of 0.6 at 3/4 propeller radius. The use of an adapted formulation of the momentum equation in differential form for rotating frame of references, integrated with isentropic relations as boundary conditions, allowed to compute the pressure field around the blade and the surface pressure distribution directly from the velocity data in the compressible regime. The procedure, extended to the computation of the aerodynamic lift and drag coefficients by a momentum contour integral approach, proved to be able to couple the aerodynamical loads to the flow field on the moving propeller blade, comparing favorably with a numerical simulation of the entire scaled model. Results are presented for two propeller rotation speeds and three different yawing angles. (orig.)

Non-intrusive aerodynamic loads analysis of an aircraft propeller blade

Science.gov (United States)

Ragni, D.; van Oudheusden, B. W.; Scarano, F.

2011-08-01

The flow field in a cross-sectional plane of a scaled Beaver DHC aircraft propeller has been measured by means of a stereoscopic PIV setup. Phase-locked measurements are obtained in a rotational frequency range from 18,900 to 21,000 rpm, at a relative Mach number of 0.6 at ¾ propeller radius. The use of an adapted formulation of the momentum equation in differential form for rotating frame of references, integrated with isentropic relations as boundary conditions, allowed to compute the pressure field around the blade and the surface pressure distribution directly from the velocity data in the compressible regime. The procedure, extended to the computation of the aerodynamic lift and drag coefficients by a momentum contour integral approach, proved to be able to couple the aerodynamical loads to the flow field on the moving propeller blade, comparing favorably with a numerical simulation of the entire scaled model. Results are presented for two propeller rotation speeds and three different yawing angles.

Numerical investigation of optimal yaw misalignment and collective pitch angle for load imbalance reduction of rigid and flexible HAWT blades under sheared inflow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Min-Soo; Cha, Myung-Chan; Kim, Sang-Woo; Lee, In

2015-01-01

Wind shear can strongly influence the cyclic loading on horizontal axis wind turbine blades. These load fluctuation causes a variation of power output and introduces fatigue load. Thus, individual pitch controllers have been developed that are focused on the load alleviations, however, comes at a price of actuator requirements for control. Moreover, these controllers are unable to apply to already existing wind turbines with active yaw and collective pitch control system. Therefore, the investigations for minimizing load imbalance through the adjustments of yaw misalignment and collective pitch angle are implemented for the rigid and flexible blades under the sheared inflow. By applying the optimization process based on a sequential quadratic programming approach, the optimal yaw and pitch angle can be estimated. Then, the numerical simulations for predicting the performance are performed. The results showed that the fluctuation range of the root flapwise bending moment for the rigid blades can be reduced by 84.5%, whereas the vibratory bending moment for the flexible blades can be reduced by up to approximately 82.4% in the best case. Therefore, the magnitudes of load imbalance can be minimized by the adjustment of the optimal yaw misalignment and collective pitch angle without any power loss. - Highlights: • We propose a novel method for the reduction of load imbalance under sheared inflow. • We estimate optimal yaw misalignment and collective pitch angle through optimization. • Numerical results of performance are predicted for rigid and flexible blades. • By applying optimal angles, load variations are reduced without any power loss

Spatial reliability analysis of a wind turbine blade cross section subjected to multi-axial extreme loading

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dimitrov, Nikolay Krasimirov; Bitsche, Robert; Blasques, José Pedro Albergaria Amaral

2017-01-01

This paper presents a methodology for structural reliability analysis of wind turbine blades. The study introduces several novel elements by taking into account loading direction using a multiaxial probabilistic load model, considering random material strength, spatial correlation between material...... properties, progressive material failure, and system reliability effects. An example analysis of reliability against material failure is demonstrated for a blade cross section. Based on the study we discuss the implications of using a system reliability approach, the effect of spatial correlation length......, type of material degradation algorithm, and reliability methods on the system failure probability, as well as the main factors that have an influence on the reliability. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved....

Design and simulation of Macro-Fiber composite based serrated microflap for wind turbine blade fatigue load reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Xiao; Dai, Qingli; Bilgen, Onur

2018-05-01

A Macro-Fiber Composite (MFC) based active serrated microflap is designed in this research for wind turbine blades. Its fatigue load reduction potential is evaluated in normal operating conditions. The force and displacement output of the MFC-based actuator are simulated using a bimorph beam model. The work done by the aerodynamic, centripetal and gravitational forces acting on the microflap were calculated to determine the required capacity of the MFC-based actuator. MFC-based actuators with a lever mechanical linkage are designed to achieve the required force and displacement to activate the microflap. A feedback control scheme is designed to control the microflap during operation. Through an aerodynamic-aeroelastic time marching simulation with the designed control scheme, the time responses of the wind turbine blades are obtained. The fatigue analysis shows that the serrated microflap can reduce the standard deviation of the blade root flapwise bending moment and the fatigue damage equivalent loads.

Space Shuttle main engine powerhead structural modeling, stress and fatigue life analysis. Volume 3: Stress summay of blades and nozzles at FPL and 115 percent RPL loads. SSME HPFTP and HPOTP blades and nozzles

Science.gov (United States)

Hammett, J. C.; Hayes, C. H.; Price, J. M.; Robinson, J. K.; Teal, G. A.; Thomson, J. M.; Tilley, D. M.; Welch, C. T.

1983-01-01

Gasdynamic environments applied to the turbine blades and nozzles of the HPFTP and HPOTP were analyzed. Centrifugal loads were applied to blades to account for the pump rotation of FPL and 115 percent RPL. The computer models used in the blade analysis with results presented in the form of temperature and stress contour plots are described. Similar information is given for the nozzles.

Investigation of distributor vane jets to decrease the unsteady load on hydro turbine runner blades

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, B. J.; Cimbala, J. M.; Wouden, A. M.

2012-11-01

As the runner blades of a Francis hydroturbine pass though the wakes created from the wicket gates, they experience a significant change in absolute velocity, flow angle, and pressure. The concept of adding jets to the trailing edge of the wicket gates is proposed as a method for reducing the dynamic load on the hydroturbine runner blades. Computational experiments show a decrease in velocity variation experienced by the runner blade with the addition of the jets. The decrease in velocity variation resulted in a 43% decrease in global torque variation at the runner passing frequency. However, an increased variation was observed at the wicket gate passing frequency. Also, a 5.7% increase in average global torque was observed with the addition of blowing from the trailing-edge of the wicket gates.

Investigation of distributor vane jets to decrease the unsteady load on hydro turbine runner blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewis, B J; Cimbala, J M; Wouden, A M

2012-01-01

As the runner blades of a Francis hydroturbine pass though the wakes created from the wicket gates, they experience a significant change in absolute velocity, flow angle, and pressure. The concept of adding jets to the trailing edge of the wicket gates is proposed as a method for reducing the dynamic load on the hydroturbine runner blades. Computational experiments show a decrease in velocity variation experienced by the runner blade with the addition of the jets. The decrease in velocity variation resulted in a 43% decrease in global torque variation at the runner passing frequency. However, an increased variation was observed at the wicket gate passing frequency. Also, a 5.7% increase in average global torque was observed with the addition of blowing from the trailing-edge of the wicket gates.

Load alleviation on wind turbine blades using variable airfoil geometry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Basualdo, S.

2005-03-01

A two-dimensional theoretical study of the aeroelastic behaviour of an airfoil has been performed, whose geometry can be altered using a rear-mounted flap. This device is governed by a controller, whose objective is to reduce the airfoil displacements and, therefore, the stresses present in a real blade. The aerodynamic problem was solved numerically by a panel method using the potential theory, suitable for modelling attached flows. It is therefore mostly applicable for Pitch Regulated Variable Speed (PRVS) wind turbines, which mainly operate under this flow condition. The results show evident reductions in the airfoil displacements by using simple control strategies having the airfoil position and its first and second derivatives as input, especially at the system's eigenfrequency. The use of variable airfoil geometry is an effective means of reducing the vibration magnitudes of an airfoil that represents a section of a wind turbine blade, when subject to stochastic wind signals. The results of this investigation encourage further investigations with 3D aeroelastic models to predict the reduction in loads in real wind turbines. (author)

Analysis of impact resistance of composite fan blade. Fukugozai fan blade no taishogekisei no kaiseki

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyachi, T; Okumura, H; Otake, K; Sofue, Y [Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space Sciences, Tokyo (Japan)

1992-01-05

Numerical analysis of impact response was carried out when a bird strike was simulated to study the applicability of fiber reinforced composite material to fan blades for turbo-fan engines. The validity of the numerical analysis was verified by comparing the analyzed results with impact tested results of a fan-blade model of Ti-alloy. The impact resistance was studied by applying this method to fan blades of composite materials such as carbon fiber, epoxy resin and carbon-silicate fiber reinforced Ti-alloy. The finite element method was used for the analysis by dividing the model into triangular flat elements. The relation between the impact load, the deformation of blade and the strain, the natural frequency characteristics, the elastic modulus and hetrogeneity of blade were considered to analyze the impact response. The impact load by the strike of 1.5 lbs bird is very severe to the fan blades for turbo-fan engines having the thrust of 5 ton class. 23 refs., 23 figs., 3 tabs.

Using wind speed from a blade-mounted flow sensor for power and load assessment on modern wind turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. M. Pedersen

2017-11-01

Full Text Available In this paper an alternative method to evaluate power performance and loads on wind turbines using a blade-mounted flow sensor is investigated. The hypothesis is that the wind speed measured at the blades has a high correlation with the power and loads such that a power or load assessment can be performed from a few hours or days of measurements.In the present study a blade-mounted five-hole pitot tube is used as the flow sensor as an alternative to the conventional approach, where the reference wind speed is either measured at a nearby met mast or on the nacelle using lidar technology or cup anemometers. From the flow sensor measurements, an accurate estimate of the wind speed at the rotor plane can be obtained. This wind speed is disturbed by the presence of the wind turbine, and it is therefore different from the free-flow wind speed. However, the recorded wind speed has a high correlation with the actual power production as well as the flap-wise loads as it is measured close to the blade where the aerodynamic forces are acting.Conventional power curves are based on at least 180 h of 10 min mean values, but using the blade-mounted flow sensor both the observation average time and the overall assessment time can potentially be shortened. The basis for this hypothesis is that the sensor is able to provide more observations with higher accuracy, as the sensor follows the rotation of the rotor and because of the high correlation between the flow at the blades and the power production. This is the research question addressed in this paper.The method is first tested using aeroelastic simulations where the dependence of the radial position and effect of multiple blade-mounted flow sensors are also investigated. Next the method is evaluated on the basis of full-scale measurements on a pitch-regulated, variable-speed 3.6 MW wind turbine.It is concluded that the wind speed derived from the blade-mounted flow sensor is highly correlated with the

Experimental and numerical investigations of aerodynamic loads and 3D flow over non-rotating MEXICO blades

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhang, Y.; Gillebaart, T.; van Zuijlen, A.H.; van Bussel, G.J.W.; Bijl, H.

2017-01-01

This paper presents the experimental and numerical study on MEXICO wind turbine blades. Previous work by other researchers shows that large deviations exist in the loads comparison between numerical predictions and experimental data for the rotating MEXICO wind turbine. To reduce complexities and

Computer subroutine for estimating aerodynamic blade loads on Darrieus vertical axis wind turbines. [FORCE code

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sullivan, W. N.; Leonard, T. M.

1980-11-01

An important aspect of structural design of the Darrieus rotor is the determination of aerodynamic blade loads. This report describes a load generator which has been used at Sandia for quasi-static and dynamic rotor analyses. The generator is based on the single streamtube aerodynamic flow model and is constructed as a FORTRAN IV subroutine to facilitate its use in finite element structural models. Input and output characteristics of the subroutine are described and a complete listing is attached as an appendix.

Structural optimization procedure of a composite wind turbine blade for reducing both material cost and blade weight

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Weifei; Park, Dohyun; Choi, DongHoon

2013-12-01

A composite blade structure for a 2 MW horizontal axis wind turbine is optimally designed. Design requirements are simultaneously minimizing material cost and blade weight while satisfying the constraints on stress ratio, tip deflection, fatigue life and laminate layup requirements. The stress ratio and tip deflection under extreme gust loads and the fatigue life under a stochastic normal wind load are evaluated. A blade element wind load model is proposed to explain the wind pressure difference due to blade height change during rotor rotation. For fatigue life evaluation, the stress result of an implicit nonlinear dynamic analysis under a time-varying fluctuating wind is converted to the histograms of mean and amplitude of maximum stress ratio using the rainflow counting algorithm Miner's rule is employed to predict the fatigue life. After integrating and automating the whole analysis procedure an evolutionary algorithm is used to solve the discrete optimization problem.

A shape adaptive airfoil for a wind turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Daynes, Stephen; Weaver, Paul M.

2011-04-01

The loads on wind turbine components are primarily from the blades. It is important to control these blade loads in order to avoid damaging the wind turbine. Rotor control technology is currently limited to controlling the rotor speed and the pitch of the blades. As blades increase in length it becomes less desirable to pitch the entire blade as a single rigid body, but instead there is a requirement to control loads more precisely along the length of the blade. This can be achieved with aerodynamic control devices such as flaps. Morphing technologies are good candidates for wind turbine flaps because they have the potential to create structures that have the conflicting abilities of being load carrying, light-weight and shape adaptive. A morphing flap design with a highly anisotropic cellular structure is presented which is able to undergo large deflections and high strains without a large actuation penalty. An aeroelastic analysis couples the work done by aerodynamic loads on the flap, the flap strain energy and the required actuation work to change shape. The morphing flap is experimentally validated with a manufactured demonstrator and shown to have reduced actuation requirements compared to a conventional hinged flap.

Reduction of fatigue loads on jacket substructure through blade design optimization for multimegawatt wind turbines at 50 m water depths

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

NJOMO WANDJI, Wilfried; Pavese, Christian; Natarajan, Anand

2016-01-01

This paper addresses the reduction of the fore-aft damage equivalent moment at the tower base for multi-megawatt offshore wind turbines mounted on jacket type substructures at 50 m water depths. The study investigates blade design optimization of a reference 10 MW wind turbine under standard wind...... conditions of onshore sites. The blade geometry and structure is optimized to yield a design that minimizes tower base fatigue loads without significant loss of power production compared to that of the reference setup. The resulting blade design is then mounted on a turbine supported by a jacket and placed...

Accelerated fatigue testing of LM 19.1 blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Ole Jesper Dahl; Jørgensen, E.

2003-01-01

A series of 19.1 metre wind turbine blades manufactured by LM Glasfiber A/S of Lunderskov, Denmark were subjected to a series of flapwise fatigue tests. The object of these fatigue tests is to evaluate the impact of an increased load on the blade in afatigue test and to give information...... if it is possible to increase the load in fatigue test to shorten test time. The tests were carried out as a part of a project financed by the Danish Energy Agency. During the fatigue tests the blades have beensurveyed with thermal imaging equipment to determine how an increase in fatigue load affects the blade...... material. In addition to the thermal imaging surveillance the blades were instrumented with strain gauges. This report presents the temperature duringtest, calibration test results, moment range measurements, strain statistics, thermal imaging registrations and a determination of the size and cause...

Structural Design of a Horizontal-Axis Tidal Current Turbine Composite Blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bir, G. S.; Lawson, M. J.; Li, Y.

2011-10-01

This paper describes the structural design of a tidal composite blade. The structural design is preceded by two steps: hydrodynamic design and determination of extreme loads. The hydrodynamic design provides the chord and twist distributions along the blade length that result in optimal performance of the tidal turbine over its lifetime. The extreme loads, i.e. the extreme flap and edgewise loads that the blade would likely encounter over its lifetime, are associated with extreme tidal flow conditions and are obtained using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. Given the blade external shape and the extreme loads, we use a laminate-theory-based structural design to determine the optimal layout of composite laminas such that the ultimate-strength and buckling-resistance criteria are satisfied at all points in the blade. The structural design approach allows for arbitrary specification of the chord, twist, and airfoil geometry along the blade and an arbitrary number of shear webs. In addition, certain fabrication criteria are imposed, for example, each composite laminate must be an integral multiple of its constituent ply thickness. In the present effort, the structural design uses only static extreme loads; dynamic-loads-based fatigue design will be addressed in the future. Following the blade design, we compute the distributed structural properties, i.e. flap stiffness, edgewise stiffness, torsion stiffness, mass, moments of inertia, elastic-axis offset, and center-of-mass offset along the blade. Such properties are required by hydro-elastic codes to model the tidal current turbine and to perform modal, stability, loads, and response analyses.

Measurements of blade aerodynamics on a rotor in the field

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Graham, J.M.R. [Imperical College, Dept. of Aeronautics, London (United Kingdom)

1997-12-31

This contribution describes the field test measurements undertaken on an instrumented rotor at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Oxfordshire, UK, during the period 1994 - 97. The programme was directed at improving the prediction of the steady and unsteady rotor blade loading, particularly the loads arising from the stalling of the blade. The measured data consisted of blade surface pressure distributions sampled at 50Hz at 6 sections along the span of one blade of the 17m diameter, 3 bladed, fixed pitch, upwind H.A.W.T., together with measurements of the incident velocity. (au)

Sweep-twist adaptive rotor blade : final project report.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ashwill, Thomas D.

2010-02-01

Knight & Carver was contracted by Sandia National Laboratories to develop a Sweep Twist Adaptive Rotor (STAR) blade that reduced operating loads, thereby allowing a larger, more productive rotor. The blade design used outer blade sweep to create twist coupling without angled fiber. Knight & Carver successfully designed, fabricated, tested and evaluated STAR prototype blades. Through laboratory and field tests, Knight & Carver showed the STAR blade met the engineering design criteria and economic goals for the program. A STAR prototype was successfully tested in Tehachapi during 2008 and a large data set was collected to support engineering and commercial development of the technology. This report documents the methodology used to develop the STAR blade design and reviews the approach used for laboratory and field testing. The effort demonstrated that STAR technology can provide significantly greater energy capture without higher operating loads on the turbine.

Comprehensive Forced Response Analysis of J2X Turbine Bladed-Discs with 360 Degree Variation in CFD Loading

Science.gov (United States)

Elrod, David; Christensen, Eric; Brown, Andrew

2011-01-01

The temporal frequency content of the dynamic pressure predicted by a 360 degree computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis of a turbine flow field provides indicators of forcing function excitation frequencies (e.g., multiples of blade pass frequency) for turbine components. For the Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne J-2X engine turbopumps, Campbell diagrams generated using these forcing function frequencies and the results of NASTRAN modal analyses show a number of components with modes in the engine operating range. As a consequence, forced response and static analyses are required for the prediction of combined stress, high cycle fatigue safety factors (HCFSF). Cyclically symmetric structural models have been used to analyze turbine vane and blade rows, not only in modal analyses, but also in forced response and static analyses. Due to the tortuous flow pattern in the turbine, dynamic pressure loading is not cyclically symmetric. Furthermore, CFD analyses predict dynamic pressure waves caused by adjacent and non-adjacent blade/vane rows upstream and downstream of the row analyzed. A MATLAB script has been written to calculate displacements due to the complex cyclically asymmetric dynamic pressure components predicted by CFD analysis, for all grids in a blade/vane row, at a chosen turbopump running speed. The MATLAB displacements are then read into NASTRAN, and dynamic stresses are calculated, including an adjustment for possible mistuning. In a cyclically symmetric NASTRAN static analysis, static stresses due to centrifugal, thermal, and pressure loading at the mode running speed are calculated. MATLAB is used to generate the HCFSF at each grid in the blade/vane row. When compared to an approach assuming cyclic symmetry in the dynamic flow field, the current approach provides better assurance that the worst case safety factor has been identified. An extended example for a J-2X turbopump component is provided.

Aerodynamics and Optimal Design of Biplane Wind Turbine Blades

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Phillip

In order to improve energy capture and reduce the cost of wind energy, in the past few decades wind turbines have grown significantly larger. As their blades get longer, the design of the inboard region (near the blade root) becomes a trade-off between competing structural and aerodynamic requirements. State-of-the-art blades require thick airfoils near the root to efficiently support large loads inboard, but those thick airfoils have inherently poor aerodynamic performance. New designs are required to circumvent this design compromise. One such design is the "biplane blade", in which the thick airfoils in the inboard region are replaced with thinner airfoils in a biplane configuration. This design was shown previously to have significantly increased structural performance over conventional blades. In addition, the biplane airfoils can provide increased lift and aerodynamic efficiency compared to thick monoplane inboard airfoils, indicating a potential for increased power extraction. This work investigates the fundamental aerodynamic aspects, aerodynamic design and performance, and optimal structural design of the biplane blade. First, the two-dimensional aerodynamics of biplanes with relatively thick airfoils are investigated, showing unique phenomena which arise as a result of airfoil thickness. Next, the aerodynamic design of the full biplane blade is considered. Two biplane blades are designed for optimal aerodynamic loading, and their aerodynamic performance quantified. Considering blades with practical chord distributions and including the drag of the mid-blade joint, it is shown that biplane blades have comparable power output to conventional monoplane designs. The results of this analysis also show that the biplane blades can be designed with significantly less chord than conventional designs, a characteristic which enables larger blade designs. The aerodynamic loads on the biplane blades are shown to be increased in gust conditions and decreased under

Acoustic performance of low pressure axial fan rotors with different blade chord length and radial load distribution

Science.gov (United States)

Carolus, Thomas

The paper examines the acoustic and aerodynamic performance of low-pressure axial fan rotors with a hub/tip ratio of 0.45. Six rotors were designed for the same working point by means of the well-known airfoil theory. The condition of an equilibrium between the static pressure gradient and the centrifugal forces is maintained. All rotors have unequally spaced blades to diminish tonal noise. The rotors are tested in a short cylindrical housing without guide vanes. All rotors show very similar flux-pressure difference characteristics. The peak efficiency and the noise performance is considerably influenced by the chosen blade design. The aerodynamically and acoustically optimal rotor is the one with the reduced load at the hub and increased load in the tip region under satisfied equilibrium conditions. It runs at the highest aerodynamic efficiency, and its noise spectrum is fairly smooth. The overall sound pressure level of this rotor is up to 8 dB (A) lower compared to the other rotors under consideration.

Stress analysis of composite wind turbine blade by finite element method

Science.gov (United States)

Yeh, Meng-Kao; Wang, Chen-Hsu

2017-10-01

In this study, the finite element analysis software ANSYS was used to analyze the composite wind turbine blade. The wind turbine blade model used is adopted from the 5 MW model of US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The wind turbine blade is a sandwich structure, comprising outermost carbon fiber cloth/epoxy composites, the inner glass fiber/vinylester layers, and PVC foam core, together with stiffeners. The wind pressure is converted into the load on the blade structure. The stress distribution and deformation of wind turbine blade were obtained by considering different pitch angles and at different angular positions. The Tsai-Hill criterion was used to determine the failure of wind turbine blade. The results show that at the 0° pitch angle, the wind turbine blade is subjected to the largest combined load and therefore the stress is the largest; with the increasing pitch angle, the load gradually decreases and the stress is also smaller. The stress and displacement are the greatest when the wind blade is located at 120° angular position from its highest vertex.

Blade size and weight effects in shovel design.

Science.gov (United States)

Freivalds, A; Kim, Y J

1990-03-01

The shovel is a basic tool that has undergone only nominal systematic design changes. Although previous studies found shovel-weight and blade-size effects of shovelling, the exact trade-off between the two has not been quantified. Energy expenditure, heart rate, ratings of perceived exertion and shovelling performance were measured on five subjects using five shovels with varying blade sizes and weights to move sand. Energy expenditure, normalised to subject weight and load handled, varied quadratically with the blade-size/shovel-weight (B/W) ratio. Minimum energy cost was at B/W = 0.0676 m2/kg, which for an average subject and average load would require an acceptable 5.16 kcal/min of energy expenditure. Subjects, through the ratings of perceived exertion, also strongly preferred the lighter shovels without regard to blade size. Too large a blade or too heavy a shovel increased energy expenditure beyond acceptable levels, while too small a blade reduced efficiency of the shovelling.

Full-Scale Fatigue Testing of a Wind Turbine Blade in Flapwise Direction and Examining the Effect of Crack Propagation on the Blade Performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Othman Al-Khudairi

2017-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper, the sensitivity of the structural integrity of wind turbine blades to debonding of the shear web from the spar cap was investigated. In this regard, modal analysis, static and fatigue testing were performed on a 45.7 m blade for three states of the blade: (i as received blade (ii when a crack of 200 mm was introduced between the web and the spar cap and (iii when the crack was extended to 1000 mm. Calibration pull-tests for all three states of the blade were performed to obtain the strain-bending moment relationship of the blade according to the estimated target bending moment (BM which the blade is expected to experience in its service life. The resultant data was used to apply appropriate load in the fatigue tests. The blade natural frequencies in flapwise and edgewise directions over a range of frequency domain were found by modal testing for all three states of the blade. The blade first natural frequency for each state was used for the flapwise fatigue tests. These were performed in accordance with technical specification IEC TS 61400-23. The fatigue results showed that, for a 200 mm crack between the web and spar cap at 9 m from the blade root, the crack did not propagate at 50% of the target BM up to 62,110 cycles. However, when the load was increased to 70% of target BM, some damages were detected on the pressure side of the blade. When the 200 mm crack was extended to 1000 mm, the crack began to propagate when the applied load exceeded 100% of target BM and the blade experienced delaminations, adhesive joint failure, compression failure and sandwich core failure.

Full-Scale Fatigue Testing of a Wind Turbine Blade in Flapwise Direction and Examining the Effect of Crack Propagation on the Blade Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Khudairi, Othman; Hadavinia, Homayoun; Little, Christian; Gillmore, Gavin; Greaves, Peter; Dyer, Kirsten

2017-10-03

In this paper, the sensitivity of the structural integrity of wind turbine blades to debonding of the shear web from the spar cap was investigated. In this regard, modal analysis, static and fatigue testing were performed on a 45.7 m blade for three states of the blade: (i) as received blade (ii) when a crack of 200 mm was introduced between the web and the spar cap and (iii) when the crack was extended to 1000 mm. Calibration pull-tests for all three states of the blade were performed to obtain the strain-bending moment relationship of the blade according to the estimated target bending moment (BM) which the blade is expected to experience in its service life. The resultant data was used to apply appropriate load in the fatigue tests. The blade natural frequencies in flapwise and edgewise directions over a range of frequency domain were found by modal testing for all three states of the blade. The blade first natural frequency for each state was used for the flapwise fatigue tests. These were performed in accordance with technical specification IEC TS 61400-23. The fatigue results showed that, for a 200 mm crack between the web and spar cap at 9 m from the blade root, the crack did not propagate at 50% of the target BM up to 62,110 cycles. However, when the load was increased to 70% of target BM, some damages were detected on the pressure side of the blade. When the 200 mm crack was extended to 1000 mm, the crack began to propagate when the applied load exceeded 100% of target BM and the blade experienced delaminations, adhesive joint failure, compression failure and sandwich core failure.

Bladed disc crack diagnostics using blade passage signals

Science.gov (United States)

Hanachi, Houman; Liu, Jie; Banerjee, Avisekh; Koul, Ashok; Liang, Ming; Alavi, Elham

2012-12-01

One of the major potential faults in a turbo fan engine is the crack initiation and propagation in bladed discs under cyclic loads that could result in the breakdown of the engines if not detected at an early stage. Reliable fault detection techniques are therefore in demand to reduce maintenance cost and prevent catastrophic failures. Although a number of approaches have been reported in the literature, it remains very challenging to develop a reliable technique to accurately estimate the health condition of a rotating bladed disc. Correspondingly, this paper presents a novel technique for bladed disc crack detection through two sequential signal processing stages: (1) signal preprocessing that aims to eliminate the noises in the blade passage signals; (2) signal postprocessing that intends to identify the crack location. In the first stage, physics-based modeling and interpretation are established to help characterize the noises. The crack initiation can be determined based on the calculated health monitoring index derived from the sinusoidal effects. In the second stage, the crack is located through advanced detrended fluctuation analysis of the preprocessed data. The proposed technique is validated using a set of spin rig test data (i.e. tip clearance and time of arrival) that was acquired during a test conducted on a bladed military engine fan disc. The test results have demonstrated that the developed technique is an effective approach for identifying and locating the incipient crack that occurs at the root of a bladed disc.

Analysis of Different Blade Architectures on small VAWT Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Battisti, L.; Brighenti, A.; Benini, E.; Raciti Castelli, M.

2016-09-01

The present paper aims at describing and comparing different small Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) architectures, in terms of performance and loads. These characteristics can be highlighted by resorting to the Blade Element-Momentum (BE-M) model, commonly adopted for rotor pre-design and controller assessment. After validating the model with experimental data, the paper focuses on the analysis of VAWT loads depending on some relevant rotor features: blade number (2 and 3), airfoil camber line (comparing symmetrical and asymmetrical profiles) and blade inclination (straight versus helical blade). The effect of such characteristics on both power and thrusts (in the streamwise direction and in the crosswise one) as a function of both the blades azimuthal position and their Tip Speed Ratio (TSR) are presented and widely discussed.

New Tools Being Developed for Engine- Airframe Blade-Out Structural Simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence, Charles

2003-01-01

One of the primary concerns of aircraft structure designers is the accurate simulation of the blade-out event. This is required for the aircraft to pass Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification and to ensure that the aircraft is safe for operation. Typically, the most severe blade-out occurs when a first-stage fan blade in a high-bypass gas turbine engine is released. Structural loading results from both the impact of the blade onto the containment ring and the subsequent instantaneous unbalance of the rotating components. Reliable simulations of blade-out are required to ensure structural integrity during flight as well as to guarantee successful blade-out certification testing. The loads generated by these analyses are critical to the design teams for several components of the airplane structures including the engine, nacelle, strut, and wing, as well as the aircraft fuselage. Currently, a collection of simulation tools is used for aircraft structural design. Detailed high-fidelity simulation tools are used to capture the structural loads resulting from blade loss, and then these loads are used as input into an overall system model that includes complete structural models of both the engines and the airframe. The detailed simulation (shown in the figure) includes the time-dependent trajectory of the lost blade and its interactions with the containment structure, and the system simulation includes the lost blade loadings and the interactions between the rotating turbomachinery and the remaining aircraft structural components. General-purpose finite element structural analysis codes are typically used, and special provisions are made to include transient effects from the blade loss and rotational effects resulting from the engine s turbomachinery. To develop and validate these new tools with test data, the NASA Glenn Research Center has teamed with GE Aircraft Engines, Pratt & Whitney, Boeing Commercial Aircraft, Rolls-Royce, and MSC.Software.

Design and evaluation of low-cost laminated wood composite blades for intermediate size wind turbines: Blade design, fabrication concept, and cost analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Lieblein, S.; Gaugeon, M.; Thomas, G.; Zueck, M.

1982-01-01

As part of a program to reduce wind turbine costs, an evaluation was conducted of a laminated wood composite blade for the Mod-OA 200 kW wind turbine. The effort included the design and fabrication concept for the blade, together with cost and load analyses. The blade structure is composed of laminated Douglas fir veneers for the primary spar and nose sections, and honeycomb cored plywood panels for the trailing edges sections. The attachment of the wood blade to the rotor hub was through load takeoff studs bonded into the blade root. Tests were conducted on specimens of the key structural components to verify the feasibility of the concept. It is concluded that the proposed wood composite blade design and fabrication concept is suitable for Mod-OA size turbines (125-ft diameter rotor) at a cost that is very competitive with other methods of manufacture.

Extrapolation of dynamic load behaviour on hydroelectric turbine blades with cyclostationary modelling

Science.gov (United States)

Poirier, Marc; Gagnon, Martin; Tahan, Antoine; Coutu, André; Chamberland-lauzon, Joël

2017-01-01

In this paper, we present the application of cyclostationary modelling for the extrapolation of short stationary load strain samples measured in situ on hydraulic turbine blades. Long periods of measurements allow for a wide range of fluctuations representative of long-term reality to be considered. However, sampling over short periods limits the dynamic strain fluctuations available for analysis. The purpose of the technique presented here is therefore to generate a representative signal containing proper long term characteristics and expected spectrum starting with a much shorter signal period. The final objective is to obtain a strain history that can be used to estimate long-term fatigue behaviour of hydroelectric turbine runners.

Piezoelectric actuation of helicopter rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Lieven, Nicholas A. J.

2001-07-01

The work presented in this paper is concerned with the application of embedded piezo-electric actuators in model helicopter rotor blades. The paper outlines techniques to define the optimal location of actuators to excite particular modes of vibration whilst the blade is rotating. Using composite blades the distribution of strain energy is defined using a Finite Element model with imposed rotor-dynamic and aerodynamics loads. The loads are specified through strip theory to determine the position of maximum bending moment and thus the optimal location of the embedded actuators. The effectiveness of the technique is demonstrated on a 1/4 scale fixed cyclic pitch rotor head. Measurement of the blade displacement is achieved by using strain gauges. In addition a redundant piezo-electric actuator is used to measure the blades' response characteristics. The addition of piezo-electric devices in this application has been shown to exhibit adverse aeroelastic effects, such as counter mass balancing and increased drag. Methods to minimise these effects are suggested. The outcome of the paper is a method for defining the location and orientation of piezo-electric devices in rotor-dynamic applications.

Aeroelastic multidisciplinary design optimization of a swept wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pavese, Christian; Tibaldi, Carlo; Zahle, Frederik

2017-01-01

Mitigating loads on a wind turbine rotor can reduce the cost of energy. Sweeping blades produces a structural coupling between flapwise bending and torsion, which can be used for load alleviation purposes. A multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) problem is formulated including the blade sweep...

Optimal Design and Acoustic Assessment of Low-Vibration Rotor Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Bernardini

2016-01-01

Full Text Available An optimal procedure for the design of rotor blade that generates low vibratory hub loads in nonaxial flow conditions is presented and applied to a helicopter rotor in forward flight, a condition where vibrations and noise become severe. Blade shape and structural properties are the design parameters to be identified within a binary genetic optimization algorithm under aeroelastic stability constraint. The process exploits an aeroelastic solver that is based on a nonlinear, beam-like model, suited for the analysis of arbitrary curved-elastic-axis blades, with the introduction of a surrogate wake inflow model for the analysis of sectional aerodynamic loads. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate the capability of the proposed approach to identify low vibratory hub loads rotor blades as well as to assess the robustness of solution at off-design operating conditions. Further, the aeroacoustic assessment of the rotor configurations determined is carried out in order to examine the impact of low-vibration blade design on the emitted noise field.

The flow field investigations of no load conditions in axial flow fixed-blade turbine

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, J.; Gao, L.; Wang, Z. W.; Zhou, X. Z.; Xu, H. X.

2014-03-01

During the start-up process, the strong instabilities happened at no load operation in a low head axial flow fixed-blade turbine, with strong pressure pulsation and vibration. The rated speed can not reach until guide vane opening to some extent, and stable operation could not be maintained under the rated speed at some head, which had a negative impact on the grid-connected operation of the unit. In order to find the reason of this phenomenon, the unsteady flow field of the whole flow passage at no load conditions was carried out to analyze the detailed fluid field characteristics including the pressure pulsation and force imposed on the runner under three typical heads. The main hydraulic cause of no load conditions instability was described. It is recommended that the power station should try to reduce the no-load running time and go into the high load operation as soon as possible when connected to grid at the rated head. Following the recommendations, the plant operation practice proved the unstable degree of the unit was reduced greatly during start up and connect to the power grid.

Investigation of potential extreme load reduction for a two-bladed upwind turbine with partial pitch

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kim, Taeseong; Larsen, Torben J.; Yde, Anders

2015-01-01

This paper presents a wind turbine concept with an innovative design combining partial pitch with a two-bladed (PP-2B) turbine configuration. Special emphasis is on extreme load reduction during storm situations at standstill, but operational loads are also investigated. In order to compare...... loads are reduced by approximately 20% for the PP-2B and 18% for the PP-3B compared with the 3B turbine for the parked condition in a storm situation. Moreover, a huge potential of 60% is observed for the reduction of the extreme tower bottom bending moment for the PP-2B turbine, when the wind direction...... is from ±90° to the turbine, but this also requires that the turbine is parked in a T-configuration. © 2014 The Authors. Wind Energy published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd....

Distribution of defects in wind turbine blades and reliability assessment of blades containing defects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stensgaard Toft, Henrik; Branner, Kim; Berring, Peter

2009-01-01

on the assumption that one error in the production process tends to trigger several defects. For both models additional information about number, type and size of the defects is included as stochastic variables. The probability of failure for a wind turbine blade will not only depend on variations in the material......In the present paper two stochastic models for the distribution of defects in wind turbine blades are proposed. The first model assumes that the individual defects are completely randomly distributed in the blade. The second model assumes that the defects occur in clusters of different size based...... properties and the load but also on potential defects in the blades. As a numerical example the probability of failure is calculated for the main spar both with and without defects in terms of delaminations. The delaminations increase the probability of failure compared to a perfect blade, but by applying...

3D numerical analysis and optimization of aerodynamic performance of turbine blade

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Dingbiao; Xie Wen; Zhou Junjie

2010-01-01

To reduce the stator profile loss and improve the efficiency of the industrial steam turbine, a numerical analysis and optimization of the data for the steam turbine stator blade are conducted by the NUMECA,a CFD software. The result shows that, compared with the original blade, the 'after loading' blade is with the best static pressure coefficient distribution, and effectively postpones the transition point position, reduces the radial pressure gradient of suction surface, and cut down the secondary flow loss effectively. The total pressure losses of the 'after loading' blade is 1.03%, which is the least, and the single-stage efficiency is 94.462%, which is the maximum and increases 14.33%. Thus, the aerodynamic performance of stage is improved obviously, the profile loss decreases through using the 'after loading' blade. (authors)

Simulation of Mechanical Behavior and Damage of a Large Composite Wind Turbine Blade under Critical Loads

Science.gov (United States)

Tarfaoui, M.; Nachtane, M.; Khadimallah, H.; Saifaoui, D.

2018-04-01

Issues such as energy generation/transmission and greenhouse gas emissions are the two energy problems we face today. In this context, renewable energy sources are a necessary part of the solution essentially winds power, which is one of the most profitable sources of competition with new fossil energy facilities. This paper present the simulation of mechanical behavior and damage of a 48 m composite wind turbine blade under critical wind loads. The finite element analysis was performed by using ABAQUS code to predict the most critical damage behavior and to apprehend and obtain knowledge of the complex structural behavior of wind turbine blades. The approach developed based on the nonlinear FE analysis using mean values for the material properties and the failure criteria of Tsai-Hill to predict failure modes in large structures and to identify the sensitive zones.

Structural experiment of wind turbine blades; Fushayo blade no zairyo rikigakuteki jikken kenkyu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seki, K; Shimizu, Y; Kuroyanagi, H [Tokai University, Tokyo (Japan)

1997-11-25

Aluminum, GFRP and composite of aluminum coated with carbon as structural materials for wind turbine blades were bending-tested, to improve blade bending stiffness, understand stress conditions at each position, and clarify structural dynamic strength by the bending-failure test. It is possible to estimate stress conditions at each position from the test results of displacement and strain at each load. The test results with GFRP are well explained qualitatively by the boundary theory, known as a theory for composite materials. The test gives reasonable material strength data, useful for designing wind turbines of high functions and safety. The results of the blade bending-failure test are in good agreement with the calculated structural blade strength. It is also found that GFRP is a good material of high structural strength for wind turbines. 8 refs., 6 tabs.

Retention system and method for the blades of a rotary machine

Science.gov (United States)

Pedersen, Poul D.; Glynn, Christopher C.; Walker, Roger C.

2002-01-01

A retention system and method for the blades of a rotary machine for preventing forward or aft axial movement of the rotor blades includes a circumferential hub slot formed about a circumference of the machine hub. The rotor blades have machined therein a blade retention slot which is aligned with the circumferential hub slot when the blades are received in correspondingly shaped openings in the hub. At least one ring segment is secured in the blade retention slots and the circumferential hub slot to retain the blades from axial movement. A key assembly is used to secure the ring segments in the aligned slots via a hook portion receiving the ring segments and a threaded portion that is driven radially outwardly by a nut. A cap may be provided to provide a redundant back-up load path for the centrifugal loads on the key. Alternatively, the key assembly may be formed in the blade dovetail.

Experimental Investigation of Inter-Blade Vortices in a Model Francis Turbine

Science.gov (United States)

LIU, Demin; LIU, Xiaobing; ZHAO, Yongzhi

2017-07-01

The inter-blade vortex in a Francis turbine becomes one of the main hydraulic factors that are likely to cause blade erosion at deep part load operating conditions. However, the causes and the mechanism of inter-blade vortex are still under investigation according to present researches. Thus the causes of inter-blade vortex and the effect of different hydraulic parameters on the inter-blade vortex are investigated experimentally. The whole life cycle of the inter-blade vortex is observed by a high speed camera. The test results illustrate the whole life cycle of the inter-blade vortex from generation to separation and even to fading. It is observed that the inter-blade vortex becomes stronger with the decreasing of flow and head, which leads to pressure fluctuation. Meanwhile, the pressure fluctuations in the vane-less area and the draft tube section become stronger when inter-blade vortices exist in the blade channel. The turbine will be damaged if operating in the inter-blade vortex zone, so its operating range must be far away from that zone. This paper reveals the main cause of the inter-blade vortex which is the larger incidence angle between the inflow angle and the blade angle on the leading edge of the runner at deep part load operating conditions.

Influence of modern studded and bladed soccer boots and sidestep cutting on knee loading during match play conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaila, Rajiv

2007-09-01

The influence of modern studded and bladed soccer boots and sidestep cutting on noncontact knee loading during match play conditions is not fully understood. Modern soccer boot type and sidestep cutting compared with straight-ahead running do not significantly influence knee internal tibia axial and valgus moments, anterior joint forces, and flexion angles. Controlled laboratory study. Fifteen professional male outfield soccer players undertook trials of straight-ahead running and sidestep cutting at 30 degrees and 60 degrees with a controlled approach velocity on a Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) approved soccer surface. Two bladed and 2 studded soccer boots from 2 manufacturers were investigated. Three-dimensional inverse dynamics analysis determined externally applied internal/external tibia axial and valgus/varus moments, anterior forces, and flexion angles throughout stance. The soccer boot type imparted no significant difference on knee loading for each maneuver. Internal tibia and valgus moments were significantly greater for sidestep cutting at 30 degrees and 60 degrees compared with straight-ahead running. Sidestep cutting at 60 degrees compared with straight-ahead running significantly increased anterior joint forces. Varying soccer boot type had no effect on knee loading for each maneuver, but sidestep cutting significantly increased internal tibia and valgus moments and anterior joint forces. Sidestep cutting, irrespective of the modern soccer boot type worn, may be implicated in the high incidence of noncontact soccer anterior cruciate ligament injuries by significantly altering knee loading.

Investigation of the structural behavior of the blades of a darrieus wind turbine†

Science.gov (United States)

Rosen, A.; Abramovich, H.

1985-06-01

A theoretical model in which account is taken of the non-linear, non-planar structural behavior of the curved blades of a Darrieus wind turbine is described. This model is simpler and needs less computational effort than some other models, but is still accurate enough for most engineering purposes. By using the present method, it is possible to treat any blade geometry, any structural, mass and aerodynamic blade properties distribution and any combination of boundary conditions. The model is used in order to calculate the blade behavior under the influence of concentrated loads, gravity loads and centrifugal loads. In order to verify the theoretical model, predictions are compared with experimental results which are obtained from tests with small models of curved blades. Usually the agreement between the theoretical and experimental results is very good. The influence of different parameters on blade behavior is presented and discussed.

Aerodynamic Analysis of Morphing Blades

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Caleb; Macphee, David; Carlisle, Madeline

2016-11-01

Interest in morphing blades has grown with applications for wind turbines and other aerodynamic blades. This passive control method has advantages over active control methods such as lower manufacturing and upkeep costs. This study has investigated the lift and drag forces on individual blades with experimental and computational analysis. The goal has been to show that these blades delay stall and provide larger lift-to-drag ratios at various angles of attack. Rigid and flexible airfoils were cast from polyurethane and silicone respectively, then lift and drag forces were collected from a load cell during 2-D testing in a wind tunnel. Experimental data was used to validate computational models in OpenFOAM. A finite volume fluid-structure-interaction solver was used to model the flexible blade in fluid flow. Preliminary results indicate delay in stall and larger lift-to-drag ratios by maintaining more optimal angles of attack when flexing. Funding from NSF REU site Grant EEC 1358991 is greatly appreciated.

Model predictive control of trailing edge flaps on a wind turbine blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Castaignet, D.B.

2011-11-15

Trailing edge flaps on wind turbine blades have been investigated for several years. Aero-servoelastic simulations carried out with different simulation tools, trailing edge flaps configurations and controller designs proved that trailing edge flaps are a suitable solution for reducing some of the wind turbine fatigue and extreme loads. This potential was confirmed with wind tunnel tests made on blade sections with trailing edge flaps and on a scaled two-bladed wind turbine in a wind tunnel. The work presented in this thesis includes a full-scale test run on a Vestas V27 wind turbine equipped with three trailing edge flaps on one blade, located on DTU's Risoe Campus in Roskilde, Denmark. This thesis is divided into three parts: the controller design, results from simulations, and results from the experiments. The trailing edge flaps controller designed for this project is based on a frequency-weighted model predictive control, tuned in order to target only the flapwise blade root loads at the frequencies contributing the most to blade root fatigue damage (the 1P, 2P and 3P frequencies), and to avoid unnecessary wear and tear of the actuators at high frequencies. A disturbance model consisting in periodic disturbances at the rotor speed harmonic frequencies and a quasi-steady input disturbance is aggregated to an analytical model of a spinning blade with trailing edge flaps. Simulations on a multi-megawatt wind turbine show the potential of the trailing edge flaps to reduce the flapwise blade root fatigue loads by 23%, but also the main shaft and the tower fatigue loads by up to 32%. Extreme loads during normal production also benefit from the trailing edge flaps. At last, the same controller was run on the Vestas V27 wind turbine located at the Risoe Campus of the Technical University of Denmark, in Roskilde, Denmark. One blade of the turbine was equipped with three independent trailing edge flaps. In spite of the failure of several sensors and actuators, the

Pultrusion of a vertical axis wind turbine blade part-II: combining the manufacturing process simulation with a subsequent loading scenario

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baran, Ismet; Hattel, Jesper Henri; Tutum, Cem Celal

2015-01-01

This paper in particular deals with the integrated modeling of a pultruded NACA0018 blade profile being a part of EU funded DeepWind project. The manufacturing aspects of the pultrusion process are associated with the preliminary subsequent service loading scenario. A 3D thermochemical analysis...

CFD computations of wind turbine blade loads during standstill operation KNOW-BLADE, Task 3.1 report

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Niels N.; Johansen, Jeppe; Conway, S.

2004-01-01

Two rotors blades are computed during standstill conditions, using two different Navier-Stokes solvers EDGE and EllipSys3D. Both steady and transient linear k-? RANS turbulence models are applied, along with steady non-linear RANS and transient DESsimulations. The STORK 5.0 WPX blade is computed...... be explained by the difference in the applied turbulence models and the fact that the results from one of the solvers are presented as instantaneous valuesinstead of averaged values. The comparison of steady and transient RANS results show that the gain of using time true computations are very limited...... a three different tip pitch angles, 0, 26 and 50 degrees tip pitch angle, while the NREL Phase-VI blade is computed at 90 degrees tip pitch angle. Generally the CFD codes reproduce the measured trends quitewell and the two involved CFD codes give very similar results. The discrepancies observed can...

Advances in wind turbine blade design and materials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wind energy is gaining critical ground in the area of renewable energy, with wind energy being predicted to provide up to 8% of the world’s consumption of electricity by 2021. Advances in wind turbine blade design and materials reviews the design and functionality of wind turbine rotor blades...... as well as the requirements and challenges for composite materials used in both current and future designs of wind turbine blades. Part one outlines the challenges and developments in wind turbine blade design, including aerodynamic and aeroelastic design features, fatigue loads on wind turbine blades......, and characteristics of wind turbine blade airfoils. Part two discusses the fatigue behavior of composite wind turbine blades, including the micromechanical modelling and fatigue life prediction of wind turbine blade composite materials, and the effects of resin and reinforcement variations on the fatigue resistance...

CFD computations of wind turbine blade loads during standstill operation KNOW-BLADE, Task 3.1 report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soerensen, N.N.; Johansen, J.; Conway, S.

2004-06-01

Two rotors blades are computed during standstill conditions, using two different Navier-Stokes solvers EDGE and EllipSys3D. Both steady and transient linear {kappa} - {omega} RANS turbulence models are applied, along with steady non-linear RANS and transient DES simulations. The STORK 5.0 WPX blade is computed a three different tip pitch angles, 0, 26 and 50 degrees tip pitch angle, while the NREL Phase-VI blade is computed at 90 degrees tip pitch angle. Generally the CFD codes reproduce the measured trends quite well and the two involved CFD codes give very similar results. The discrepancies observed can be explained by the difference in the applied turbulence models and the fact that the results from one of the solvers are presented as instantaneous values instead of averaged values. The comparison of steady and transient RANS results show that the gain of using time true computations are very limited for this case, with respect to mean quantities. The same can be said for the RANS/DES comparison performed for the NREL rotor, even though the DES computation shows improved agreement at the tip and root sections. Finally, it is shown that the DES methodology provides a much more physical representation of the heavily stalled part of the flow over blades at high angles of attack. (au)

Pultrusion of a vertical axis wind turbine blade part-II: combining the manufacturing process simulation with a subsequent loading scenario

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baran, Ismet; Hattel, Jesper H.; Tutum, Cem C.; Akkerman, Remko

2015-01-01

This paper in particular deals with the integrated modeling of a pultruded NACA0018 blade profile being a part of EU funded DeepWind project. The manufacturing aspects of the pultrusion process are associated with the preliminary subsequent service loading scenario. A 3D thermo-chemical analysis of

Band Saw Blade Crack before and after Comparison and Analysis of Experiments (2

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gao Jin-gui

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Based on MJ3310 woodworking band saw machine as the research object, under the no-load and load of Vib system vibration signal acquisition, processing and analysis software of band saw blade transverse vibration test and the signal acquisition and analysis of the collected signals obtained: to determine the transverse vibration displacement 5.66μm ~ 7.86μm and the main vibration frequency between 624 Hz ~ 792 Hz, then saw blade crack at least 3 mm, need timely saw blade, cutting high hardness of wood band saw blade transverse vibration displacement and frequency will increase sharply. Can be generated according to the band saw blade crack before and after the changing rule of the horizontal vibration displacement and frequency of transverse vibration and scope, judgment and replacement time of saw blade saw blade defect types, which can fully rational utilization of saw blade work effectively.

Towing Tank and Flume Testing of Passively Adaptive Composite Tidal Turbine Blades: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Murray, Robynne [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Ordonez-Sanchez, Stephanie [University of Strathclyde; Porter, Kate E. [University of Strathclyde; Johnstone, Cameron M. [University of Strathclyde; Doman, Darrel A. [Dalhousie University; Pegg, Michael J. [Dalhousie University

2017-09-28

Composite tidal turbine blades with bend-twist (BT) coupled layups allow the blade to self-adapt to local site conditions by passively twisting. Passive feathering has the potential to increase annual energy production and shed thrust loads and power under extreme tidal flows. Decreased hydrodynamic thrust and power during extreme conditions meann that the turbine support structure, generator, and other components can be sized more appropriately, resulting in a higher utilization factor and increased cost effectiveness. This paper presents new experimental data for a small-scale turbine with BT composite blades. The research team tested the turbine in the Kelvin Hydrodynamics Laboratory towing tank at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, United Kingdom, and in the recirculating current flume at the l Institut Francais de Recherche pour l Exploitation de la Mer Centre in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France. Tests were also performed on rigid aluminum blades with identical geometry, which yielded baseline test sets for comparison. The results from both facilities agreed closely, supporting the hypothesis that increased blade flexibility can induce load reductions. Under the most extreme conditions tested the turbine with BT blades had up to 11 percent lower peak thrust loads and a 15 percent reduction in peak power compared to the turbine with rigid blades. The load reductions varied as a function of turbine rotational velocity and ambient flow velocity.

Comparison of the lifting-line free vortex wake method and the blade-element-momentum theory regarding the simulated loads of multi-MW wind turbines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hauptmann, S; Bülk, M; Cheng, P W; Schön, L; Erbslöh, S; Boorsma, K; Grasso, F; Kühn, M

2014-01-01

Design load simulations for wind turbines are traditionally based on the blade- element-momentum theory (BEM). The BEM approach is derived from a simplified representation of the rotor aerodynamics and several semi-empirical correction models. A more sophisticated approach to account for the complex flow phenomena on wind turbine rotors can be found in the lifting-line free vortex wake method. This approach is based on a more physics based representation, especially for global flow effects. This theory relies on empirical correction models only for the local flow effects, which are associated with the boundary layer of the rotor blades. In this paper the lifting-line free vortex wake method is compared to a state- of-the-art BEM formulation with regard to aerodynamic and aeroelastic load simulations of the 5MW UpWind reference wind turbine. Different aerodynamic load situations as well as standardised design load cases that are sensitive to the aeroelastic modelling are evaluated in detail. This benchmark makes use of the AeroModule developed by ECN, which has been coupled to the multibody simulation code SIMPACK

Comparison of the lifting-line free vortex wake method and the blade-element-momentum theory regarding the simulated loads of multi-MW wind turbines

Science.gov (United States)

Hauptmann, S.; Bülk, M.; Schön, L.; Erbslöh, S.; Boorsma, K.; Grasso, F.; Kühn, M.; Cheng, P. W.

2014-12-01

Design load simulations for wind turbines are traditionally based on the blade- element-momentum theory (BEM). The BEM approach is derived from a simplified representation of the rotor aerodynamics and several semi-empirical correction models. A more sophisticated approach to account for the complex flow phenomena on wind turbine rotors can be found in the lifting-line free vortex wake method. This approach is based on a more physics based representation, especially for global flow effects. This theory relies on empirical correction models only for the local flow effects, which are associated with the boundary layer of the rotor blades. In this paper the lifting-line free vortex wake method is compared to a state- of-the-art BEM formulation with regard to aerodynamic and aeroelastic load simulations of the 5MW UpWind reference wind turbine. Different aerodynamic load situations as well as standardised design load cases that are sensitive to the aeroelastic modelling are evaluated in detail. This benchmark makes use of the AeroModule developed by ECN, which has been coupled to the multibody simulation code SIMPACK.

Stress analysis and life prediction of gas turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Hsiung, H. C.; Dunn, A. J.; Woodling, D. R.; Loh, D. L.

1988-01-01

A stress analysis procedure is presented for a redesign of the Space Shuttle Main Engine high pressure fuel turbopump turbine blades. The analysis consists of the one-dimensional scoping analysis to support the design layout and the follow-on three-dimensional finite element analysis to confirm the blade design at operating loading conditions. Blade life is evaluated based on high-cycle fatigue and low-cycle fatigue.

Anisotropic piezoelectric twist actuation of helicopter rotor blades: Aeroelastic analysis and design optimization

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkie, William Keats

1997-12-01

An aeroelastic model suitable for control law and preliminary structural design of composite helicopter rotor blades incorporating embedded anisotropic piezoelectric actuator laminae is developed. The aeroelasticity model consists of a linear, nonuniform beam representation of the blade structure, including linear piezoelectric actuation terms, coupled with a nonlinear, finite-state unsteady aerodynamics model. A Galerkin procedure and numerical integration in the time domain are used to obtain a soluti An aeroelastic model suitable for control law and preliminary structural design of composite helicopter rotor blades incorporating embedded anisotropic piezoelectric actuator laminae is developed. The aeroelasticity model consists of a linear, nonuniform beam representation of the blade structure, including linear piezoelectric actuation terms, coupled with a nonlinear, finite-state unsteady aerodynamics model. A Galerkin procedure and numerical integration in the time domain are used to obtain amited additional piezoelectric material mass, it is shown that blade twist actuation approaches which exploit in-plane piezoelectric free-stain anisotropies are capable of producing amplitudes of oscillatory blade twisting sufficient for rotor vibration reduction applications. The second study examines the effectiveness of using embedded piezoelectric actuator laminae to alleviate vibratory loads due to retreating blade stall. A 10 to 15 percent improvement in dynamic stall limited forward flight speed, and a 5 percent improvement in stall limited rotor thrust were numerically demonstrated for the active twist rotor blade relative to a conventional blade design. The active twist blades are also demonstrated to be more susceptible than the conventional blades to dynamic stall induced vibratory loads when not operating with twist actuation. This is the result of designing the active twist blades with low torsional stiffness in order to maximize piezoelectric twist authority

Measurement of Unsteady Aerodynamics Load on the Blade of Field Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

Science.gov (United States)

Kamada, Yasunari; Maeda, Takao; Naito, Keita; Ouchi, Yuu; Kozawa, Masayoshi

This paper describes an experimental field study of the rotor aerodynamics of wind turbines. The test wind turbine is a horizontal axis wind turbine, or: HAWT with a diameter of 10m. The pressure distributions on the rotating blade are measured with multi point pressure transducers. Sectional aerodynamic forces are analyzed from pressure distribution. Blade root moments are measured simultaneously by a pair of strain gauges. The inflow wind is measured by a three component sonic anemometer, the local inflow of the blade section are measured by a pair of 7 hole Pitot tubes. The relation between the aerodynamic moments on the blade root from pressure distribution and the mechanical moment from strain gauges is discussed. The aerodynamic moments are estimated from the sectional aerodynamic forces and show oscillation caused by local wind speed and direction change. The mechanical moment shows similar oscillation to the aerodynamic excepting the short period oscillation of the blade first mode frequency. The fluctuation of the sectional aerodynamic force triggers resonant blade oscillations. Where stall is present along the blade section, the blade's first mode frequency is dominant. Without stall, the rotating frequency is dominant in the blade root moment.

Local fatigue behavior in tapered areas of large offshore wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Raeis Hosseiny, Seyed Aydin; Jakobsen, Johnny

2016-01-01

failure of an entire blade structure. The local strength degradation under an ultimate static loading, subsequent to several years of fatigue, is predicted for an offshore wind turbine blade. Fatigue failure indexes of different damage modes are calculated using a sub-modeling approach. Multi axial...... knock-down factors for ply-drop effects in wind turbine blades under multi-axial static and fatigue loadings can be obtained.......Thickness transitions in load carrying elements lead to improved geometries and efficient material utilization. However, these transitions may introduce localized areas with high stress concentrations and may act as crack initiators that could potentially cause delamination and further catastrophic...

Ultimate strength of a large wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Find Mølholt

2009-01-01

reinforcements helping to prevent undesired structural elastic mechanisms are presented. The functionality of two of the suggested structural reinforcements was demonstrated in full-scale tests and the rest trough FE-studies. The blade design under investigation consisted of an aerodynamic airfoil and a load...... carrying box girder. In total, five full-scale tests have been performed involving one complete blade and two shortened box girders. The second box girder was submitted to three independent tests covering different structural reinforcement alternatives. The advantages and disadvantages of testing......The present PhD project contains a study of the structural static strength of wind turbine blades loaded in flap-wise direction. A combination of experimental and numerical work has been used to address the most critical failure mechanisms and to get an understanding of the complex structural...

The SNL100-03 Blade: Design Studies with Flatback Airfoils for the Sandia 100-meter Blade.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Griffith, Daniel; Richards, Phillip William

2014-09-01

A series of design studies were performed to inv estigate the effects of flatback airfoils on blade performance and weight for large blades using the Sandi a 100-meter blade designs as a starting point. As part of the study, the effects of varying the blade slenderness on blade structural performance was investigated. The advantages and disadvantages of blad e slenderness with respect to tip deflection, flap- wise & edge-wise fatigue resistance, panel buckling capacity, flutter speed, manufacturing labor content, blade total weight, and aerodynamic design load magn itude are quantified. Following these design studies, a final blade design (SNL100-03) was prod uced, which was based on a highly slender design using flatback airfoils. The SNL100-03 design with flatback airfoils has weight of 49 tons, which is about 16% decrease from its SNL100-02 predecessor that used conventional sharp trailing edge airfoils. Although not systematically optimized, the SNL100 -03 design study provides an assessment of and insight into the benefits of flatback airfoils for la rge blades as well as insights into the limits or negative consequences of high blade slenderness resulting from a highly slender SNL100-03 planform as was chosen in the final design definition. This docum ent also provides a description of the final SNL100-03 design definition and is intended to be a companion document to the distribution of the NuMAD blade model files for SNL100-03, which are made publicly available. A summary of the major findings of the Sandia 100-meter blade development program, from the initial SNL100-00 baseline blade through the fourth SNL100-03 blade study, is provided. This summary includes the major findings and outcomes of blade d esign studies, pathways to mitigate the identified large blade design drivers, and tool development that were produced over the course of this five-year research program. A summary of large blade tec hnology needs and research opportunities is also presented.

Mitigating the Long term Operating Extreme Load through Active Control

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Koukoura, Christina; Natarajan, Anand

2014-01-01

blade azimuth location are shown to affect the extreme blade load magnitude during operation in normal turbulence wind input. The simultaneously controlled operation of generator torque variation and pitch variation at low blade pitch angles is detected to be responsible for very high loads acting...... on the blades. Through gain scheduling of the controller (modifications of the proportional Kp and the integral Ki gains) the extreme loads are mitigated, ensuring minimum instantaneous variations in the power production for operation above rated wind speed. The response of the blade load is examined...

Composite rotor blades for large wind energy installations

Science.gov (United States)

Kussmann, A.; Molly, J.; Muser, D.

1980-01-01

The design of large wind power systems in Germany is reviewed with attention given to elaboration of the total wind energy system, aerodynamic design of the rotor blade, and wind loading effects. Particular consideration is given to the development of composite glass fiber/plastic or carbon fiber/plastic rotor blades for such installations.

Composite rotor blades for large wind energy installations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kussmann, A; Molly, J P; Muser, D

1979-06-01

The design of large wind power systems in Germany is reviewed with attention given to elaboration of the total wind energy system, aerodynamic design of the rotor blade, and wind loading effects. Particular consideration is given to the development of composite glass fiber/plastic or carbon fiber/plastic rotor blades for such installations.

Applied modal analysis of wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, H.B.; Kristensen, O.J.D.

2003-01-01

In this project modal analysis has been used to determine the natural frequencies, damping and the mode shapes for wind turbine blades. Different methods to measure the position and adjust the direction of the measuring points are discussed. Differentequipment for mounting the accelerometers...... is investigated by repeated measurement on the same wind turbine blade. Furthermore the flexibility of the test set-up is investigated, by use ofaccelerometers mounted on the flexible adapter plate during the measurement campaign. One experimental campaign investigated the results obtained from a loaded...... and unloaded wind turbine blade. During this campaign the modal analysis are performed on ablade mounted in a horizontal and a vertical position respectively. Finally the results obtained from modal analysis carried out on a wind turbine blade are compared with results obtained from the Stig Øyes blade_EV1...

Blade-element/momentum theory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Jens Nørkær

2016-01-01

Although there exists a large variety of methods for predicting performance and loadings of wind turbines, the only approach used today by wind turbine manufacturers is based on the blade-element/momentum (BEM) theory by Glauert (Aerodynamic theory. Springer, Berlin, pp. 169-360, 1935). A basic...... assumption in the BEM theory is that the flow takes place in independent stream tubes and that the loading is determined from two-dimensional sectional airfoil characteristics....

Reduction of wind powered generator cost by use of a one bladed rotor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pruyn, R R; Wiesner, W; Ljungstroem, O [ed.

1976-01-01

Cost analysis supported by preliminary design studies of one and two bladed wind powered generator units shows that a 30% reduction in acquisition cost can be achieved with a one bladed design. Designs studied were sized for an output power of 1000 kilowatts. The one bladed design has the potential for reducing acquisition cost to $680 per available kilowatt if the unit is located in a region with mean surface winds of 15 mph. Vibratory loads of the one bladed design are significant and will require considerable design attention. The one per rev Coriolis torque caused by blade flapping is the most significant problem. The major source of blade flapping will be the velocity gradient of the ground boundary layer. A torsional vibration isolating coupling may be required in the generator drive to reduce the loads due to this vibratory torque. An inclined flapping hinge also is desirable to cause pitch-flap coupling that will suppress blade flap motions.

Integral Twist Actuation of Helicopter Rotor Blades for Vibration Reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, SangJoon; Cesnik, Carlos E. S.

2001-01-01

Active integral twist control for vibration reduction of helicopter rotors during forward flight is investigated. The twist deformation is obtained using embedded anisotropic piezocomposite actuators. An analytical framework is developed to examine integrally-twisted blades and their aeroelastic response during different flight conditions: frequency domain analysis for hover, and time domain analysis for forward flight. Both stem from the same three-dimensional electroelastic beam formulation with geometrical-exactness, and axe coupled with a finite-state dynamic inflow aerodynamics model. A prototype Active Twist Rotor blade was designed with this framework using Active Fiber Composites as the actuator. The ATR prototype blade was successfully tested under non-rotating conditions. Hover testing was conducted to evaluate structural integrity and dynamic response. In both conditions, a very good correlation was obtained against the analysis. Finally, a four-bladed ATR system is built and tested to demonstrate its concept in forward flight. This experiment was conducted at NASA Langley Tansonic Dynamics Tunnel and represents the first-of-a-kind Mach-scaled fully-active-twist rotor system to undergo forward flight test. In parallel, the impact upon the fixed- and rotating-system loads is estimated by the analysis. While discrepancies are found in the amplitude of the loads under actuation, the predicted trend of load variation with respect to its control phase correlates well. It was also shown, both experimentally and numerically, that the ATR blade design has the potential for hub vibratory load reduction of up to 90% using individual blade control actuation. Using the numerical framework, system identification is performed to estimate the harmonic transfer functions. The linear time-periodic system can be represented by a linear time-invariant system under the three modes of blade actuation: collective, longitudinal cyclic, and lateral cyclic. A vibration

Design, fabrication, and test of a steel spar wind turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Sullivan, T. L.; Sirocky, P. J., Jr.; Viterna, L. A.

1979-01-01

The design and fabrication of wind turbine blades based on 60 foot steel spars are discussed. Performance and blade load information is given and compared to analytical prediction. In addition, performance is compared to that of the original MOD-O aluminum blades. Costs for building the two blades are given, and a projection is made for the cost in mass production. Design improvements to reduce weight and improve fatigue life are suggested.

Mitigating the Long term Operating Extreme Load through Active Control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koukoura, Christina; Natarajan, Anand

2014-01-01

The parameters influencing the long term extreme operating design loads are identified through the implementation of a Design of Experiment (DOE) method. A function between the identified critical factors and the ultimate out-of-plane loads on the blade is determined. Variations in the initial blade azimuth location are shown to affect the extreme blade load magnitude during operation in normal turbulence wind input. The simultaneously controlled operation of generator torque variation and pitch variation at low blade pitch angles is detected to be responsible for very high loads acting on the blades. Through gain scheduling of the controller (modifications of the proportional Kp and the integral K gains) the extreme loads are mitigated, ensuring minimum instantaneous variations in the power production for operation above rated wind speed. The response of the blade load is examined for different values of the integral gain as resulting in rotor speed error and the rate of change of rotor speed. Based on the results a new load case for the simulation of extreme loads during normal operation is also presented

Effects of Blade Boundary Layer Transition and Daytime Atmospheric Turbulence on Wind Turbine Performance Analyzed with Blade-Resolved Simulation and Field Data

Science.gov (United States)

Nandi, Tarak Nath

Relevant to utility scale wind turbine functioning and reliability, the present work focuses on enhancing our understanding of wind turbine responses from interactions between energy-dominant daytime atmospheric turbulence eddies and rotating blades of a GE 1.5 MW wind turbine using a unique data set from a GE field experiment and computer simulations at two levels of fidelity. Previous studies have shown that the stability state of the lower troposphere has a major impact on the coherent structure of the turbulence eddies, with corresponding differences in wind turbine loading response. In this study, time-resolved aerodynamic data measured locally at the leading edge and trailing edge of three outer blade sections on a GE 1.5 MW wind turbine blade and high-frequency SCADA generator power data from a daytime field campaign are combined with computer simulations that mimic the GE wind turbine within a numerically generated atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) flow field which is a close approximation of the atmospheric turbulence experienced by the wind turbine in the field campaign. By combining the experimental and numerical data sets, this study describes the time-response characteristics of the local loadings on the blade sections in response to nonsteady nonuniform energetic atmospheric turbulence eddies within a daytime ABL which have spatial scale commensurate with that of the turbine blade length. This study is the first of its kind where actuator line and blade boundary layer resolved CFD studies of a wind turbine field campaign are performed with the motivation to validate the numerical predictions with the experimental data set, and emphasis is given on understanding the influence of the laminar to turbulent transition process on the blade loadings. The experimental and actuator line method data sets identify three important response time scales quantified at the blade location: advective passage of energy-dominant eddies (≈25 - 50 s), blade rotation (1P

Effect of number of blades on aerodynamic forces on a straight-bladed Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Qing'an; Maeda, Takao; Kamada, Yasunari; Murata, Junsuke; Furukawa, Kazuma; Yamamoto, Masayuki

2015-01-01

Small wind turbine performance and safety standard for straight-bladed Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) have not been developed in the world because of the lack of fundament experimental data. This paper focuses on the evaluation of aerodynamic forces depending on several numbers of blades in wind tunnel experiment. In the present study, the test airfoil of blade is symmetry airfoil of NACA 0021 and the number of blades is from two to five. Pressure acting on the surface of rotor blade is measured during rotation by multiport pressure devices and transmitted to a stationary system through wireless LAN. And then, the aerodynamic forces (tangential force, normal force et al.) are discussed as a function of azimuth angle, achieving a quantitative analysis of the effect of numbers of blades. Finally, the loads are compared with the experimental data of six-component balance. As a result, it is clarified that the power coefficient decreases with the increase of numbers of blades. Furthermore, the power which is absorbed from wind by wind turbine mainly depends on upstream region of azimuth angle of θ = 0°∼180°. In this way, these results are very important for developing the simple design equations and applications for straight-bladed VAWT. - Highlights: • Aerodynamic forces are measured by not only torque meter but also six-component balance. • The pressure distribution on the surface of rotor blade is directly measured by multiport pressure devices. • The power coefficient decreases with the increase of numbers of blades. • The fluctuation amplitudes from six-component balance show larger value than the results of pressure distribution.

Ultimate strength of a large wind turbine blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moelholt Jensen, Find

2008-05-15

The present PhD project contains a study of the structural static strength of wind turbine blades loaded in flap-wise direction. A combination of experimental and numerical work has been used to address the most critical failure mechanisms and to get an understanding of the complex structural behaviour of wind turbine blades. Four failure mechanisms observed during the fullscale tests and the corresponding FE-analysis are presented. Elastic mechanisms associated with failure, such as buckling, localized bending and the Brazier effect, are studied. Six different types of structural reinforcements helping to prevent undesired structural elastic mechanisms are presented. The functionality of two of the suggested structural reinforcements was demonstrated in full-scale tests and the rest trough FE-studies. The blade design under investigation consisted of an aerodynamic airfoil and a load carrying box girder. In total, five full-scale tests have been performed involving one complete blade and two shortened box girders. The second box girder was submitted to three independent tests covering different structural reinforcement alternatives. The advantages and disadvantages of testing a shortened load carrying box girder vs. an entire blade are discussed. Changes in the boundary conditions, loads and additional reinforcements, which were introduced in the box girder tests in order to avoid undesired structural elastic mechanisms, are presented. New and advanced measuring equipment was used in the fullscale tests to detect the critical failure mechanisms and to get an understanding of the complex structural behaviour. Traditionally, displacement sensors and strain gauges in blade tests are arranged based on an assumption of a Bernoulli-Euler beam structural response. In the present study it is shown that when following this procedure important information about distortions of the cross sections is lost. In the tests presented here, one of the aims was to measure distortion

Structural and mechanism design of an active trailing-edge flap blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Jae Hwan [Samsung Techwin R and D Center, Seongnam (Korea, Republic of); Natarajan, Balakumaran; Eun, Won Jong; Shin, Sang Joon [Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); R, Viswamurthy S. [National Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore (India); Park, Jae Sang [Agency for Defense Development, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Tae Song [Technical University of Denmark, Risoe Campus, Roskilde (Denmark)

2013-09-15

A conventional rotor control system restricted at 1/rev frequency component is unable to vary the hub vibratory loads and the aero acoustic noise, which exist in high frequency components. Various active rotor control methodologies have been examined in the literature to alleviate the problem of excessive hub vibratory loads and noise. The active control device manipulates the blade pitch angle with arbitrary higher harmonic frequencies individually. In this paper, an active trailing-edge flap blade, which is one of the active control methods, is developed to reduce vibratory loads and noise of the rotor through modification of unsteady aerodynamic loads. Piezoelectric actuators installed inside the blade manipulate the motion of the trailing edge flap. The proposed blade rotates at higher speed and additional structures are included to support the actuators and the flap. This improves the design, as the blade is able to withstand increased centrifugal force. The cross-section of the active blade is designed first. A stress/strain recovery analysis is then conducted to verify its structural integrity. A one-dimensional beam analysis is also carried out to assist with the construction of the fan diagram. To select the actuator and design the flap actuation region, the flap hinge moment is estimated via a CFD analysis. To obtain the desired flap deflection of ±4 .deg. , three actuators are required. The design of the flap actuation region is validated using a test bed with a skin hinge. However, because the skin hinge induces additional flap hinge moment, it does not provide sufficient deflection angle. Therefore, the flap hinge is replaced by a pin-type hinge, and the results are evaluated.

Design and Evaluation of Glass/epoxy Composite Blade and Composite Tower Applied to Wind Turbine

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Hyunbum

2018-02-01

In the study, the analysis and manufacturing of small class wind turbine blade was performed. In the structural design, firstly the loading conditions are defined through the load case analysis. The proposed structural configuration of blade has a sandwich type composite structure with the E-glass/Epoxy face sheets and the Urethane foam core for lightness, structural stability, low manufacturing cost and easy manufacturing process. And also, this work proposes a design procedure and results of tower for the small scale wind turbine systems. Structural analysis of blade including load cases, stress, deformation, buckling, vibration and fatigue life was performed using the finite element method, the load spectrum analysis and the Miner rule. Moreover, investigation on structural safety of tower was verified through structural analysis by FEM. The manufacturing of blade and tower was performed based on structural design. In order to investigate the designed structure, the structural tests were conducted and its results were compared with the calculated results. It is confirmed that the final proposed blade and tower meet the design requirements.

Investigation of Dynamic Aerodynamics and Control of Wind Turbine Sections Under Relevant Inflow/Blade Attitude Conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Naughton, Jonathan W. [University of Wyoming

2014-08-05

The growth of wind turbines has led to highly variable loading on the blades. Coupled with the relative reduced stiffness of longer blades, the need to control loading on the blades has become important. One method of controlling loads and maximizing energy extraction is local control of the flow on the wind turbine blades. The goal of the present work was to better understand the sources of the unsteady loading and then to control them. This is accomplished through an experimental effort to characterize the unsteadiness and the effect of a Gurney flap on the flow, as well as an analytical effort to develop control approaches. It was planned to combine these two efforts to demonstrate control of a wind tunnel test model, but that final piece still remains to be accomplished.

RESEARCH OF THE HIGH HARMONICS INDIVIDUAL BLADE CONTROL EFFECT ON VIBRATIONS CAUSED BY THE HELICOPTER MAIN ROTOR THRUST

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents numerical results analysis of main rotor vibration due to helicopter main rotor thrust pulsation.The calculation method, the object of research and numerical research results with the aim to reduce the amplitude of the vibrations transmitted to the hub from the helicopters main rotor by the individual blade control in azimuth by the installation angle of blades cyclic changes are set out in the article. The individual blades control law for a five-blade main rotor based on the blade frequencies is made. It allows reducing the vibration from thrust. Research takes into account the main rotor including and excluding the blade flapping motion. The minimal vibrations regime is identified.Numerical study of variable loads caused by unsteady flow around the main rotor blades at high relative speeds of flight, which transmitted to the rotor hub, is made. The scheme of a thin lifting surface and the rotor vortex theory are used for simulation of the aerodynamic loads on blades. Non - uniform loads caused by the thrust, decomposed on the blade harmonic and its overtones. The largest values of deviation from the mean amplitude thrust are received. The analysis of variable loads with a traditional control system is made. Algorithms of higher harmonics individual blade control capable of reducing the thrust pulsation under the average value of thrust are developed.Numerical research shows that individual blade control of high harmonics reduces variable loads. The necessary change in the blade installation is about ± 0,2 degree that corresponds to the maximum displacement of the additional con- trol stick is about 1 mm.To receive the overall picture is necessary to consider all six components of forces and moments. Control law with own constants will obtained for each of them. It is supposed, that each of six individual blade control laws have an impact on other components. Thus, the problem reduces to the optimization issue. The

A stochastic aerodynamic model for stationary blades in unsteady 3D wind fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fluck, Manuel; Crawford, Curran

2016-01-01

Dynamic loads play an important roll in the design of wind turbines, but establishing the life-time aerodynamic loads (e.g. extreme and fatigue loads) is a computationally expensive task. Conventional (deterministic) methods to analyze long term loads, which rely on the repeated analysis of multiple different wind samples, are usually too expensive to be included in optimization routines. We present a new stochastic approach, which solves the aerodynamic system equations (Lagrangian vortex model) in the stochastic space, and thus arrive directly at a stochastic description of the coupled loads along a turbine blade. This new approach removes the requirement of analyzing multiple different realizations. Instead, long term loads can be extracted from a single stochastic solution, a procedure that is obviously significantly faster. Despite the reduced analysis time, results obtained from the stochastic approach match deterministic result well for a simple test-case (a stationary blade). In future work, the stochastic method will be extended to rotating blades, thus opening up new avenues to include long term loads into turbine optimization. (paper)

Probabilistic Structural Analysis of SSME Turbopump Blades: Probabilistic Geometry Effects

Science.gov (United States)

Nagpal, V. K.

1985-01-01

A probabilistic study was initiated to evaluate the precisions of the geometric and material properties tolerances on the structural response of turbopump blades. To complete this study, a number of important probabilistic variables were identified which are conceived to affect the structural response of the blade. In addition, a methodology was developed to statistically quantify the influence of these probabilistic variables in an optimized way. The identified variables include random geometric and material properties perturbations, different loadings and a probabilistic combination of these loadings. Influences of these probabilistic variables are planned to be quantified by evaluating the blade structural response. Studies of the geometric perturbations were conducted for a flat plate geometry as well as for a space shuttle main engine blade geometry using a special purpose code which uses the finite element approach. Analyses indicate that the variances of the perturbations about given mean values have significant influence on the response.

Design and Analysis of Wind Turbine Blade Hub using Aluminium Alloy AA 6061-T6

Science.gov (United States)

Ravikumar, S.; Jaswanthvenkatram, V.; Sai kumar, Y. J. N. V.; Sohaib, S. Md.

2017-05-01

This work presents the design and analysis of horizontal axis wind turbine blade hub using different material. The hub is very crucial part of the wind turbine, which experience the loads from the blades and the loads were transmitted to the main shaft. At present wind turbine is more expensive and weights more than a million pounds, with the nacelle, rotor hub and blades accounting for most of the weight. In this work Spheroidal graphite cast iron GGG 40.3 is replaced by aluminium alloy 6061-T6 to enhance the casting properties and also to improve the strength-weight ratio. This transition of material leads to reduction in weight of the wind turbine. All the loads caused by wind and extreme loads on the blades are transferred to the hub. Considering the IEC 61400-1 standard for defining extreme loads on the hub the stress and deflection were calculated on the hub by using Finite element Analysis. Result obtained from ANSYS is compared and discussed with the existing design.

Comprehensive Structural Dynamic Analysis of the SSME/AT Fuel Pump First-Stage Turbine Blade

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, A. M.

1998-01-01

A detailed structural dynamic analysis of the Pratt & Whitney high-pressure fuel pump first-stage turbine blades has been performed to identify the cause of the tip cracking found in the turbomachinery in November 1997. The analysis was also used to help evaluate potential fixes for the problem. Many of the methods available in structural dynamics were applied, including modal displacement and stress analysis, frequency and transient response to tip loading from the first-stage Blade Outer Gas Seals (BOGS), fourier analysis, and shock spectra analysis of the transient response. The primary findings were that the BOGS tip loading is impulsive in nature, thereby exciting many modes of the blade that exhibit high stress at the tip cracking location. Therefore, a proposed BOGS count change would not help the situation because a clearly identifiable resonance situation does not exist. The recommendations for the resolution of the problem are to maintain the existing BOGS count, eliminate the stress concentration in the blade due to its geometric design, and reduce the applied load on the blade by adding shiplaps in the BOGS.

Design of a 21 m blade with Risø-A1 airfoils for active stall controlled wind turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fuglsang, Peter; Sangill, O.; Hansen, P.

2002-01-01

This is the final report, from the project, "Design of a Rotor/Airfoil Family for Active Stall-regulated Wind Turbines by Use of Multi-point Optimization". It describes the full scale testing of a 21 m wind turbine blade specially designed for active stallregulation. Design objectives were...... increased ratio of produced energy to turbine loads and more stable power control characteristics. Both were taken directly into account during the design of the blade using numerical optimization. The blade used theRisø-A1 airfoil family, which was specially designed for operation on wind turbine blades....... The new blade was designed to replace the LM 21.0P blade. A measurement campaign was carried out simultaneously on two identical adjacent wind turbines where onehad the new blades and the other had LM 21.0P blades. Power and loads including blade section moments for the new blades were measured to assess...

Model predictive control of trailing edge flaps on a wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Castaignet, Damien Bruno

of the wind turbine fatigue and extreme loads. This potential was confirmed with wind tunnel tests made on blade sections with trailing edge flaps and on a scaled two-bladed wind turbine in a wind tunnel. The work presented in this thesis includes a full-scale test run on a Vestas V27 wind turbine equipped...... fatigue loads by 23%, but also the main shaft and the tower fatigue loads by up to 32%. Extreme loads during normal production also benefit from the trailing edge flaps. At last, the same controller was run on the Vestas V27 wind turbine located at the Risø Campus of the Technical University of Denmark......Trailing edge flaps on wind turbine blades have been investigated for several years. Aero-servoelastic simulations carried out with different simulation tools, trailing edge flaps configurations and controller designs proved that trailing edge flaps are a suitable solution for reducing some...

Life assessment of gas turbine blades after long term service

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Auerkari, Pertti; Salonen, Jorma [VTT, Espoo (Finland); Maekinen, Sari [Helsingin Energia, Helsinki (Finland); Karvonen, Ikka; Tanttari, Heikki [Lappeenrannan Laempoevoima, Lappeenranta (Finland); Kangas, Pekka [Neste Oil, Kilpilahti (Finland); Scholz, Alfred [Technische Univ. Darmstadt (Germany); Vacchieri, Erica [Ansaldo Richerche, Genoa (Italy)

2010-07-01

Turbine blade samples from three land based gas turbines have been subjected to systematic condition and life assessment after long term service (88000 - 109000 equivalent operating hours, eoh), when approaching the nominal or suggested life limits. The blades represent different machine types, materials and design generations, and uncooled blading outside the hottest front end of the turbine, i.e. blades with relatively large size and considerable expected life. For a reasonable assessment, a range of damage mechanisms need to be addressed and evaluated for the impact in the residual life. The results suggested significant additional safe life for all three blade sets. In some cases this could warrant yet another life cycle comparable to that of new blades, even after approaching the nominal end of life in terms of recommended equivalent operating hours. This is thought to be partly because of base load combined cycle operation and natural gas fuel, or modest operational loading if the design also accounted for more intensive cycling operation and more corrosive oil firing. In any case, long term life extension is only appropriate if not intervened by events of overloading, overheating or other sudden events such as foreign object damage (FOD), and if supported by the regular inspection and maintenance program to control in-service damage. Condition based assessment therefore remains an important part of the blade life management after the decision of accepted life extension. (orig.)

Resonant vibration control of three-bladed wind turbine rotors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krenk, Steen; Svendsen, Martin Nymann; Høgsberg, Jan Becker

2012-01-01

Rotors with blades, as in wind turbines, are prone to vibrations due to the flexibility of the blades and the support. In the present paper a theory is developed for active control of a combined set of vibration modes in three-bladed rotors. The control system consists of identical collocated...... to influence of other nonresonant modes. The efficiency of the method isdemonstrated byapplication to a rotor with 42 m blades, where the sensor/actuator system is implemented in the form of an axial extensible strut near the root of each blade. The load is provided by a simple but fully threedimensional...... correlated wind velocity field. It is shown by numerical simulations that the active damping system can provide a significant reduction in the response amplitude of the targeted modes, while applying control moments to the blades that are about 1 order of magnitude smaller than the moments from the external...

Wind turbine blade testing system using base excitation

Science.gov (United States)

Cotrell, Jason; Thresher, Robert; Lambert, Scott; Hughes, Scott; Johnson, Jay

2014-03-25

An apparatus (500) for fatigue testing elongate test articles (404) including wind turbine blades through forced or resonant excitation of the base (406) of the test articles (404). The apparatus (500) includes a testing platform or foundation (402). A blade support (410) is provided for retaining or supporting a base (406) of an elongate test article (404), and the blade support (410) is pivotally mounted on the testing platform (402) with at least two degrees of freedom of motion relative to the testing platform (402). An excitation input assembly (540) is interconnected with the blade support (410) and includes first and second actuators (444, 446, 541) that act to concurrently apply forces or loads to the blade support (410). The actuator forces are cyclically applied in first and second transverse directions. The test article (404) responds to shaking of its base (406) by oscillating in two, transverse directions (505, 507).

Vibration and flutter of mistuned bladed-disk assemblies

Science.gov (United States)

Kaza, K. R. V.; Kielb, R. E.

1984-01-01

An analytical model for investigating vibration and flutter of mistuned bladed disk assemblies is presented. This model accounts for elastic, inertial and aerodynamic coupling between bending and torsional motions of each individual blade, elastic and inertial couplings between the blades and the disk, and aerodynamic coupling among the blades. The disk was modeled as a circular plate with constant thickness and each blade was represented by a twisted, slender, straight, nonuniform, elastic beam with a symmetric cross section. The elastic axis, inertia axis, and the tension axis were taken to be noncoincident and the structural warping of the section was explicitly considered. The blade aerodynamic loading in the subsonic and supersonic flow regimes was obtained from two-dimensional unsteady, cascade theories. All the possible standing wave modes of the disk and traveling wave modes of the blades were included. The equations of motion were derived by using the energy method in conjunction with the assumed mode shapes for the disk and the blades. Continuities of displacement and slope at the blade-disk junction were maintained. The equations were solved to investigate the effects of blade-disk coupling and blade frequency mistuning on vibration and flutter. Results showed that the flexibility of practical disks such as those used for current generation turbofans did not have a significant influence on either the tuned or mistuned flutter characteristics. However, the disk flexibility may have a strong influence on some of the system frequencies and on forced response.

Vibration analysis of gas turbine blade using FEM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iqbal, M.J.; Chohan, G.Y.; Khusnood, S.; Khan, M.A.

2003-01-01

In a typical turbo-machine, there is a stator row of blades, which guide the gases onto a rotor row of blades, to extract the mechanical power from the machine. A typical rotor blade was sees upstream disturbance from the stator row and as it rotates, receive a corresponding number of increasing and decreasing lift and moment forces alternating periodically, depending on the number of stator blades/nozzles/guide vanes. Thus all the blades in a turbo-machine receiver their major periodic excitation at a frequency equal to nozzle passing frequency. Since these forces are periodic, one has to consider several number of these harmonics in determining whether resonance takes place, when one of these harmonics coincides with any of the natural frequencies of the blades. Turbine blades have a variety of natural modes of vibration, predominantly as blade alone but also in combination with flexing of the disc rim. These mode occur at characteristic frequencies, which are determined by the distribution of mass and stiffness (in bending or torsion), resulting from the variable thickness over the blade area. Since the advent of steam turbines and their application in various sectors of industry, it is a common experience that a blade failure is a major cause of breakdown in these machines. Blade failures due to fatigue are predominantly vibration related. The dynamic loads on the blading can arise from many sources, the predominant being the source of the operation principles on which the machine is designed. This work deals with vibration analysis of a gas turbine blade using a finite element package ANSYS. Determined the natural frequencies and mode shapes for a turbine blade and a rectangular blade. Results have been validated experimentally using a rectangular blade. ANSYS results have also been compared against published results. (author)

Optimization design of spar cap layup for wind turbine blade

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

2012-01-01

Based on the aerodynamic shape and structural form of the blade are fixed,a mathematical model of optimization design for wind turbine blade is established.The model is pursued with respect to minimum the blade mass to reduce the cost of wind turbine production.The material layup numbers of the spar cap are chosen as the design variables;while the demands of strength,stiffness and stability of the blade are employed as the constraint conditions.The optimization design for a 1.5 MW wind turbine blade is carried out by combing above objective and constraint conditions at the action of ultimate flapwise loads with the finite element software ANSYS.Compared with the original design,the optimization design result achieves a reduction of 7.2% of the blade mass,the stress and strain distribution of the blade is more reasonable,and there is no occurrence of resonance,therefore its effectiveness is verified.

Applied modal analysis of wind turbine blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Broen Pedersen, H.; Dahl Kristensen, O.J.

2003-02-01

In this project modal analysis has been used to determine the natural frequencies, damping and the mode shapes for wind turbine blades. Different methods to measure the position and adjust the direction of the measuring points are discussed. Different equipment for mounting the accelerometers are investigated and the most suitable are chosen. Different excitation techniques are tried during experimental campaigns. After a discussion the pendulum hammer were chosen, and a new improved hammer was manufactured. Some measurement errors are investigated. The ability to repeat the measured results is investigated by repeated measurement on the same wind turbine blade. Furthermore the flexibility of the test set-up is investigated, by use of accelerometers mounted on the flexible adapter plate during the measurement campaign. One experimental campaign investigated the results obtained from a loaded and unloaded wind turbine blade. During this campaign the modal analysis are performed on a blade mounted in a horizontal and a vertical position respectively. Finally the results obtained from modal analysis carried out on a wind turbine blade are compared with results obtained from the Stig Oeyes blade{sub E}V1 program. (au)

Crack modeling of rotating blades with cracked hexahedral finite element method

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chao; Jiang, Dongxiang

2014-06-01

Dynamic analysis is the basis in investigating vibration features of cracked blades, where the features can be applied to monitor health state of blades, detect cracks in an early stage and prevent failures. This work presents a cracked hexahedral finite element method for dynamic analysis of cracked blades, with the purpose of addressing the contradiction between accuracy and efficiency in crack modeling of blades in rotor system. The cracked hexahedral element is first derived with strain energy release rate method, where correction of stress intensity factors of crack front and formulation of load distribution of crack surface are carried out to improve the modeling accuracy. To consider nonlinear characteristics of time-varying opening and closure effects caused by alternating loads, breathing function is proposed for the cracked hexahedral element. Second, finite element method with contact element is analyzed and used for comparison. Finally, validation of the cracked hexahedral element is carried out in terms of breathing effects of cracked blades and natural frequency in different crack depths. Good consistency is acquired between the results with developed cracked hexahedral element and contact element, while the computation time is significantly reduced in the previous one. Therefore, the developed cracked hexahedral element achieves good accuracy and high efficiency in crack modeling of rotating blades.

Unsteady potential flow past a propeller blade section

Science.gov (United States)

Takallu, M. A.

1990-01-01

An analytical study was conducted to predict the effect of an oscillating stream on the time dependent sectional pressure and lift coefficients of a model propeller blade. The assumption is that as the blade sections encounter a wake, the actual angles of attack vary in a sinusoidal manner through the wake, thus each blade is exposed to an unsteady stream oscillating about a mean value at a certain reduced frequency. On the other hand, an isolated propeller at some angle of attack can experience periodic changes in the value of the flow angle causing unsteady loads on the blades. Such a flow condition requires the inclusion of new expressions in the formulation of the unsteady potential flow around the blade sections. These expressions account for time variation of angle of attack and total shed vortices in the wake of each airfoil section. It was found that the final expressions for the unsteady pressure distribution on each blade section are periodic and that the unsteady circulation and lift coefficients exhibit a hysteresis loop.

Construction of low-cost, Mod-OA wood composite wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Lark, R. F.

1983-01-01

Two sixty-foot, low-cost, wood composite blades for service on 200 kW Mod-OA wind turbines were constructed. The blades were constructed of epoxy resin-bonded Douglas fir veneers for the leading edge sections, and paper honeycombcored, birch plywood faced panels for the afterbody sections. The blades were joined to the wind turbine hub by epoxy resin-bonded steel load take-off studs embedded into the root end of the blades. The blades were installed on the 200 kW Mod-OA wind turbine facility at Kahuku, Hawaii, The blades completed nearly 8,000 hours of operation over an 18 month period at an average power of 150 kW prior to replacement with another set of wood composite blades. The blades were replaced because of a corrosion failure of the steel shank on one stud. Inspections showed that the wood composite structure remained in excellent condition.

Aero-Thermo-Structural Design Optimization of Internally Cooled Turbine Blades

Science.gov (United States)

Dulikravich, G. S.; Martin, T. J.; Dennis, B. H.; Lee, E.; Han, Z.-X.

1999-01-01

A set of robust and computationally affordable inverse shape design and automatic constrained optimization tools have been developed for the improved performance of internally cooled gas turbine blades. The design methods are applicable to the aerodynamics, heat transfer, and thermoelasticity aspects of the turbine blade. Maximum use of the existing proven disciplinary analysis codes is possible with this design approach. Preliminary computational results demonstrate possibilities to design blades with minimized total pressure loss and maximized aerodynamic loading. At the same time, these blades are capable of sustaining significantly higher inlet hot gas temperatures while requiring remarkably lower coolant mass flow rates. These results suggest that it is possible to design internally cooled turbine blades that will cost less to manufacture, will have longer life span, and will perform as good, if not better than, film cooled turbine blades.

Fatigue strength ofcomposite wind turbine blade structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ardila, Oscar Gerardo Castro

Wind turbines are normally designed to withstand 20-30 years of life. During this period, the blades, which are the main rotating structures of a wind turbine, are subjected to high fluctuating load conditions as a result of a combination of gravity, inertia, and aeroelastic forces. For this reason......, fatigue is one of the foremost concerns during the design of these structures. However, current standard fatigue methods used for designing wind turbine blades seem not to be completely appropriate for these structures because they are still based on methods developed for metals and not for composite...... materials from which the blades are made. In this sense, the aim of this work is to develop more accurate and reliable fatigue-life prediction models for composite wind turbine blades. In this project, two types of fatigue models are implemented: fatigue-life models and damage mechanics models. In the first...

blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shashishekara S. Talya

1999-01-01

Full Text Available Design optimization of a gas turbine blade geometry for effective film cooling toreduce the blade temperature has been done using a multiobjective optimization formulation. Three optimization formulations have been used. In the first, the average blade temperature is chosen as the objective function to be minimized. An upper bound constraint has been imposed on the maximum blade temperature. In the second, the maximum blade temperature is chosen as the objective function to be minimized with an upper bound constraint on the average blade temperature. In the third formulation, the blade average and maximum temperatures are chosen as objective functions. Shape optimization is performed using geometric parameters associated with film cooling and blade external shape. A quasi-three-dimensional Navier–Stokes solver for turbomachinery flows is used to solve for the flow field external to the blade with appropriate modifications to incorporate the effect of film cooling. The heat transfer analysis for temperature distribution within the blade is performed by solving the heat diffusion equation using the finite element method. The multiobjective Kreisselmeier–Steinhauser function approach has been used in conjunction with an approximate analysis technique for optimization. The results obtained using both formulations are compared with reference geometry. All three formulations yield significant reductions in blade temperature with the multiobjective formulation yielding largest reduction in blade temperature.

AERFORCE: Subroutine package for unsteady blade-element/momentum calculations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bjoerck, Anders

2000-05-01

A subroutine package, called AERFORCE, for the calculation of aerodynamic forces of wind turbine rotors has been written. The subroutines are written in FORTRAN. AERFORCE requires the input of airfoil aerodynamic data via tables as function of angle of attack, the turbine blade and rotor geometry and wind and blade velocities as input. The method is intended for use in an aeroelastic code. Wind and blade velocities are given at a sequence of time steps and blade forces are returned. The aerodynamic method is basically a Blade-Element/Momentum method. The method is fast and coded to be used in time simulations. In order to obtain a steady state solution a time simulation to steady state conditions has to be carried out. The BEM-method in AERFORCE includes extensions for: Dynamic inflow: Unsteady modeling of the inflow for cases with unsteady blade loading or unsteady wind. Extensions to BEM-theory for inclined flow to the rotor disc (yaw model). Unsteady blade aerodynamics: The inclusion of 2D attached flow unsteady aerodynamics and a semi-empirical model for 2D dynamic stall.

Design optimization for active twist rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Mok, Ji Won

This dissertation introduces the process of optimizing active twist rotor blades in the presence of embedded anisotropic piezo-composite actuators. Optimum design of active twist blades is a complex task, since it involves a rich design space with tightly coupled design variables. The study presents the development of an optimization framework for active helicopter rotor blade cross-sectional design. This optimization framework allows for exploring a rich and highly nonlinear design space in order to optimize the active twist rotor blades. Different analytical components are combined in the framework: cross-sectional analysis (UM/VABS), an automated mesh generator, a beam solver (DYMORE), a three-dimensional local strain recovery module, and a gradient based optimizer within MATLAB. Through the mathematical optimization problem, the static twist actuation performance of a blade is maximized while satisfying a series of blade constraints. These constraints are associated with locations of the center of gravity and elastic axis, blade mass per unit span, fundamental rotating blade frequencies, and the blade strength based on local three-dimensional strain fields under worst loading conditions. Through pre-processing, limitations of the proposed process have been studied. When limitations were detected, resolution strategies were proposed. These include mesh overlapping, element distortion, trailing edge tab modeling, electrode modeling and foam implementation of the mesh generator, and the initial point sensibility of the current optimization scheme. Examples demonstrate the effectiveness of this process. Optimization studies were performed on the NASA/Army/MIT ATR blade case. Even though that design was built and shown significant impact in vibration reduction, the proposed optimization process showed that the design could be improved significantly. The second example, based on a model scale of the AH-64D Apache blade, emphasized the capability of this framework to

Deflection estimation of a wind turbine blade using FBG sensors embedded in the blade bonding line

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Sang-Woo; Kang, Woo-Ram; Jeong, Min-Soo; Lee, In; Kwon, Il-Bum

2013-01-01

Estimating the deflection of flexible composite wind turbine blades is very important to prevent the blades from hitting the tower. Several researchers have used fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors—a type of optical fiber sensor (OFS)—to monitor the structural behavior of the blades. They can be installed on the surface and/or embedded in the interior of composites. However, the typical installation positions of OFSs present several problems, including delamination of sensing probes and a higher risk of fiber breakage during installation. In this study, we proposed using the bonding line between the shear web and spar cap as a new installation position of embedded OFSs for estimating the deflection of the blades. Laboratory coupon tests were undertaken preliminarily to confirm the strain measuring capability of embedded FBG sensors in adhesive layers, and the obtained values were verified by comparison with results obtained by electrical strain gauges and finite element analysis. We performed static loading tests on a 100 kW composite wind turbine blade to evaluate its deflections using embedded FBG sensors positioned in the bonding line. The deflections were estimated by classical beam theory considering a rigid body rotation near the tip of the blade. The evaluated tip deflections closely matched those measured by a linear variable differential transformer. Therefore, we verified the capability of embedded FBG sensors for evaluating the deflections of wind turbine blades. In addition, we confirmed that the bonding line between the shear web and spar cap is a practical location to embed the FBG sensors. (paper)

Compressor blade setting angle accuracy study, volume 1

Science.gov (United States)

Holman, F. F.; Kidwell, J. R.

1976-01-01

The aerodynamic test of a small, single stage, highly loaded, axial flow transonic compressor is covered. The stage was modified by fabricating a 24 blade rotor with mis-set blades in a repeating pattern - two degrees closed from nominal, two degrees open from nominal and nominal. The unit was instrumented to determine overall performance and average blade element data. High-response, dynamic pressure probes were installed to record pressure patterns at selected points in the flowpath. Testing was conducted at speeds from 70 to 94% of design equivalent speed with a conventional casing and also with circumferential grooves over the rotor tip. Testing indicated severe performance penalties were incurred as a result of the mis-set blading. Lower flow, pressure ratio, and efficiency were observed for the stage with or without casing treatment. Periodic pressure variations were detected at every location where high response pressure sensors were located and were directly related to blading geometry.

The effect of delaminations on local buckling in wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haselbach, Philipp Ulrich; Bitsche, Robert; Branner, Kim

2015-01-01

In this article the effect of delaminations on the load carrying capacity of a large wind turbine blade is studied numerically. For this purpose an 8.65 m long blade section with different initial delaminations in the main spar was subjected to a flapwise dominated bending moment. The model...

Parametric dependence of a morphing wind turbine blade on material elasticity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Puterbaugh, Martin; Beyene, Asfaw

2011-01-01

A few recent works have suggested a morphing blade for wind turbine energy conversion. The concept is derived from fin and wing motions that better adapt to varying load conditions. Previous research has provided the fluid mechanic justification of this new concept. This paper establishes a parametric relationship between an asymmetric wind turbine blade and constituent material modulus to predict the geometric response of the morphing blade for a given material characteristic. The airfoil's trailing edge deflection is associated to a prescribed fluid exit angle via the Moment Area (MA) method. Subsequently, a mathematical model is derived to predict material deformation with respect to imparted aerodynamic forces. Results show that an airfoil, much like a tapered beam, can be modeled as a non-prismatic cantilevered beam using this well established method. -- Research highlights: →A mathematical model relating morphing airfoil thickness and elastic modulus was established. →For non-prismatic beam under a uniform distributive load, the slope and deflection of the airfoil's trailing edge were related to the fluid exit angle. →The main driver of blade deformation was the angular drag force. The Moment Area method was used, verified by Finite Element method. →Displacement to the exit angle is predicated upon the elastic modulus value given that other parameters are constant. →Optimum power output is obtained in part load conditions when the blade deforms to the applicable exit angle.

Methodology for Structural Integrity Analysis of Gas Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tiago de Oliveira Vale

2012-03-01

Full Text Available One of the major sources of stress arising in turbomachinery blades are the centrifugal loads acting at any section of the airfoil. Accounting for this phenomenon stress evaluation of the blade attachment region in the disc has to be performed in order to avoid blade failure. Turbomachinery blades are generally twisted, and the cross section area varies from the root of the blade to the tip. The blade root shape at the attachment region is of great concern. Stress concentrations are predictable at this contact region. In this paper, a finite element model has been created for the purpose of assessing stress at the joint region connecting the blade to the disc slot. Particular attention was paid to the geometric modeling of the "fir-tree" fixing, which is now used in the majority of gas turbine engines. This study has been performed using the commercial software ANSYS 13.0. The disc and blade assembly are forced to move with a certain rotational velocity. Contact connections are predicted on the common faces of the blade and on the disc at the root. Solutions can be obtained to allow the evaluation of stresses. Results can be compared with the mechanical properties of the adopted material.

Reliability of wind turbine blades: An overview of materials testing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holmes, John W.; Sørensen, Bent F.; Brøndsted, Povl

2007-01-01

an understanding of how damage develops in composite structures, composite materials and adhesives. Designing reliable wind turbine blades also requires the further development of laboratory scale and full scale test methods to evaluate the structural response and durability of new materials under various loading......The structural reliability of wind turbine components can have a profound impact on both the profitability and reputation of a wind turbine manufacturer or supplier of wind turbine components. The issue of reliability is of critical concern when large wind farm co-operatives are considered......, and when wind turbines are located in remote regions where the cost of inspections and repairs can be very high. From a structural viewpoint, wind turbine blades are subjected to very complex loading histories with coupled deformation modes. The long-term reliability of wind turbine blades requires...

Aerodynamic calculational methods for curved-blade Darrieus VAWT WECS

Science.gov (United States)

Templin, R. J.

1985-03-01

Calculation of aerodynamic performance and load distributions for curved-blade wind turbines is discussed. Double multiple stream tube theory, and the uncertainties that remain in further developing adequate methods are considered. The lack of relevant airfoil data at high Reynolds numbers and high angles of attack, and doubts concerning the accuracy of models of dynamic stall are underlined. Wind tunnel tests of blade airbrake configurations are summarized.

Structural damage identification in wind turbine blades using piezoelectric active sensing with ultrasonic validation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Claytor, Thomas N [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Ammerman, Curtt N [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Park, Gyu Hae [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Farinholt, Kevin M [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Farrar, Charles R [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Atterbury, Marie K [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2010-01-01

This paper gives a brief overview of a new project at LANL in structural damage identification for wind turbines. This project makes use of modeling capabilities and sensing technology to understand realistic blade loading on large turbine blades, with the goal of developing the technology needed to automatically detect early damage. Several structural health monitoring (SHM) techniques using piezoelectric active materials are being investigated for the development of wireless, low power sensors that interrogate sections of the wind turbine blade using Lamb wave propagation data, frequency response functions (FRFs), and time-series analysis methods. The modeling and sensor research will be compared with extensive experimental testing, including wind tunnel experiments, load and fatigue tests, and ultrasonic scans - on small- to mid-scale turbine blades. Furthermore, this study will investigate the effect of local damage on the global response of the blade by monitoring low-frequency response changes.

Design and test of box girder for a large wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Per Hørlyk; Tesauro, Angelo; Bitsche, Robert

This report is covering the structural design and full scale test of a box girder as a part of the project “Demonstration of new blade design using manufacturing process simulations” supported by the EUDP program. A box girder with a predetermined outer geometry was designed using new inventions...... that the manufacturing process could include the new inventions. Subsequently the box girder was transported to the blade test facility at DTU Wind Energy. A series of test was performed with the blade to investigate the behaviour during loading, and finally the girder was loaded to ultimate failure. The report includes...... the description of the test setup, the test and an overview over the results from the test performed on the box girder. During the final test the box girder failed at 58 % of the expected ultimate load. Unfortunately, no definite conclusion could be made concerning the failure mechanism....

Independent Blade Pitch Controller Design for a Three-Bladed Turbine Using Disturbance Accommodating Control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Na; Wright, Alan D.; Johnson, Kathryn E.

2016-08-01

Two independent pitch controllers (IPCs) based on the disturbance accommodating control (DAC) algorithm are designed for the three-bladed Controls Advanced Research Turbine to regulate rotor speed and to mitigate blade root flapwise bending loads in above-rated wind speed. One of the DAC-based IPCs is designed based on a transformed symmetrical-asymmetrical (TSA) turbine model, with wind disturbances being modeled as a collective horizontal component and an asymmetrical linear shear component. Another DAC-based IPC is designed based on a multiblade coordinate (MBC) transformed turbine model, with a horizontal component and a vertical shear component being modeled as step waveform disturbance. Both of the DAC-based IPCs are found via a regulation equation solved by Kronecker product. Actuator dynamics are considered in the design processes to compensate for actuator phase delay. The simulation study shows the effectiveness of the proposed DAC-based IPCs compared to a proportional-integral (PI) collective pitch controller (CPC). Improvement on rotor speed regulation and once-per-revolution and twice-per-revolution load reductions has been observed in the proposed IPC designs.

Construction of the 18-meter wooden blade at Nibe-Molle B

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, P. C.

1982-11-01

The construction of an 18 m cantilevered wooden rotor blade for wind turbine-B at Nibe, Denmark is reported. The project is described and conclusions are made based on calculations and tests on the rotor blade. Details are given on choice of material, construction, attachments and fittings, stress problems and loads.

Structural fatigue test results for large wind turbine blade sections

Science.gov (United States)

Faddoul, J. R.; Sullivan, T. L.

1982-01-01

In order to provide quantitative information on the operating life capabilities of wind turbine rotor blade concepts for root-end load transfer, a series of cantilever beam fatigue tests was conducted. Fatigue tests were conducted on a laminated wood blade with bonded steel studs, a low cost steel spar (utility pole) with a welded flange, a utility pole with additional root-end thickness provided by a swaged collar, fiberglass spars with both bonded and nonbonded fittings, and, finally, an aluminum blade with a bolted steel fitting (Lockheed Mod-0 blade). Photographs, data, and conclusions for each of these tests are presented. In addition, the aluminum blade test results are compared to field failure information; these results provide evidence that the cantilever beam type of fatigue test is a satisfactory method for obtaining qualitative data on blade life expectancy and for identifying structurally underdesigned areas (hot spots).

Sources of fatigue damage to passive yaw wind turbine blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laino, D.J. [Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)

1997-12-31

Using an integrated computer analysis approach developed at the University of Utah, fatigue damage sources to passive yaw wind turbine blades have been investigated. Models of a rigid hub and teetering hub machine reveal the parameters important to the fatigue design of each type. The teetering hub proved much less susceptible to fatigue damage from normal operation loads. As a result, extreme events were critical to the teetering hub fatigue life. The rigid hub blades experienced extremely large gyroscopic load cycles induced by rapid yaw rates during normal operation. These yaw rates stem from turbulence activity which is shown to be dependent upon atmospheric stability. Investigation revealed that increasing yaw damping is an effective way of significantly reducing these gyroscopic fatigue loads.

The influence on energy conversion and induction from large blade deflections

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aagaard Madsen, H; Rasmussen, F [Risoe National Lab., Roskilde (Denmark)

1999-03-01

Flexible blades or coning means that the swept area is no longer a plane disc as assumed in the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. How is the induced flow field of the rotor influenced by such changes and what does this mean for the loading and energy conversion? This has been investigated by studying the flow through four different rotor geometries on basis of a numerical, axis-symmetric actuator disc model. Volume forces perpendicular to the local blade surface were applied and the converted power is the work performed by these forces. To simplify the comparisons, only a constant load distribution was used. The numerical results show that the shape of the rotor disc has considerable influence on the induction or axial velocity. The axial velocities vary with radial position in the case of constant loading where BEM theory gives constant velocities. There is considerable variation of the local power coefficient C{sub p,loc} even for constant loading. Locally, C{sub p,loc} can exceed the Betz limit. However, integrating C{sub p,loc} over the rotor plane, the total power coefficient for the different rotors are exactly the same. (au)

Vortex-induced vibrations on a modern wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heinz, Joachim Christian; Sørensen, Niels N.; Zahle, Frederik

2016-01-01

This article investigates the aero-elastic response of the DTU 10-MW RWT blade in deep stall conditions with angles of attack in the vicinity of 90 degrees. The simulations were conducted with the high-fidelity fluid–structure interaction simulation tool HAWC2CFD employing the multi......-body-based structural model of HAWC2 and the incompressible computational fluid dynamics solver EllipSys3D. The study utilizes detached eddy simulation computations and considers the three-dimensional blade geometry including blade twist and taper. A preliminary frequency analysis of the load variations on a stiff....... Aero-elastic computations of the elastic blade confirmed the findings of the frequency analysis. Inflow conditions with inclination angles between Ψ = 20° and Ψ = 55° and relatively low to moderate wind speeds between V = 16 and V = 26 m s-1 were sufficient to trigger severe edgewise blade vibrations...

Active Robust Control of Elastic Blade Element Containing Magnetorheological Fluid

Science.gov (United States)

Sivrioglu, Selim; Cakmak Bolat, Fevzi

2018-03-01

This research study proposes a new active control structure to suppress vibrations of a small-scale wind turbine blade filled with magnetorheological (MR) fluid and actuated by an electromagnet. The aluminum blade structure is manufactured using the airfoil with SH3055 code number which is designed for use on small wind turbines. An interaction model between MR fluid and the electromagnetic actuator is derived. A norm based multi-objective H2/H∞ controller is designed using the model of the elastic blade element. The H2/H∞ controller is experimentally realized under the impact and steady state aerodynamic load conditions. The results of experiments show that the MR fluid is effective for suppressing vibrations of the blade structure.

A multi-frequency fatigue testing method for wind turbine rotor blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eder, Martin Alexander; Belloni, Federico; Tesauro, Angelo

2017-01-01

Rotor blades are among the most delicate components of modern wind turbines. Reliability is a crucial aspect, since blades shall ideally remain free of failure under ultra-high cycle loading conditions throughout their designated lifetime of 20–25 years. Full-scale blade tests are the most accurate...... means to experimentally simulate damage evolution under operating conditions, and are therefore used to demonstrate that a blade type fulfils the reliability requirements to an acceptable degree of confidence. The state-of-the-art testing method for rotor blades in industry is based on resonance...... higher modes contribute more significantly due to their higher cycle count. A numerical feasibility study based on a publicly available large utility rotor blade is used to demonstrate the ability of the proposed approach to outperform the state-of-the-art testing method without compromising fatigue test...

Modal properties and stability of bend–twist coupled wind turbine blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. R. Stäblein

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Coupling between bending and twist has a significant influence on the aeroelastic response of wind turbine blades. The coupling can arise from the blade geometry (e.g. sweep, prebending, or deflection under load or from the anisotropic properties of the blade material. Bend–twist coupling can be utilized to reduce the fatigue loads of wind turbine blades. In this study the effects of material-based coupling on the aeroelastic modal properties and stability limits of the DTU 10 MW Reference Wind Turbine are investigated. The modal properties are determined by means of eigenvalue analysis around a steady-state equilibrium using the aero-servo-elastic tool HAWCStab2 which has been extended by a beam element that allows for fully coupled cross-sectional properties. Bend–twist coupling is introduced in the cross-sectional stiffness matrix by means of coupling coefficients that introduce twist for flapwise (flap–twist coupling or edgewise (edge–twist coupling bending. Edge–twist coupling can increase or decrease the damping of the edgewise mode relative to the reference blade, depending on the operational condition of the turbine. Edge–twist to feather coupling for edgewise deflection towards the leading edge reduces the inflow speed at which the blade becomes unstable. Flap–twist to feather coupling for flapwise deflections towards the suction side increase the frequency and reduce damping of the flapwise mode. Flap–twist to stall reduces frequency and increases damping. The reduction of blade root flapwise and tower bottom fore–aft moments due to variations in mean wind speed of a flap–twist to feather blade are confirmed by frequency response functions.

Influence of Reynolds Number on Multi-Objective Aerodynamic Design of a Wind Turbine Blade.

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Mingwei; Fang, Le; Tian, De

2015-01-01

At present, the radius of wind turbine rotors ranges from several meters to one hundred meters, or even more, which extends Reynolds number of the airfoil profile from the order of 105 to 107. Taking the blade for 3MW wind turbines as an example, the influence of Reynolds number on the aerodynamic design of a wind turbine blade is studied. To make the study more general, two kinds of multi-objective optimization are involved: one is based on the maximum power coefficient (CPopt) and the ultimate load, and the other is based on the ultimate load and the annual energy production (AEP). It is found that under the same configuration, the optimal design has a larger CPopt or AEP (CPopt//AEP) for the same ultimate load, or a smaller load for the same CPopt//AEP at higher Reynolds number. At a certain tip-speed ratio or ultimate load, the blade operating at higher Reynolds number should have a larger chord length and twist angle for the maximum Cpopt//AEP. If a wind turbine blade is designed by using an airfoil database with a mismatched Reynolds number from the actual one, both the load and Cpopt//AEP will be incorrectly estimated to some extent. In some cases, the assessment error attributed to Reynolds number is quite significant, which may bring unexpected risks to the earnings and safety of a wind power project.

Influence of Reynolds Number on Multi-Objective Aerodynamic Design of a Wind Turbine Blade

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Mingwei; Fang, Le; Tian, De

2015-01-01

At present, the radius of wind turbine rotors ranges from several meters to one hundred meters, or even more, which extends Reynolds number of the airfoil profile from the order of 105 to 107. Taking the blade for 3MW wind turbines as an example, the influence of Reynolds number on the aerodynamic design of a wind turbine blade is studied. To make the study more general, two kinds of multi-objective optimization are involved: one is based on the maximum power coefficient (C Popt) and the ultimate load, and the other is based on the ultimate load and the annual energy production (AEP). It is found that under the same configuration, the optimal design has a larger C Popt or AEP (C Popt//AEP) for the same ultimate load, or a smaller load for the same C Popt//AEP at higher Reynolds number. At a certain tip-speed ratio or ultimate load, the blade operating at higher Reynolds number should have a larger chord length and twist angle for the maximum C popt//AEP. If a wind turbine blade is designed by using an airfoil database with a mismatched Reynolds number from the actual one, both the load and C popt//AEP will be incorrectly estimated to some extent. In some cases, the assessment error attributed to Reynolds number is quite significant, which may bring unexpected risks to the earnings and safety of a wind power project. PMID:26528815

Development of 52 inches last stage blade for steam turbines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Atsuhide; Hisa, Shoichi; Nagao, Shinichiro; Ogata, Hisao

1986-01-01

The last stage blades of steam turbines are the important component controlling the power output and performance of plants. In order to realize a unit of large capacity and high efficiency, the proper exhaust area and the last stage blades having good performance are indispensable. Toshiba Corp. has completed the development of the 52 inch last stage blades for 1500 and 1800 rpm steam turbines. The 52 inch last stage blades are the longest in the world, which have the annular exhaust area nearly 1.5 times as much as that of 41 inch blades used for 1100 MW, 1500 rpm turbines in nuclear power stations. By adopting these 52 inch blades, the large capacity nuclear power plants up to 1800 MW can be economically constructed, the rate of heat consumption of 1350 MW plants is improved by 3 ∼ 4 % as compared with 41 inch blades, and in the plants up to 1100 MW, LP turbines can be reduced from three sets to two. The features of 52 inch blades, the flow pattern and blade form design, the structural strength analysis and the erosion withstanding property, and the verification by the rotation test of the actual blades, the performance test using a test turbine, the vibration analysis of the actually loaded blades and the analysis of wet steam behavior are reported. (Kako, I.)

Probabilistic characterization of wind turbine blades via aeroelasticity and spinning finite element formulation

Science.gov (United States)

Velazquez, Antonio; Swartz, R. Andrew

2012-04-01

Wind energy is an increasingly important component of this nation's renewable energy portfolio, however safe and economical wind turbine operation is a critical need to ensure continued adoption. Safe operation of wind turbine structures requires not only information regarding their condition, but their operational environment. Given the difficulty inherent in SHM processes for wind turbines (damage detection, location, and characterization), some uncertainty in conditional assessment is expected. Furthermore, given the stochastic nature of the loading on turbine structures, a probabilistic framework is appropriate to characterize their risk of failure at a given time. Such information will be invaluable to turbine controllers, allowing them to operate the structures within acceptable risk profiles. This study explores the characterization of the turbine loading and response envelopes for critical failure modes of the turbine blade structures. A framework is presented to develop an analytical estimation of the loading environment (including loading effects) based on the dynamic behavior of the blades. This is influenced by behaviors including along and across-wind aero-elastic effects, wind shear gradient, tower shadow effects, and centrifugal stiffening effects. The proposed solution includes methods that are based on modal decomposition of the blades and require frequent updates to the estimated modal properties to account for the time-varying nature of the turbine and its environment. The estimated demand statistics are compared to a code-based resistance curve to determine a probabilistic estimate of the risk of blade failure given the loading environment.

Composite Structural Analysis of Flat-Back Shaped Blade for Multi-MW Class Wind Turbine

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Soo-Hyun; Bang, Hyung-Joon; Shin, Hyung-Ki; Jang, Moon-Seok

2014-06-01

This paper provides an overview of failure mode estimation based on 3D structural finite element (FE) analysis of the flat-back shaped wind turbine blade. Buckling stability, fiber failure (FF), and inter-fiber failure (IFF) analyses were performed to account for delamination or matrix failure of composite materials and to predict the realistic behavior of the entire blade region. Puck's fracture criteria were used for IFF evaluation. Blade design loads applicable to multi-megawatt (MW) wind turbine systems were calculated according to the Germanischer Lloyd (GL) guideline and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61400-1 standard, under Class IIA wind conditions. After the post-processing of final load results, a number of principal load cases were selected and converted into applied forces at the each section along the blade's radius of the FE model. Nonlinear static analyses were performed for laminate failure, FF, and IFF check. For buckling stability, linear eigenvalue analysis was performed. As a result, we were able to estimate the failure mode and locate the major weak point.

Blade dynamic stress analysis of rotating bladed disks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kellner J.

2007-10-01

Full Text Available The paper deals with mathematical modelling of steady forced bladed disk vibrations and with dynamic stress calculation of the blades. The blades are considered as 1D kontinuum elastic coupled with three-dimensional elastic disk centrally clamped into rotor rotating with constant angular speed. The steady forced vibrations are generated by the aerodynamic forces acting along the blade length. By using modal synthesis method the mathematical model of the rotating bladed disk is condensed to calculate steady vibrations. Dynamic stress analysis of the blades is based on calculation of the time dependent reduced stress in blade cross-sections by using Hubert-Misses-Hencky stress hypothesis. The presented method is applied to real turbomachinery rotor with blades connected on the top with shroud.

Resonant vibration control of wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svendsen, Martin Nymann; Krenk, Steen; Høgsberg, Jan Becker

2010-01-01

. The efficiency of the resonant controller is demonstrated for a representative turbine blade exposed to turbulent wind loading. It is found that the present explicit tuning procedure yields close to optimal tuning, with very limited modal spill-over and effective reduction of the vibration amplitudes.......The paper deals with introduction of damping to specific vibration modes of wind turbine blades, using a resonant controller with acceleration feedback. The wind turbine blade is represented by three-dimensional, two-node finite elements in a local, rotating frame of reference. The element...... formulation accounts for arbitrary mass density distributions, general elastic crosssection properties and geometric stiffness effects due to internal stresses. A compact, linear formulation for aerodynamic forces with associated stiffness and damping terms is established and added to the structural model...

A Combined High and Low Cycle Fatigue Model for Life Prediction of Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shun-Peng Zhu

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF generally induces the failure of aircraft gas turbine attachments. Based on the aero-engine load spectrum, accurate assessment of fatigue damage due to the interaction of high cycle fatigue (HCF resulting from high frequency vibrations and low cycle fatigue (LCF from ground-air-ground engine cycles is of critical importance for ensuring structural integrity of engine components, like turbine blades. In this paper, the influence of combined damage accumulation on the expected CCF life are investigated for turbine blades. The CCF behavior of a turbine blade is usually studied by testing with four load-controlled parameters, including high cycle stress amplitude and frequency, and low cycle stress amplitude and frequency. According to this, a new damage accumulation model is proposed based on Miner’s rule to consider the coupled damage due to HCF-LCF interaction by introducing the four load parameters. Five experimental datasets of turbine blade alloys and turbine blades were introduced for model validation and comparison between the proposed Miner, Manson-Halford, and Trufyakov-Kovalchuk models. Results show that the proposed model provides more accurate predictions than others with lower mean and standard deviation values of model prediction errors.

Prepreg and infusion processes for modern wind turbine blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shennan, C. [Hexcel, Cambridge (United Kingdom)

2013-09-01

The different elements of wind turbine blades have been analyzed for their main function, performance requirements and drivers. Key drivers can be simplified to either performance or cost. The use of prepreg and infusion to make these blade elements has then been compared and shows, from a comparison of test laminates, that prepreg typically delivers higher mechanical performance on both glass and carbon. One of the main process differences, cure temperature, has been overcome with the introduction of M79 which cures at 70 deg. - 80 deg. C. M79 combines this low cure temperature with a much lower reaction enthalpy allowing shorter cure cycles. This means that prepregs can now be cured in the same molds, at the same temperatures and with the same foam as used in a conventional infusion process. Although prepreg and infusion are usually used separately for making blade elements, they may also be used in combination: co-infused and co-cured using prepregs for the hard to infuse unidirectional load-carrying elements and infusion for the other elements. This can thus simplify the production process. The conclusion is that unidirectional prepregs are ideally suited for the performance driven parts of the blade such as in load carrying elements. (Author)

Independent Blade Pitch Controller Design for a Three-Bladed Turbine Using Disturbance Accommodating Control: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Na; Wright, Alan D.; Johnson, Kathryn E.

2016-07-29

Two independent pitch controllers (IPCs) based on the disturbance accommodating control (DAC) algorithm are designed for the three-bladed Controls Advanced Research Turbine to regulate rotor speed and to mitigate blade root flapwise bending loads in above-rated wind speed. One of the DAC-based IPCs is designed based on a transformed symmetrical-asymmetrical (TSA) turbine model, with wind disturbances being modeled as a collective horizontal component and an asymmetrical linear shear component. Another DAC-based IPC is designed based on a multiblade coordinate (MBC) transformed turbine model, with a horizontal component and a vertical shear component being modeled as step waveform disturbance. Both of the DAC-based IPCs are found via a regulation equation solved by Kronecker product. Actuator dynamics are considered in the design processes to compensate for actuator phase delay. The simulation study shows the effectiveness of the proposed DAC-based IPCs compared to a proportional-integral (PI) collective pitch controller (CPC). Improvement on rotor speed regulation and once-per-revolution and twice-per-revolution load reductions has been observed in the proposed IPC designs.

Partial Safety Factors for Fatigue Design of Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toft, Henrik Stensgaard; Sørensen, John Dalsgaard

2010-01-01

In the present paper calibration of partial safety factors for fatigue design of wind turbine blades is considered. The stochastic models for the physical uncertainties on the material properties are based on constant amplitude fatigue tests and the uncertainty on Miners rule for linear damage...... accumulation is determined from variable amplitude fatigue tests with the Wisper and Wisperx spectra. The statistical uncertainty for the assessment of the fatigue loads is also investigated. The partial safety factors are calibrated for design load case 1.2 in IEC 61400-1. The fatigue loads are determined...... from rainflow-counting of simulated time series for a 5MW reference wind turbine [1]. A possible influence of a complex stress state in the blade is not taken into account and only longitudinal stresses are considered....

Effect of Geometric Uncertainties on the Aerodynamic Characteristic of Offshore Wind Turbine Blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ernst, Benedikt; Schmitt, Henning; Seume, Jörg R

2014-01-01

Offshore wind turbines operate in a complex unsteady flow environment which causes unsteady aerodynamic loads. The unsteady flow environment is characterized by a high degree of uncertainty. In addition, geometry variations and material imperfections also cause uncertainties in the design process. Probabilistic design methods consider these uncertainties in order to reach acceptable reliability and safety levels for offshore wind turbines. Variations of the rotor blade geometry influence the aerodynamic loads which also affect the reliability of other wind turbine components. Therefore, the present paper is dealing with geometric uncertainties of the rotor blades. These can arise from manufacturing tolerances and operational wear of the blades. First, the effect of geometry variations of wind turbine airfoils on the lift and drag coefficients are investigated using a Latin hypercube sampling. Then, the resulting effects on the performance and the blade loads of an offshore wind turbine are analyzed. The variations of the airfoil geometry lead to a significant scatter of the lift and drag coefficients which also affects the damage-equivalent flapwise bending moments. In contrast to that, the effects on the power and the annual energy production are almost negligible with regard to the assumptions made

Design procedure for a wind-wheel with self-adjusting blade mechanism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gennady A. Oborsky

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Developed is a wind-wheel design equipped with the self-adjusting blade. The blade is positioned eccentrically to the balance wheel and can freely rotate around its axis. Elaborated is the method of calculating the energy characteristics for a wind-wheel with the self-adjusting blade, considering not only the wind force but the force of air counter flow resistance to the blade’s rotation. Initially, the blade being located at an angle α = 45 to the wheel rotation plane, the air flow rotates the wheel with the maximum force. Thus, the speed of rotation increases that involves the increase in air counter flow resistance and results in blade turning with respective angle α reduction. This, consequently, reduces the torque. When the torsional force and the resistance enter into equilibrium, the blade takes a certain angle α, and the wheel speed becomes constant. This wind-wheel design including a self-adjusting blade allows increasing the air flow load ratio when compared to the wind-wheel equipped with a jammed blade.

A smart segmented blade system for reducing weight of the wind turbine rotor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, Hongya; Zeng, Pan; Lei, Liping; Yang, Yabin; Xu, Yuejie; Qian, Lingyun

2014-01-01

Highlights: • A segmented blade system to light the wind turbine rotor is proposed. • The experiments in the wind tunnel and the numerical calculation are combined to validate the effectiveness of the design. • The moment of the blade below the hinged location are alleviated. • The mounting locations of the hinged rods significantly affect the moment distribution on the blade. • The gross weight of the blade can be reduced by 35.4%. - Abstract: The paper proposes a novel design concept for the wind turbine rotors. The design is composed of the segmented blades and a hinged-rods support structure (SBHR) as a means of reducing weight through alleviating the moment on the blade. A prototype of the design is manufactured. Focusing on the hinged-rods support structure (HRSS), a method combining the experiments and numerical calculation is developed to analyze its feasibility. The experiments in the wind tunnel platform were conducted to measure the loads at the root of the isolated blade and in the rods. A numerical model was developed to describe the designed wind turbine rotor using the measured loads in experiments. In the model, the mounting locations of the hinged rods significantly affected the moment distribution on the blade. Thus, two dimensionless indexes were determined to analyze its influences. The model perfectly explain the characteristics of the novel structure under different configurations. The results demonstrated that the moment of the blade below the hinged location were alleviated, which reduced the requirements for the material. A 43.1% reduction of the maximum moment can be achieved in the design. In addition, the gross reduced weight of the blade was estimated to be 35.4% based on the blade mass distribution along the span

A comprehensive investigation of trailing edge damage in a wind turbine rotor blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haselbach, Philipp Ulrich; Eder, Martin Alexander; Belloni, Federico

2016-01-01

to damage. Empiricism tells that adhesive joints in blades often do not fulfil their expected lifetime, leading to considerable expenses because of repair or blade replacement. Owing to the complicated structural behaviour—in conjunction with the complex loading situation—literature about the root causes...

Design of Linear Control System for Wind Turbine Blade Fatigue Testing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toft, Anders; Roe-Poulsen, Bjarke Nørskov; Christiansen, Rasmus

2016-01-01

This paper proposes a linear method for wind turbine blade fatigue testing at Siemens Wind Power. The setup consists of a blade, an actuator (motor and load mass) that acts on the blade with a sinusoidal moment, and a distribution of strain gauges to measure the blade flexure. Based...... difficult to control. To make a linear controller, a different approach has been chosen, namely making a controller which is not regulating on the input frequency, but on the input amplitude. A non-linear mechanical model for the blade and the motor has been constructed. This model has been simplified based...... on the desired output, namely the amplitude of the blade. Furthermore, the model has been linearised to make it suitable for linear analysis and control design methods.\\\\ The controller is designed based on a simplified and linearised model, and its gain parameter determined using pole placement. The model...

Gas Turbine Blade Damper Optimization Methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. K. Giridhar

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The friction damping concept is widely used to reduce resonance stresses in gas turbines. A friction damper has been designed for high pressure turbine stage of a turbojet engine. The objective of this work is to find out effectiveness of the damper while minimizing resonant stresses for sixth and ninth engine order excitation of first flexure mode. This paper presents a methodology that combines three essential phases of friction damping optimization in turbo-machinery. The first phase is to develop an analytical model of blade damper system. The second phase is experimentation and model tuning necessary for response studies while the third phase is evaluating damper performance. The reduced model of blade is developed corresponding to the mode under investigation incorporating the friction damper then the simulations were carried out to arrive at an optimum design point of the damper. Bench tests were carried out in two phases. Phase-1 deals with characterization of the blade dynamically and the phase-2 deals with finding optimal normal load at which the blade resonating response is minimal for a given excitation. The test results are discussed, and are corroborated with simulated results, are in good agreement.

Blade bowing effects on radial equilibrium of inlet flow in axial compressor cascades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Han XU

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The circumferentially averaged equation of the inlet flow radial equilibrium in axial compressor was deduced. It indicates that the blade inlet radial pressure gradient is closely related to the radial component of the circumferential fluctuation (CF source item. Several simplified cascades with/without aerodynamic loading were numerically studied to investigate the effects of blade bowing on the inlet flow radial equilibrium. A data reduction program was conducted to obtain the CF source from three-dimensional (3D simulation results. Flow parameters at the passage inlet were focused on and each term in the radial equilibrium equation was discussed quantitatively. Results indicate that the inviscid blade force is the inducement of the inlet CF due to geometrical asymmetry. Blade bowing induces variation of the inlet CF, thus changes the radial pressure gradient and leads to flow migration before leading edge (LE in the cascades. Positive bowing drives the inlet flow to migrate from end walls to mid-span and negative bowing turns it to the reverse direction to build a new equilibrium. In addition, comparative studies indicate that the inlet Mach number and blade loading can efficiently impact the effectiveness of blade bowing on radial equilibrium in compressor design.

Design of TFTR movable limiter blades for ohmic and neutral-beam-heated plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doll, D.W.; Ulrickson, M.A.; Cecchi, J.L.; Citrolo, J.C.; Weissenburger, D.; Bialek, J.

1981-10-01

A new set of movable limiter blades has been designed for TFTR that will meet both the requirements of the 4 MW ohmic heated and the 33 MW neutral beam heated plasmas. This is accomplished with three limiter blades each having and elliptical shape along the toroidal direction. Heat flux levels are acceptable for both ohmic heated and pre-strong compression plasmas. The construction consists of graphite tiles attached to cooled backing plates. The tiles have an average thickness of approx. 4.7 cm and are drawn against the backing plate with spring loaded fasteners that are keyed into the graphite. The cooled backing plate provides the structure for resisting disruption and fault induced loads. A set of rollers attached to the top and bottom blades allow them to be expanded and closed in order to vary the plasma surface for scaling experiments. Water cooling lines penetrate only the mid-plane port cover/support plate in such a way as to avoid bolted water connections inside the vacuum boundary and at the same time allow blade movement. Both the upper and lower blades are attached to the mid-plane limiter blade through pivots. Pivot connections are protected against arcing with an alumina coating and a shunt bar strap. Remote handling is considered throughout the design

A Two-Bladed Concept Wind Turbine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kim, Taeseong

2012-01-01

This article shows the potential for reducing extreme loads with an innovative design of wind turbine, a partial pitch two-bladed concept turbine. The most extreme conditions to test a turbine are considered to be stand-still combined with a grid failure in which the wind comes from all directions...

A New Energy-Critical Plane Damage Parameter for Multiaxial Fatigue Life Prediction of Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zheng-Yong Yu

2017-05-01

Full Text Available As one of fracture critical components of an aircraft engine, accurate life prediction of a turbine blade to disk attachment is significant for ensuring the engine structural integrity and reliability. Fatigue failure of a turbine blade is often caused under multiaxial cyclic loadings at high temperatures. In this paper, considering different failure types, a new energy-critical plane damage parameter is proposed for multiaxial fatigue life prediction, and no extra fitted material constants will be needed for practical applications. Moreover, three multiaxial models with maximum damage parameters on the critical plane are evaluated under tension-compression and tension-torsion loadings. Experimental data of GH4169 under proportional and non-proportional fatigue loadings and a case study of a turbine disk-blade contact system are introduced for model validation. Results show that model predictions by Wang-Brown (WB and Fatemi-Socie (FS models with maximum damage parameters are conservative and acceptable. For the turbine disk-blade contact system, both of the proposed damage parameters and Smith-Watson-Topper (SWT model show reasonably acceptable correlations with its field number of flight cycles. However, life estimations of the turbine blade reveal that the definition of the maximum damage parameter is not reasonable for the WB model but effective for both the FS and SWT models.

The Influence of Eroded Blades on Wind Turbine Performance Using Numerical Simulations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthias Schramm

2017-09-01

Full Text Available During their operation, wind turbine blades are eroded due to rain and hail, or they are contaminated with insects. Since the relative inflow velocity is higher at the outer than at the inner part of the blades, erosion occurs mostly at the outer blade region. In order to prevent strong erosion, it is possible to install a leading edge protection, which can be applied to the blades after the initial installation, but changes the shape of the initial airfoil sections. It is unclear how this modification influences the aerodynamic performance of the turbine. Hence, it is investigated in this work. The NREL 5 MW turbine is simulated with clean and eroded blades, which are compared to coated blades equipped with leading edge protection. Aerodynamic polars are generated by means of Computational Fluid Dynamics, and load calculations are conducted using the blade element momentum theory. The analysis in this work shows that, compared to clean rotor blades, the worse aerodynamic behaviour of strongly eroded blades can lead to power losses of 9 % . In contrast, coated blades only have a small impact on the turbine power of less than 1 % .

Multidisciplinary Optimization of Tilt Rotor Blades Using Comprehensive Composite Modeling Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Chattopadhyay, Aditi; McCarthy, Thomas R.; Rajadas, John N.

1997-01-01

An optimization procedure is developed for addressing the design of composite tilt rotor blades. A comprehensive technique, based on a higher-order laminate theory, is developed for the analysis of the thick composite load-carrying sections, modeled as box beams, in the blade. The theory, which is based on a refined displacement field, is a three-dimensional model which approximates the elasticity solution so that the beam cross-sectional properties are not reduced to one-dimensional beam parameters. Both inplane and out-of-plane warping are included automatically in the formulation. The model can accurately capture the transverse shear stresses through the thickness of each wall while satisfying stress free boundary conditions on the inner and outer surfaces of the beam. The aerodynamic loads on the blade are calculated using the classical blade element momentum theory. Analytical expressions for the lift and drag are obtained based on the blade planform with corrections for the high lift capability of rotor blades. The aerodynamic analysis is coupled with the structural model to formulate the complete coupled equations of motion for aeroelastic analyses. Finally, a multidisciplinary optimization procedure is developed to improve the aerodynamic, structural and aeroelastic performance of the tilt rotor aircraft. The objective functions include the figure of merit in hover and the high speed cruise propulsive efficiency. Structural, aerodynamic and aeroelastic stability criteria are imposed as constraints on the problem. The Kreisselmeier-Steinhauser function is used to formulate the multiobjective function problem. The search direction is determined by the Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno algorithm. The optimum results are compared with the baseline values and show significant improvements in the overall performance of the tilt rotor blade.

Structural health monitoring of wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Rumsey, Mark A.; Paquette, Joshua A.

2008-03-01

As electric utility wind turbines increase in size, and correspondingly, increase in initial capital investment cost, there is an increasing need to monitor the health of the structure. Acquiring an early indication of structural or mechanical problems allows operators to better plan for maintenance, possibly operate the machine in a de-rated condition rather than taking the unit off-line, or in the case of an emergency, shut the machine down to avoid further damage. This paper describes several promising structural health monitoring (SHM) techniques that were recently exercised during a fatigue test of a 9 meter glass-epoxy and carbon-epoxy wind turbine blade. The SHM systems were implemented by teams from NASA Kennedy Space Center, Purdue University and Virginia Tech. A commercial off-the-shelf acoustic emission (AE) NDT system gathered blade AE data throughout the test. At a fatigue load cycle rate around 1.2 Hertz, and after more than 4,000,000 fatigue cycles, the blade was diagnostically and visibly failing at the out-board blade spar-cap termination point at 4.5 meters. For safety reasons, the test was stopped just before the blade completely failed. This paper provides an overview of the SHM and NDT system setups and some current test results.

Sub-scale Inverse Wind Turbine Blade Design Using Bound Circulation

Science.gov (United States)

Kelley, Christopher; Berg, Jonathan

2014-11-01

A goal of the National Rotor Testbed project at Sandia is to design a sub-scale wind turbine blade that has similitude to a modern, commercial size blade. However, a smaller diameter wind turbine operating at the same tip-speed-ratio exhibits a different range of operating Reynolds numbers across the blade span, thus changing the local lift and drag coefficients. Differences to load distribution also affect the wake dynamics and stability. An inverse wind turbine blade design tool has been implemented which uses a target, dimensionless circulation distribution from a full-scale blade to find the chord and twist along a sub-scale blade. In addition, airfoil polar data are interpolated from a few specified span stations leading to a smooth, manufacturable blade. The iterative process perturbs chord and twist, after running a blade element momentum theory code, to reduce the residual sum of the squares between the modeled sub-scale circulation and the target full-scale circulation. It is shown that the converged sub-scale design also leads to performance similarity in thrust and power coefficients. Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory managed and operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract DE-AC04-94AL85000.

Load alleviation of wind turbines by yaw misalignment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kragh, Knud Abildgaard; Hansen, Morten Hartvig

2014-01-01

Vertical wind shear is one of the dominating causes of load variations on the blades of a horizontal axis wind turbine. To alleviate the varying loads, wind turbine control systems have been augmented with sensors and actuators for individual pitch control. However, the loads caused by a vertical...... wind shear can also be affected through yaw misalignment. Recent studies of yaw control have been focused on improving the yaw alignment to increase the power capture at below rated wind speeds. In this study, the potential of alleviating blade load variations induced by the wind shear through yaw...... misalignment is assessed. The study is performed through simulations of a reference turbine. The study shows that optimal yaw misalignment angles for minimizing the blade load variations can be identified for both deterministic and turbulent inflows. It is shown that the optimal yaw misalignment angles can...

Conjugate calculation of a film-cooled blade for improvement of the leading edge cooling configuration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Norbert Moritz

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Great efforts are still put into the design process of advanced film-cooling configurations. In particular, the vanes and blades of turbine front stages have to be cooled extensively for a safe operation. The conjugate calculation technique is used for the three-dimensional thermal load prediction of a film-cooled test blade of a modern gas turbine. Thus, it becomes possible to take into account the interaction of internal flows, external flow, and heat transfer without the prescription of heat transfer coefficients. The focus of the investigation is laid on the leading edge part of the blade. The numerical model consists of all internal flow passages and cooling hole rows at the leading edge. Furthermore, the radial gap flow is also part of the model. The comparison with thermal pyrometer measurements shows that with respect to regions with high thermal load a qualitatively and quantitatively good agreement of the conjugate results and the measurements can be found. In particular, the region in the vicinity of the mid-span section is exposed to a higher thermal load, which requires further improvement of the cooling arrangement. Altogether the achieved results demonstrate that the conjugate calculation technique is applicable for reasonable prediction of three-dimensional thermal load of complex cooling configurations for blades.

Optimization of Root Section for Ultra-long Steam Turbine Rotor Blade

Science.gov (United States)

Hála, Jindřich; Luxa, Martin; Šimurda, David; Bobčík, Marek; Novák, Ondřej; Rudas, Bartoloměj; Synáč, Jaroslav

2018-04-01

This study presents the comparison of aerodynamic performances of two successive designs of the root profiles for the ultra-long rotor blade equipped with a straight fir-tree dovetail. Since aerodynamic and strength requirements laid upon the root section design are contradictory, it is necessary to aerodynamically optimize the design within the limits given by the foremost strength requirements. The most limiting criterion of the static strength is the size of the blade cross-section, which is determined by the number of blades in a rotor and also by the shape and size of a blade dovetail. The aerodynamic design requires mainly the zero incidence angle at the inlet of a profile and in the ideal case ensures that the load does not exceed a limit load condition. Moreover, the typical root profile cascades are transonic with supersonic exit Mach number, therefore, the shape of a suction side and a trailing edge has to respect transonic expansion of a working gas. In this paper, the two variants of root section profile cascades are compared and the aerodynamic qualities of both variants are verified using CFD simulation and two mutually independent experimental methods of measurements (optical and pneumatic).

Preliminary structural design of composite main rotor blades for minimum weight

Science.gov (United States)

Nixon, Mark W.

1987-01-01

A methodology is developed to perform minimum weight structural design for composite or metallic main rotor blades subject to aerodynamic performance, material strength, autorotation, and frequency constraints. The constraints and load cases are developed such that the final preliminary rotor design will satisfy U.S. Army military specifications, as well as take advantage of the versatility of composite materials. A minimum weight design is first developed subject to satisfying the aerodynamic performance, strength, and autorotation constraints for all static load cases. The minimum weight design is then dynamically tuned to avoid resonant frequencies occurring at the design rotor speed. With this methodology, three rotor blade designs were developed based on the geometry of the UH-60A Black Hawk titanium-spar rotor blade. The first design is of a single titanium-spar cross section, which is compared with the UH-60A Black Hawk rotor blade. The second and third designs use single and multiple graphite/epoxy-spar cross sections. These are compared with the titanium-spar design to demonstrate weight savings from use of this design methodology in conjunction with advanced composite materials.

Unified continuum damage model for matrix cracking in composite rotor blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pollayi, Hemaraju; Harursampath, Dineshkumar [Nonlinear Multifunctional Composites - Analysis and Design Lab (NMCAD Lab) Department of Aerospace Engineering Indian Institute of Science Bangalore - 560012, Karnataka (India)

2015-03-10

This paper deals with modeling of the first damage mode, matrix micro-cracking, in helicopter rotor/wind turbine blades and how this effects the overall cross-sectional stiffness. The helicopter/wind turbine rotor system operates in a highly dynamic and unsteady environment leading to severe vibratory loads present in the system. Repeated exposure to this loading condition can induce damage in the composite rotor blades. These rotor/turbine blades are generally made of fiber-reinforced laminated composites and exhibit various competing modes of damage such as matrix micro-cracking, delamination, and fiber breakage. There is a need to study the behavior of the composite rotor system under various key damage modes in composite materials for developing Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) system. Each blade is modeled as a beam based on geometrically non-linear 3-D elasticity theory. Each blade thus splits into 2-D analyzes of cross-sections and non-linear 1-D analyzes along the beam reference curves. Two different tools are used here for complete 3-D analysis: VABS for 2-D cross-sectional analysis and GEBT for 1-D beam analysis. The physically-based failure models for matrix in compression and tension loading are used in the present work. Matrix cracking is detected using two failure criterion: Matrix Failure in Compression and Matrix Failure in Tension which are based on the recovered field. A strain variable is set which drives the damage variable for matrix cracking and this damage variable is used to estimate the reduced cross-sectional stiffness. The matrix micro-cracking is performed in two different approaches: (i) Element-wise, and (ii) Node-wise. The procedure presented in this paper is implemented in VABS as matrix micro-cracking modeling module. Three examples are presented to investigate the matrix failure model which illustrate the effect of matrix cracking on cross-sectional stiffness by varying the applied cyclic load.

Unified continuum damage model for matrix cracking in composite rotor blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pollayi, Hemaraju; Harursampath, Dineshkumar

2015-01-01

This paper deals with modeling of the first damage mode, matrix micro-cracking, in helicopter rotor/wind turbine blades and how this effects the overall cross-sectional stiffness. The helicopter/wind turbine rotor system operates in a highly dynamic and unsteady environment leading to severe vibratory loads present in the system. Repeated exposure to this loading condition can induce damage in the composite rotor blades. These rotor/turbine blades are generally made of fiber-reinforced laminated composites and exhibit various competing modes of damage such as matrix micro-cracking, delamination, and fiber breakage. There is a need to study the behavior of the composite rotor system under various key damage modes in composite materials for developing Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) system. Each blade is modeled as a beam based on geometrically non-linear 3-D elasticity theory. Each blade thus splits into 2-D analyzes of cross-sections and non-linear 1-D analyzes along the beam reference curves. Two different tools are used here for complete 3-D analysis: VABS for 2-D cross-sectional analysis and GEBT for 1-D beam analysis. The physically-based failure models for matrix in compression and tension loading are used in the present work. Matrix cracking is detected using two failure criterion: Matrix Failure in Compression and Matrix Failure in Tension which are based on the recovered field. A strain variable is set which drives the damage variable for matrix cracking and this damage variable is used to estimate the reduced cross-sectional stiffness. The matrix micro-cracking is performed in two different approaches: (i) Element-wise, and (ii) Node-wise. The procedure presented in this paper is implemented in VABS as matrix micro-cracking modeling module. Three examples are presented to investigate the matrix failure model which illustrate the effect of matrix cracking on cross-sectional stiffness by varying the applied cyclic load

Mechanical characterization of composite repairs for fiberglass wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Chawla, Tanveer Singh

While in service, wind turbine blades experience various modes of loading. An example is impact loading in the form of hail or bird strikes, which might lead to localized damage or formation of cracks a few plies deep on the blade surface. One of the methods to conduct repairs on wind turbine blades that are damaged while in service is hand lay-up of the repair part after grinding out the damaged portion and some of its surrounding area. The resin used for such repairs usually differs from the parent plate resin in composition and properties such as gel time, viscosity, etc. As a result the properties of the repaired parts are not the same as that of the undamaged blades. Subsequent repetitive loading can be detrimental to weak repairs to such an extent so as to cause delamination at the parent-repair bondline causing the repairs to eventually fall off the blade. Thus the strength and toughness of the repair are of critical importance. Initial part of this work consists of an effort to increase repair strength by identifying an optimum hand layup repair resin for fiberglass wind turbine blades currently being manufactured by a global company. As delamination of the repair from the parent blade is a major concern and unidirectional glass fibers along with a polymer resin are used to manufacture blades under consideration, testing method detailed in ASTM D 5528 (Test Method for Mode I Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of Unidirectional Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Matrix Composites) was followed to determine propagation fracture toughness values of the prospective vinyl ester repair resin candidates. These values were compared to those for a base polyester repair resin used by the company. Experimental procedure and results obtained from the above mentioned testing using double cantilever beam (DCB) specimens are detailed. Three new repair resins were shortlisted through mode I testing. It was also found that variation in the depth of the ground top ply of the parent part

Is blade element momentum theory (BEM) enough for smart rotor design

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yu, W.; Simao Ferreira, C.J.; van Kuik, G.A.M.

2014-01-01

Smart rotor emerges as an innovation technique to reduce the impact of dynamic loading on wind turbines. Local movements of distributed aerodynamic devices will enhance the non-uniformity and dynamic effects of loading, which will challenge the applicability of the blade element momentum theory

Evaluation of Hydraulic Loads on the Runner Blades of a Kaplan Turbine using CFD Simulation and Model Test

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zoltan-Iosif Korka

2016-10-01

Full Text Available CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamic is today a standard procedure for analyzing and simulating the flow through several hydraulic machines. In this process, the fluid flow domain is divided into small volumes where the governing equations are converted into algebraic ones, which are numerically solved. Computational results strongly depend on the applied mathematical model and on the numerical methods used for converting the governing equations into the algebraic ones. The goal of the paper is to evaluate, by numerical simulation, the hydraulic loads (forces and torques on the runner blades of an existent Kaplan turbine and to compare them with the experimental results obtained from model test.

Blade design and operating experience on the MOD-OA 200 kW wind turbine at Clayton, New Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Linscott, B. S.; Shaltens, R. K.

1979-01-01

Two 60 foot long aluminum wind turbine blades were operated for over 3000 hours on the MOD-OA wind turbine. The first signs of blade structural damage were observed after 400 hours of operation. Details of the blade design, loads, cost, structural damage, and repair are discussed.

Force Measurements on a VAWT Blade in Parked Conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anders Goude

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The forces on a turbine at extreme wind conditions when the turbine is parked is one of the most important design cases for the survivability of a turbine. In this work, the forces on a blade and its support arms have been measured on a 12 kW straight-bladed vertical axis wind turbine at an open site. Two cases are tested: one during electrical braking of the turbine, which allows it to rotate slowly, and one with the turbine mechanically fixed with the leading edge of the blade facing the main wind direction. The force variations with respect to wind direction are investigated, and it is seen that significant variations in forces depend on the wind direction. The measurements show that for the fixed case, when subjected to the same wind speed, the forces are lower when the blade faces the wind direction. The results also show that due to the lower forces at this particular wind direction, the average forces for the fixed blade are notably lower. Hence, it is possible to reduce the forces on a turbine blade, simply by taking the dominating wind direction into account when the turbine is parked. The measurements also show that a positive torque is generated from the blade for most wind directions, which causes the turbine to rotate in the electrically-braked case. These rotations will cause increased fatigue loads on the turbine blade.

Assessment Report on Innovative Rotor Blades (MAREWINT WP1,D1.3)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

McGugan, Malcolm; Leble, Vladimir; Pereira, Gilmar Ferreira

The offshore wind energy industry faces many challenges in the short to medium term if it is to meet the ambitions of the global community for sustainable energy supply in the future. Not least among these challenges is the issue of rotor blades. Innovative design for “smart” rotor blades...... the innovative concept development for wind turbine blades. This covers models and experiments with damage measurement systems embedded within the composite material/structure and numerical methods investigating the effects of leading and trailing edge flaps on modifying the aerodynamic loads on the operating...... rotor....

An advanced structural trailing edge modelling method for wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haselbach, Philipp Ulrich

2017-01-01

to ultimate loads. The prediction accuracy of the numerical simulations was compared to a certification load case and a full-scale ultimate limit state test of a 34 m wind turbine rotor blade. The displacements, stresses and strains show reasonably good agreement and demonstrate the capabilities...

A systematic hub loads model of a horizontal wind turbine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazacoks, Romans; Jamieson, Peter

2014-01-01

The wind turbine industry has focused offshore on increasing the capacity of a single unit through up-scaling their machines. There is however a lack of systematic studies on how loads vary due to properties of a wind turbine and scaling of wind turbines. The purpose of this paper is to study how applied blade modifications, with similarities such as mass, stiffness and dimensions, influence blade root moments and lifetime damage equivalent loads (DELs) of the rotor blades. In order to produce fatigue load blade root moment trends based on the applied modifications. It was found that a linear trend of lifetime DELs based on the applied modifications of blades, which have effect on the natural frequency of blade of the original or reference model. As the control system was tuned for the specific frequency of the reference model. The linear trend of lifetime DELs was generated as long as the natural frequency of the reference model was preserved. For larger modifications of the wind turbine the controller would need retuning

Using Pretwist to Reduce Power Loss of Bend-Twist Coupled Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stäblein, Alexander; Tibaldi, Carlo; Hansen, Morten Hartvig

2016-01-01

Bend-twist coupling of wind turbine blades is known as a means to reduce the structural loads of the turbine. While the load reduction is desirable, bend-twist coupling also leads to a decrease in the annual energy production of the turbine. The reduction is mainly related to a no longer optimal......, and fatigue load for the DTU 10 MW Reference Wind Turbine. The analysis was carried out by calculating the nonlinear steady state rotor deflection in an uniform inflow over the operational range of the turbine. The steady state power curve together with a Rayleigh wind speed distribution has been used...... to estimate the annual energy production. The turbine model was then linearised around the steady state and the power spectral density of the blade response, which was computed from transfer functions and the wind speed variations in the frequency domain, was used to estimate the fatigue loads by a spectral...

The impact of inertial forces on morphing wind turbine blade in vertical axis configuration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Butbul, Jonathan; MacPhee, David; Beyene, Asfaw

2015-01-01

Highlights: • A novel flexible VAWT has been experimentally tested alongside numerically simulations. • Using FEA and CFD, direction of blade bending was predicted from inertial and aerodynamic forces. • High-speed camera footage has been used to validate the model. • The flexible VAWT was found to self-start in the majority of tests, while the rigid one did not. • It is suggested that flexible VAWTs can have improved performance in part-load applications. - Abstract: A novel flexible blade concept with the ability to morph and geometrically adapt to changing flow conditions has been proposed to improve part-load performance of horizontal-axis wind turbines. The extension of these benefits to a vertical axis wind turbine would make wind technology a more competitive player in the energy market. Both flexible and rigid wind turbine rotor blades for vertical axis application were modeled, designed, manufactured and tested. Their performances were tested in a low speed wind tunnel. The predicted magnitude and direction of blade morph was validated using a high speed camera as well as finite element analysis. The comparative results of straight rigid and straight morphing blades show that the coefficient of performance greatly depends on the tip speed ratio. Overall, the morphing blade has better performance at low RPMs, but the rigid blade performed better at high RPMs. It was observed that the flexible blade self-started in the majority of the experiments. At high RPM, the centrifugal force overwhelmed the lift force, bending the flexible blade out of phase in an undesired direction increasing drag and therefore reducing the coefficient of performance

Stochastic Analysis of the Influence of Tower Shadow on Fatigue Life of Wind Turbine Blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Ronnie; Nielsen, Søren R.K.; Thoft-Christensen, Palle

2012-01-01

. The blade stresses are calculated from a dynamic mechanical model based on a two dynamic degree of freedom with quasi-static correction for higher modes. The self-induced aero-elastic loading and the turbulence loading are modeled by means of a quasi-static model linearized around the operational point......Fatigue damage accumulation in upwind turbine blades is primarily influenced by turbulence in the inflow. However, the stress reversals during blade passages through the stagnating and deflected mean wind field in front of the tower also contributes significantly. In the paper the lower order...... statistical moments of the fatigue life of a blade are estimated and compared for a turbine with a tripod tower and a standard mono-tower, respectively. The stagnation zones for each of the legs of the tripod are narrower than for the mono-tower, and hence the stress reversals will be comparable smaller...

Direct Embedding of Fiber-Optical Load Sensors into Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Glavind, Lars; Buggy, Stephen; Olesen, Ib S.

Long Period Gratings were embedded into the adhesive utilized in the matrix of a wind turbine blade. The LPGs were subsequently subjected to temperature-testing in order to assess their performance, which illustrates good embedding capabilities....

Verification of Thermal Models of Internally Cooled Gas Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Igor Shevchenko

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Numerical simulation of temperature field of cooled turbine blades is a required element of gas turbine engine design process. The verification is usually performed on the basis of results of test of full-size blade prototype on a gas-dynamic test bench. A method of calorimetric measurement in a molten metal thermostat for verification of a thermal model of cooled blade is proposed in this paper. The method allows obtaining local values of heat flux in each point of blade surface within a single experiment. The error of determination of local heat transfer coefficients using this method does not exceed 8% for blades with radial channels. An important feature of the method is that the heat load remains unchanged during the experiment and the blade outer surface temperature equals zinc melting point. The verification of thermal-hydraulic model of high-pressure turbine blade with cooling allowing asymmetrical heat removal from pressure and suction sides was carried out using the developed method. An analysis of heat transfer coefficients confirmed the high level of heat transfer in the leading edge, whose value is comparable with jet impingement heat transfer. The maximum of the heat transfer coefficients is shifted from the critical point of the leading edge to the pressure side.

Determination of the angle of attack on rotor blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shen, Wen Zhong; Hansen, Martin Otto Laver; Sørensen, Jens Nørkær

2009-01-01

Two simple methods for determining the angle of attack (AOA) on a section of a rotor blade are proposed. Both techniques consist of employing the Biot-Savart integral to determine the influence of the bound vorticity on the velocity field. In the first technique, the force distribution along...... the blade and the velocity at a monitor point in the vicinity of the blade are assumed to be known from experiments or CFD computations. The AOA is determined by subtracting the velocity induced by the bound circulation, determined from the loading, from the velocity at the monitor point. In the second...... to be located closer to the blade, and thus to determine the AOA with higher accuracy. Data from CFD computations for flows past the Tellus 95 kW wind turbine at different wind speeds are used to test both techniques. Comparisons show that the proposed methods are in good agreement with existing techniques...

Design and optimization for strength and integrity of tidal turbine rotor blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Pengfei; Veitch, Brian

2012-01-01

Tidal turbine rotor blade fractures and failures have resulted in substantial damage and hence cost of repair and recovery. The present work presents a rotor blade design and optimization method to address the blade structural strength design problem. The generic procedure is applicable to both turbine rotors and propellers. The optimization method seeks an optimum blade thickness distribution across the span with a prescribed constant safety factor for all the blade sections. This optimization procedure serves two purposes: while maintaining the required structural strength and integrity for an ultimate inflow speed, it aims to reduce the material to a minimum and to maintain power generation efficiency or improve the hydrodynamic efficiency. The value of the chosen minimum safety factor depends on the actual working conditions of the turbine in which the sectional peak loading and frequency are used: the harsher the environment, the larger the required safety factor. An engineering software tool with both hydrodynamic and structural capabilities was required to predict the instantaneous loading acting on all the blade sections, as well as the strength of a local blade section with a given blade geometry and chosen material. A time-domain, 3D unsteady panel method was then implemented based on a marine propeller software tool and used to perform the optimization. A 3-blade 20-m tidal turbine that was prototyped in parallel with the current work for the Bay of Fundy was used as an example for optimization. The optimum thickness distribution for a required safety factor at the ultimate possible inflow speed resulted in 37.6% saving in blade material. The blade thickness and distribution as a function of a maximum inflow speed of 6 m/s is also presented. The blade material used in the example was taken as nickel–aluminium–bronze (NAB) but the procedure was developed to be applicable to propeller or turbine blades of basically any material. -- Highlights: ► A

Helicopter Rotor Blade Computation in Unsteady Flows Using Moving Overset Grids

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Jasim; Duque, Earl P. N.

1996-01-01

An overset grid thin-layer Navier-Stokes code has been extended to include dynamic motion of helicopter rotor blades through relative grid motion. The unsteady flowfield and airloads on an AH-IG rotor in forward flight were computed to verify the methodology and to demonstrate the method's potential usefulness towards comprehensive helicopter codes. In addition, the method uses the blade's first harmonics measured in the flight test to prescribe the blade motion. The solution was impulsively started and became periodic in less than three rotor revolutions. Detailed unsteady numerical flow visualization techniques were applied to the entire unsteady data set of five rotor revolutions and exhibited flowfield features such as blade vortex interaction and wake roll-up. The unsteady blade loads and surface pressures compare well against those from flight measurements. Details of the method, a discussion of the resulting predicted flowfield, and requirements for future work are presented. Overall, given the proper blade dynamics, this method can compute the unsteady flowfield of a general helicopter rotor in forward flight.

Measurements of UWB Pulse Propagation Along a Wind Turbine Blade at 1 to 20 GHz

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hejselbæk, Johannes; Syrytsin, Igor A.; Eggers, Patrick Claus F.

2018-01-01

This paper describes propagation measurements of an Ultra Wide Band (UWB) pulse along a full-scale wind turbine blade. The aim is to use the UWB channel characteristics to determine the deflection of the wind turbine blade under different wind loads. The frequency response is measured from 1 to 20...... the reflection originates a ray-tracing study incorporating a model of the curvature of the blade have been conducted. This showed the area causing the reflections depended highly on the placement of the antenna on the wind turbine blade....

Shaft flexibility effects on aeroelastic stability of a rotating bladed disk

Science.gov (United States)

Khader, Naim; Loewy, Robert

1989-01-01

A comprehensive study of Coriolis forces and shaft flexibility effects on the structural dynamics and aeroelastic stability of a rotating bladed-disk assembly attached to a cantilever, massless, flexible shaft is presented. Analyses were performed for an actual bladed-disk assembly, used as the first stage in the fan of the 'E3' engine. In the structural model, both in-plane and out-of-plane elastic deformation of the bladed-disk assembly were considered relative to their hub, in addition to rigid disk translations and rotations introduced by shaft flexibility. Besides structural coupling between blades (through the flexible disk), additional coupling is introduced through quasisteady aerodynamic loads. Rotational effects are accounted for throughout the work, and some mode shapes for the whole structure are presented at a selected rpm.

Water Flow Testing and Unsteady Pressure Analysis of a Two-Bladed Liquid Oxidizer Pump Inducer

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarz, Jordan B.; Mulder, Andrew; Zoladz, Thomas

2011-01-01

The unsteady fluid dynamic performance of a cavitating two-bladed oxidizer turbopump inducer was characterized through sub-scale water flow testing. While testing a novel inlet duct design that included a cavitation suppression groove, unusual high-frequency pressure oscillations were observed. With potential implications for inducer blade loads, these high-frequency components were analyzed extensively in order to understand their origins and impacts to blade loading. Water flow testing provides a technique to determine pump performance without the costs and hazards associated with handling cryogenic propellants. Water has a similar density and Reynolds number to liquid oxygen. In a 70%-scale water flow test, the inducer-only pump performance was evaluated. Over a range of flow rates, the pump inlet pressure was gradually reduced, causing the flow to cavitate near the pump inducer. A nominal, smooth inducer inlet was tested, followed by an inlet duct with a circumferential groove designed to suppress cavitation. A subsequent 52%-scale water flow test in another facility evaluated the combined inducer-impeller pump performance. With the nominal inlet design, the inducer showed traditional cavitation and surge characteristics. Significant bearing loads were created by large side loads on the inducer during synchronous cavitation. The grooved inlet successfully mitigated these loads by greatly reducing synchronous cavitation, however high-frequency pressure oscillations were observed over a range of frequencies. Analytical signal processing techniques showed these oscillations to be created by a rotating, multi-celled train of pressure pulses, and subsequent CFD analysis suggested that such pulses could be created by the interaction of rotating inducer blades with fluid trapped in a cavitation suppression groove. Despite their relatively low amplitude, these high-frequency pressure oscillations posed a design concern due to their sensitivity to flow conditions and

Review of the Phenomenon of Ice Shedding from Wind Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H Xue

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Wind power is a sustainable source of energy. However, there are certain challenges to be  overcome. One of the operational challenges is the phenomenon of ice shedding. Icing happens on wind turbine blades in cold regions. When ice grows to a certain size, it separates from the wind turbine blades resulting in the phenomenon of ice shedding. This phenomenon is of significantly dangerous for equipment and personnel in the region. Ice shedding may happen either because of vibrations or bending in blades. However, it was noticed by operators at Nygårdsfjell wind park, Narvik, Norway that ice shedding is more probable to happen when blades are stopped and turned back on. This observation reveals the fact that bending of blades (from loaded to unloaded positions allows the ice to separate and hence result in ice shedding. This can be linked to the phenomenon of icing, mechanical and adhesive properties of ice. This paper reviews above in detail.

LIDAR Wind Speed Measurement Analysis and Feed-Forward Blade Pitch Control for Load Mitigation in Wind Turbines: January 2010--January 2011

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dunne, F.; Simley, E.; Pao, L.Y.

2011-10-01

This report examines the accuracy of measurements that rely on Doppler LIDAR systems to determine their applicability to wind turbine feed-forward control systems and discusses feed-forward control system designs that use preview wind measurements. Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) systems are able to measure the speed of incoming wind before it interacts with a wind turbine rotor. These preview wind measurements can be used in feed-forward control systems designed to reduce turbine loads. However, the degree to which such preview-based control techniques can reduce loads by reacting to turbulence depends on how accurately the incoming wind field can be measured. The first half of this report examines the accuracy of different measurement scenarios that rely on coherent continuous-wave or pulsed Doppler LIDAR systems to determine their applicability to feed-forward control. In particular, the impacts of measurement range and angular offset from the wind direction are studied for various wind conditions. A realistic case involving a scanning LIDAR unit mounted in the spinner of a wind turbine is studied in depth with emphasis on choices for scan radius and preview distance. The effects of turbulence parameters on measurement accuracy are studied as well. Continuous-wave and pulsed LIDAR models based on typical commercially available units were used in the studies present in this report. The second half of this report discusses feed-forward control system designs that use preview wind measurements. Combined feedback/feed-forward blade pitch control is compared to industry standard feedback control when simulated in realistic turbulent above-rated winds. The feed-forward controllers are designed to reduce fatigue loads, increasing turbine lifetime and therefore reducing the cost of energy. Three feed-forward designs are studied: non-causal series expansion, Preview Control, and optimized FIR filter. The input to the feed-forward controller is a measurement of

Investigation of Structural Behavior due to Bend-Twist Couplings in Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fedorov, Vladimir; Dimitrov, Nikolay Krasimirov; Berggreen, Christian

2010-01-01

for predicting the torsional response of the wind turbine blades with built-in bend-twist couplings. Additionally, a number of improved full-scale tests using an advanced bi-axial servo-hydraulic load control have been performed on a wind turbine blade section provided by Vestas Wind Systems A/S. In the present......One of the problematic issues concerning the design of future large composite wind turbine blades is the prediction of bend-twist couplings and torsion behaviour. The current work is a continuation of a previous work [1,2], and it examines different finite element modelling approaches...... of the blade cross section as the defining surface, off-setting the location of the shell elements according to the specified thickness. The experimental full-scale tests were carried out on an 8 m section of a 23 m wind turbine blade with specially implemented bend-twist coupling. The blade was tested under...

Design of an Advanced Wood Composite Rotor and Development of Wood Composite Blade Technology

Science.gov (United States)

Stroebel, Thomas; Dechow, Curtis; Zuteck, Michael

1984-01-01

In support of a program to advance wood composite wind turbine blade technology, a design was completed for a prototype, 90-foot diameter, two-bladed, one-piece rotor, with all wood/epoxy composite structure. The rotor was sized for compatibility with a generator having a maximum power rating of 4000 kilowatts. Innovative features of the rotor include: a teetering hub to minimize the effects of gust loads, untwisted blades to promote rotor power control through stall, joining of blades to the hub structure via an adhesive bonded structural joint, and a blade structural design which was simplified relative to earlier efforts. The prototype rotor was designed to allow flexibility for configuring the rotor upwind or downwind of the tower, for evaluating various types of teeter dampers and/or elastomeric stops, and with variable delta-three angle settings of the teeter shaft axis. The prototype rotor was also designed with provisions for installing pressure tap and angle of attack instrumentation in one blade. A production version rotor cost analysis was conducted. Included in the program were efforts directed at developing advanced load take-off stud designs for subsequent evaluation testing by NASA, development of aerodynamic tip brake concepts, exploratory testing of a wood/epoxy/graphite concept, and compression testing of wood/epoxy laminate, with scarf-jointed plies.

Development of advanced blade pitching kinematics for cycloturbines and cyclorotors

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Zachary Howard

to achieve optimum performance. A novel inverse method was developed implementing a new semi-empirical curvilinear flow blade aerodynamic coefficient model to predict optimum cycloturbine blade pitch waveforms from the ideal fluid deceleration. These improved blade pitch waveforms were evaluated on a 1.37m diameter by 1.37m span cycloturbine to definitively characterize their improvement over existing blade pitch motions and demonstrate the practicality of a variable blade pitch system. The Fluxline Optimal pitching kinematics outperformed sinusoidal and fixed pitching kinematics. The turbine achieved a mean gross aerodynamic power coefficient of 0.44 (95% confidence interval: [0.388,0.490]) and 0.52 (95% confidence interval: [0.426,0.614]) at tip speed ratios (TSRs) of 1.5 and 2.25 respectively which exceeds all other low TSR vertical axis wind turbines. Two-dimensional incompressible Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes computational fluid dynamic simulations were used to characterize higher order effects of the blade interaction with the fluid. These simulations suggest Fluxline Optimal pitch kinematics achieve high power coefficients by evenly extracting energy from the flow without blade stall or detached turbine wakes. Fluxline Theory was adapted to inform the design of high efficiency cyclorotors by incorporating the concept of rotor angle of attack as well as a power and drag loss model for blade support structure. A blade element version of this theory predicts rotor performance. For hovering, a simplified variation of the theory instructs that cyclorotors will achieve the greatest power loading at low disk loadings with high solidity blades pitched to maximum lift coefficient. Increasing lift coefficients in the upstream portion of the rotor disproportionately increases performance compared to magnifying lift in the downstream portion. This suggests airfoil sections that counter curvilinear flow effects could improve hovering efficiency. Additionally, the

Effect of Turbulence on Power for Bend-Twist Coupled Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stäblein, Alexander; Hansen, Morten Hartvig

2016-01-01

that it might be related to the dynamic response of bend-twist coupled blades in turbulent flow. This paper contains estimations of the power curve from nonlinear time simulations, a linear frequency domain based method and a normal distribution weighted average method. It is shown that the frequency domain...... that changes in power due to turbulence are similar for coupled and uncoupled blades. Power gains at low wind speeds are related to the curvature of the steady state power curve. Losses around rated wind speed are caused by the effects of controller switching between partial and full power operation.......Bend-twist coupling of wind turbine blades reduces the structural loads of the turbine but it also results in a decrease of the annual energy production. The main part of the power loss can be mitigated by pretwisting the blade, but some power loss remains and previous studies indicate...

Remote Monitoring of the Structural Health of Hydrokinetic Composite Turbine Blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

J.L. Rovey

2012-09-21

A health monitoring approach is investigated for hydrokinetic turbine blade applications. In-service monitoring is critical due to the difficult environment for blade inspection and the cost of inspection downtime. Composite blade designs have advantages that include long life in marine environments and great control over mechanical properties. Experimental strain characteristics are determined for static loads and free-vibration loads. These experiments are designed to simulate the dynamic characteristics of hydrokinetic turbine blades. Carbon/epoxy symmetric composite laminates are manufactured using an autoclave process. Four-layer composite beams, eight-layer composite beams, and two-dimensional eight-layer composite blades are instrumented for strain. Experimental results for strain measurements from electrical resistance gages are validated with theoretical characteristics obtained from in-house finite-element analysis for all sample cases. These preliminary tests on the composite samples show good correlation between experimental and finite-element strain results. A health monitoring system is proposed in which damage to a composite structure, e.g. delamination and fiber breakage, causes changes in the strain signature behavior. The system is based on embedded strain sensors and embedded motes in which strain information is demodulated for wireless transmission. In-service monitoring is critical due to the difficult environment for blade inspection and the cost of inspection downtime. Composite blade designs provide a medium for embedding sensors into the blades for in-situ health monitoring. The major challenge with in-situ health monitoring is transmission of sensor signals from the remote rotating reference frame of the blade to the system monitoring station. In the presented work, a novel system for relaying in-situ blade health measurements in hydrokinetic systems is described and demonstrated. An ultrasonic communication system is used to transmit

New Method for Dual-Axis Fatigue Testing of Large Wind Turbine Blades Using Resonance Excitation and Spectral Loading

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

White, D.

2004-04-01

The blades of a wind turbine are generally considered to be the most critical component of the wind turbine system. The fundamental purpose of performing fatigue tests on wind turbine blades is to demonstrate that a blade, when manufactured to a certain set of specifications, has the prescribed reliability and service life. The purpose of the research conducted for this project is the advancement of knowledge and capabilities in the area of wind turbine blade fatigue testing.

Forces and Moments on Flat Plates of Small Aspect Ratio with Application to PV Wind Loads and Small Wind Turbine Blades

OpenAIRE

Xavier Ortiz; David Rival; David Wood

2015-01-01

To improve knowledge of the wind loads on photovoltaic structures mounted on flat roofs at the high angles required in high latitudes, and to study starting flow on low aspect ratio wind turbine blades, a series of wind tunnel tests were undertaken. Thin flat plates of aspect ratios between 0.4 and 9.0 were mounted on a sensitive three-component instantaneous force and moment sensor. The Reynolds numbers varied from 6 × 10 4 to 2 × 10 5 . Measurements were made for angles of attack between 0°...

Initiation of trailing edge failure in full-scale wind turbine blade test

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haselbach, Philipp Ulrich; Branner, Kim

2016-01-01

non-linear buckling effect of the trailing edge under combined loading, and how it affects the ultimate strength of a blade in a trailing-edge failure dominated load direction were investigated. The study details the interaction between trailing edge buckling on damage onset and sandwich panel failure...

Active Tuned Mass Dampers for Control of In-Plane Vibrations of Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fitzgerald, B.; Basu, Biswajit; Nielsen, Søren R.K.

2013-01-01

matrices. The aim of this paper is to determine whether ATMDs could be used to reduce in-plane blade vibrations in wind turbines with better performance than compared with their passive counterparts. A Euler–Lagrangian wind turbine mathematical model based on energy formulation was developed......, centrifugal, and turbulent aerodynamic loadings. Investigations show promising results for the use of ATMDs in the vibration control of wind turbine blades.......This paper investigates the use of active tuned mass dampers (ATMDs) for the mitigation of in-plane vibrations in rotating wind turbine blades. The rotating wind turbine blades with tower interaction represent time-varying dynamical systems with periodically varying mass, stiffness, and damping...

Dual-axis resonance testing of wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Hughes, Scott; Musial, Walter; White, Darris

2014-01-07

An apparatus (100) for fatigue testing test articles (104) including wind turbine blades. The apparatus (100) includes a test stand (110) that rigidly supports an end (106) of the test article (104). An actuator assembly (120) is attached to the test article (104) and is adapted for substantially concurrently imparting first and second forcing functions in first and second directions on the test article (104), with the first and second directions being perpendicular to a longitudinal axis. A controller (130) transmits first and second sets of displacement signals (160, 164) to the actuator assembly (120) at two resonant frequencies of the test system (104). The displacement signals (160, 164) initiate the actuator assembly (120) to impart the forcing loads to concurrently oscillate the test article (104) in the first and second directions. With turbine blades, the blades (104) are resonant tested concurrently for fatigue in the flapwise and edgewise directions.

Influence of Icing on the Modal Behavior of Wind Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sudhakar Gantasala

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Wind turbines installed in cold climate sites accumulate ice on their structures. Icing of the rotor blades reduces turbine power output and increases loads, vibrations, noise, and safety risks due to the potential ice throw. Ice accumulation increases the mass distribution of the blade, while changes in the aerofoil shapes affect its aerodynamic behavior. Thus, the structural and aerodynamic changes due to icing affect the modal behavior of wind turbine blades. In this study, aeroelastic equations of the wind turbine blade vibrations are derived to analyze modal behavior of the Tjaereborg 2 MW wind turbine blade with ice. Structural vibrations of the blade are coupled with a Beddoes-Leishman unsteady attached flow aerodynamics model and the resulting aeroelastic equations are analyzed using the finite element method (FEM. A linearly increasing ice mass distribution is considered from the blade root to half-length and thereafter constant ice mass distribution to the blade tip, as defined by Germanischer Lloyd (GL for the certification of wind turbines. Both structural and aerodynamic properties of the iced blades are evaluated and used to determine their influence on aeroelastic natural frequencies and damping factors. Blade natural frequencies reduce with ice mass and the amount of reduction in frequencies depends on how the ice mass is distributed along the blade length; but the reduction in damping factors depends on the ice shape. The variations in the natural frequencies of the iced blades with wind velocities are negligible; however, the damping factors change with wind velocity and become negative at some wind velocities. This study shows that the aerodynamic changes in the iced blade can cause violent vibrations within the operating wind velocity range of this turbine.

Numerical investigation of turbulent flow past a four-bladed helicopter rotor using k - ω SST model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, H.; Khalid, M.

2002-01-01

In a previous study of the laminar flow over a four-bladed helicopter rotor, abnormal Cp distributions were observed on the upper surfaces of the blades. To address this problem, the aerodynamic performance of the same rotor is investigated using the k - ω SST turbulence model, as contained in the WIND code. The rotor is configured as a Chimera moving grid in a quasi-steady flow field. The rotor rotation schedule and the blade twisting are implemented as specified in the wind tunnel testing of a RoBin generic helicopter. More realistic Cp distributions on the blade surfaces are thus obtained. The aerodynamic load distributions in the radial direction of the rotor plane are generated by integrating the pressure on each blade surfaces along the blade chordwise direction. The analyses of these load distributions in the azmuthal direction provide a critical insight into the rotor model, which is based on the actuator-disc assumption. Also, some preliminary results for the flow past a full helicopter configuration, including the rotor and the RoBin fuselage, are presented. The current paper demonstrates the Chimera grid topologies and the Chimera grid generation technique for both blade and fuselage configuration. This would provide a powerful tool to simulate flow past an entire helicopter and to study the rotor-fuselage flow interaction. (author)

On Orientation Control of Suspended Blade During Installation in Wind Turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schmidt, Lasse; Roemer, Daniel Beck; Pedersen, Henrik Clemmensen

2015-01-01

This paper discusses problems involved in the procedure for offshore installation of blades in wind turbines, due to wind loads. In general the high winds at sea provides for nearly optimal conditions for harvesting energy via wind turbines due to the often high wind speeds and low turbulence...... intensity. However, the very same features also call for great difficulties during installation of the wind turbine blades, making this process extremely difficult, expensive and time consuming. Often the blades are hoisted to the wind turbine hub via cranes and sought held in appropriate positions by so......-called taglines/wires, but still significant motion oscillations of blade root ends are experienced, even at rather low wind speeds. The paper considers the possibility to dampen the oscillating motions via control of the tagline lengths. The main control strategy considered, is the possibility to control...

Impact force identification for composite helicopter blades using minimal sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Budde, Carson N.

In this research a method for online impact identification using minimal sensors is developed for rotor hubs with composite blades. Modal impact data and the corresponding responses are recorded at several locations to develop a frequency response function model for each composite blade on the rotor hub. The frequency response model for each blade is used to develop an impact identification algorithm which can be used to identify the location and magnitude of impacts. Impacts are applied in two experimental setups, including a four-blade spin test rig and a cantilevered full-sized composite blade. The impacts are estimated to have been applied at the correct location 92.3% of the time for static fiberglass blades, 97.4% of the time for static carbon fiber blades and 99.2% of the time for a full sized-static blade. The estimated location is assessed further and determined to have been estimated in the correct chord position 96.1% of the time for static fiberglass, 100% of the time for carbon fiber blades and 99.2% of the time for the full-sized blades. Projectile impacts are also applied statically and during rotation to the carbon fiber blades on the spin test rig at 57 and 83 RPM. The applied impacts can be located to the correct position 63.9%, 41.7% and 33.3% for the 0, 57 and 83 RPM speeds, respectively, while the correct chord location is estimated 100% of the time. The impact identification algorithm also estimates the force of an impact with an average percent difference of 4.64, 2.61 and 1.00 for static fiberglass, full sized, and carbon fiber blades, respectively. Using a load cell and work equations, the force of impact for a projectile fired from a dynamic firing setup is estimated at about 400 N. The average force measured for applied projectile impacts to the carbon fiber blades, rotating at 0, 57 and 83 RPM, is 368.8, 373.7 and 432.4 N, respectively.

Four-Point Bending Strength Testing of Pultruded Fiberglass Composite Wind Turbine Blade Sections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Musial, W.; Bourne, B; Hughes, S; Zuteck, M. D.

2001-01-01

The ultimate strength of the PS Enterprises pultruded blade section was experimentally determined under four-point bending at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Thirteen 8-foot long full-scale blade segments were individually tested to determine their maximum moment carrying capability. Three airfoil-bending configurations were tested: high- and low-pressure skin buckling, and low pressure skin buckling with foam interior reinforcement. Maximum strain was recorded for each sample on the compressive and tensile surfaces of each test blade. Test data are compared to the results of three analytical buckling prediction methods. Based on deviations from the linear strain versus load curve, data indicate a post-buckling region. High-pressure side buckling occurred sooner than low-pressure side buckling. The buckling analyses were conservative for both configurations, but high-pressure side buckling in particular was substantially under-predicted. Both high- and low-pressure buckling configurations had very similar failure loads. These results suggests that a redundant load path may be providing strength to the section in the post-buckling region, making the onset of panel buckling a poor predictor of ultimate strength for the PS Enterprises pultrusion

Two LQRI based Blade Pitch Controls for Wind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoonsu Nam

2012-06-01

Full Text Available As the wind turbine size has been increasing and their mechanical components are built lighter, the reduction of the structural loads becomes a very important task of wind turbine control in addition to maximum wind power capture. In this paper, we present a separate set of collective and individual pitch control algorithms. Both pitch control algorithms use the LQR control technique with integral action (LQRI, and utilize Kalman filters to estimate system states and wind speed. Compared to previous works in this area, our pitch control algorithms can control rotor speed and blade bending moments at the same time to improve the trade-off between rotor speed regulation and load reduction, while both collective and individual pitch controls can be designed separately. Simulation results show that the proposed collective and individual pitch controllers achieve very good rotor speed regulation and significant reduction of blade bending moments.

A simulation study of active feedback supression of dynamic response in helicopter rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Kana, D. D.; Bessey, R. L.; Dodge, F. T.

1975-01-01

A parameter study is presented for active feedback control applied to a helicopter rotor blade during forward flight. The study was performed on an electromechanical apparatus which included a mechanical model rotor blade and electronic analog simulation of interaction between blade deflections and aerodynamic loading. Blade response parameters were obtained for simulated vortex impinging at the blade tip at one pulse per revolution, and for a pulse which traveled from the blade tip toward its root. Results show that the response in a 1 - 10-per-rev frequency band is diminished by the feedback action, but at the same time responses at frequencies above 10-per-rev become increasingly more prominent with increased feedback amplitude, and can even lead to instability at certain levels. It appears that the latter behavior results from limitations of the laboratory simulation apparatus, rather than genuine potential behavior for a prototype helicopter.

Cooperative control for Ⅱdistrict power of wind turbine and aerodynamic load of blades%风电机组Ⅱ区功率与叶片气动载荷协同控制

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

王湘明; 任树平

2017-01-01

为了研究风力发电机组在低于额定功率时的最大风能捕获以及叶片的气动载荷，使得风力发电机组在整个生命周期内高效稳定地运行，提出了一种功率与载荷的协同控制方法，通过过渡区预变桨的方式控制风力发电机组功率与叶片气动载荷。采用所提出的功率与载荷协同控制策略在Matlab软件上搭建风力发电机组的仿真模型，计算得出了风力发电机组的功率和叶片气动载荷的数据，结果显示，协同控制策略能够在低于额定风速区域保持功率基本不变的情况下有效减小叶片的气动载荷，由此证明了所提出的协同控制策略的可行性。%In order to study the maximum wind power capture of wind turbine and the aerodynamic load of blades below the rated power and make the wind turbine run efficiently and stably in whole life cycle,a cooperative control method for both power and load was proposed.Through adopting the pre-pitch strategy in the transition zone,the aerodynamic load of blades and the power of wind turbine were controlled. Through adopting the proposed power and load cooperative strategy,a simulation model for the wind turbine was established with Matlab software,and the data for the power of wind turbine and the aerodynamic load of blades were calculated.The results show that the cooperative control strategy can effectively reduce the aerodynamic load of blades under the condition of keeping the power basically unchanged in the districts below the rated power.Therefore,the feasibility of the proposed cooperative control strategy is proved.

Extension-twist coupling of composite circular tubes with application to tilt rotor blade design

Science.gov (United States)

Nixon, Mark W.

1987-01-01

This investigation was conducted to determine if twist deformation required for the design of full-scale extension-twist-coupled tilt-rotor blades can be achieved within material design limit loads, and to demonstrate the accuracy of a coupled-beam analysis in predicting twist deformations. Two extension-twist-coupled tilt-rotor blade designs were developed based on theoretically optimum aerodynamic twist distributions. The designs indicated a twist rate requirement of between .216 and .333 deg/in. Agreement between axial tests and analytical predictions was within 10 percent at design limit loads. Agreement between the torsion tests and predictions was within 11 percent.

A comparison of measured wind park load histories with the WISPER and WISPERX load spectra

Science.gov (United States)

Kelley, N. D.

1995-01-01

The blade-loading histories from two adjacent Micon 65/13 wind turbines are compared with the variable-amplitude test-loading histories known as the WISPER and WISPERX spectra. These standardized loading sequences were developed from blade flapwise load histories taken from nine different horizontal-axis wind turbines operating under a wide range of conditions in Europe. The subject turbines covered a broad spectrum of rotor diameters, materials, and operating environments. The final loading sequences were developed as a joint effort of thirteen different European organizations. The goal was to develop a meaningful loading standard for horizontal-axis wind turbine blades that represents common interaction effects seen in service. In 1990, NREL made extensive load measurements on two adjacent Micon 65/13 wind turbines in simultaneous operation in the very turbulent environment of a large wind park. Further, before and during the collection of the loads data, comprehensive measurements of the statistics of the turbulent environment were obtained at both the turbines under test and at two other locations within the park. The trend to larger but lighter wind turbine structures has made an understanding of the expected lifetime loading history of paramount importance. Experience in the US has shown that the turbulence-induced loads associated with multi-row wind parks in general are much more severe than for turbines operating individually or within widely spaced environments. Multi-row wind parks are much more common in the US than in Europe. In this paper we report on our results in applying the methodology utilized to develop the WISPER and WISPERX standardized loading sequences using the available data from the Micon turbines. While the intended purpose of the WISPER sequences were not to represent a specific operating environment, we believe the exercise is useful, especially when a turbine design is likely to be installed in a multi-row wind park.

Design and test of box girder for a large wind turbine blade

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nielsen, Per H.; Tesauro, A.; Bitsche, R. [Technical Univ. of Denmark. DTU Wind Energy, DTU Risoe Campus, Roskilde (Denmark)] [and others

2012-09-15

This report is covering the structural design and full scale test of a box girder as a part of the project ''Demonstration of new blade design using manufacturing process simulations'' supported by the EUDP program. A box girder with a predetermined outer geometry was designed using new inventions, which create an inner structure in the box girder. With a combination of advanced FEM analysis and the inventions it was possible to reduce the material thickness of the cap by up to 40%. The new design of the box girder was manufactured at SSP Technology A/S, where it was demonstrated that the manufacturing process could include the new inventions. Subsequently the box girder was transported to the blade test facility at DTU Wind Energy. A series of test was performed with the blade to investigate the behaviour during loading, and finally the girder was loaded to ultimate failure. The report includes the description of the test setup, the test and an overview over the results from the test performed on the box girder. During the final test the box girder failed at 58 % of the expected ultimate load. Unfortunately, no definite conclusion could be made concerning the failure mechanism. (Author)

Study on Design of High Efficiency and Light Weight Composite Propeller Blade for a Regional Turboprop Aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Changduk; Lee, Kyungsun

2013-03-01

In this study, aerodynamic and structural design of the composite propeller blade for a regional turboprop aircraft is performed. The thin and wide chord propeller blade of high speed turboprop aircraft should have proper strength and stiffness to carry various kinds of loads such as high aerodynamic bending and twisting moments and centrifugal forces. Therefore the skin-spar-foam sandwich structure using high strength and stiffness carbon/epoxy composite materials is used to improve the lightness. A specific design procedure is proposed in this work as follows; firstly the aerodynamic configuration design, which is acceptable for the design requirements, is carried out using the in-house code developed by authors, secondly the structure design loads are determined through the aerodynamic load case analysis, thirdly the spar flange and the skin are preliminarily sized by consideration of major bending moments and shear forces using both the netting rule and the rule of mixture, and finally, the stress analysis is performed to confirm the structural safety and stability using finite element analysis commercial code, MSC. NASTRAN/PATRAN. Furthermore the additional analysis is performed to confirm the structural safety due to bird strike impact on the blade during flight operation using a commercial code, ANSYS. To realize the proposed propeller design, the prototype blades are manufactured by the following procedure; the carbon/epoxy composite fabric prepregs are laid up for skin and spar on a mold using the hand lay-up method and consolidated with a proper temperature and vacuum in the oven. To finalize the structural design, the full-scale static structural test is performed under the simulated aerodynamic loads using 3 point loading method. From the experimental results, it is found that the designed blade has a good structural integrity, and the measured results agree well with the analytical results as well.

Load prediction of stall regulated wind turbines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bjoerck, A.; Dahlberg, J.Aa. [Aeronautical Research Inst. of Sweden, Bromma (Sweden); Carlen, I. [Chalmers Univ. of Technology, Goeteborg (Sweden). Div. of Marine Structural Engineering; Ganander, H. [Teknikgruppen AB, Sollentua (Sweden)

1996-12-01

Measurements of blade loads on a turbine situated in a small wind farm shows that the highest blade loads occur during operation close to the peak power i.e. when the turbine operates in the stall region. In this study the extensive experimental data base has been utilised to compare loads in selected campaigns with corresponding load predictions. The predictions are based on time domain simulations of the wind turbine structure, performed by the aeroelastic code VIDYN. In the calculations a model were adopted in order to include the effects of dynamic stall. This paper describes the work carried out so far within the project and key results. 5 refs, 10 figs

Load alleviation on wind turbine blades using variable geometry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Basualdo, Santiago

2005-01-01

blade. The aerodynamic problem was solved numerically by a panel method using the potential theory, suitale for modelleing attached flows. It is therefore mostly using the potential theory, suitable for modelling attahed flows. It is therefore mostly applicable for Pitch Regualted Variabel Speed (PRVS......A two-dimensional theoretical study of the aeroelastic behaviour of an airfoil has been performed, whose geometry can be altered using a rear-mounted flap. This device is governed by a controller, whose objective is to reduce the airfoil displacements and therefore, the stresses present in a real...

FE Modeling of Blade Couple with Friction Contacts Under Dynamic Loading

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Pešek, Luděk; Půst, Ladislav; Vaněk, František; Veselý, Jan

2014-01-01

Roč. 2, č. 3 (2014), s. 229-238 ISSN 2321-3558 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA101/09/1166 Institutional support: RVO:61388998 Keywords : turbine blades * dry friction * damping Subject RIV: BI - Acoustics http://www.tvi-in.com/Journals/journaldetail.aspx?Id=201406251115146464844edeb39be66

Evaluation of urethane for feasibility of use in wind turbine blade design

Science.gov (United States)

Lieblein, S.; Ross, R. S.; Fertis, D. G.

1979-01-01

A preliminary evaluation was conducted of the use of cast urethane as a possible material for low-cost blades for wind turbines. Specimen test data are presented for ultimate tensile strength, elastic modulus, flexural strain, creep, and fatigue properties of a number of urethane formulations. Data are also included for a large-scale urethane blade section composed of cast symmetrical half-profiles tested as a cantilever beam. Based on these results, an analysis was conducted of a full-scale blade design of cast urethane that meets the design specifications of the rotor blades for the NASA/DOE experimental 100-kW MOD-0 wind turbine. Because of the low value of elastic modulus for urethane (around 457 000 psi), the design loads would have to be carried by metal reinforcement. Considerations for further evaluation are noted.

Caution: Precision Error in Blade Alignment Results in Faulty Unsteady CFD Simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Bryan; Cimbala, John; Wouden, Alex

2012-11-01

Turbomachinery components experience unsteady loads at several frequencies. The rotor frequency corresponds to the time for one rotor blade to rotate between two stator vanes, and is normally dominant for rotor torque oscillations. The guide vane frequency corresponds to the time for two rotor blades to pass by one guide vane. The machine frequency corresponds to the machine RPM. Oscillations at the machine frequency are always present due to minor blade misalignments and imperfections resulting from manufacturing defects. However, machine frequency oscillations should not be present in CFD simulations if the mesh is free of both blade misalignment and surface imperfections. The flow through a Francis hydroturbine was modeled with unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) CFD simulations and a dynamic rotating grid. Spectral analysis of the unsteady torque on the rotor blades revealed a large component at the machine frequency. Close examination showed that one blade was displaced by 0 .0001° due to round-off errors during mesh generation. A second mesh without blade misalignment was then created. Subsequently, large machine frequency oscillations were not observed for this mesh. These results highlight the effect of minor geometry imperfections on CFD solutions. This research was supported by a grant from the DoE and a National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship.

Aeroelasticity and structural optimization of composite helicopter rotor blades with swept tips

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, K. A.; Friedmann, P. P.

1995-01-01

This report describes the development of an aeroelastic analysis capability for composite helicopter rotor blades with straight and swept tips, and its application to the simulation of helicopter vibration reduction through structural optimization. A new aeroelastic model is developed in this study which is suitable for composite rotor blades with swept tips in hover and in forward flight. The hingeless blade is modeled by beam type finite elements. A single finite element is used to model the swept tip. Arbitrary cross-sectional shape, generally anisotropic material behavior, transverse shears and out-of-plane warping are included in the blade model. The nonlinear equations of motion, derived using Hamilton's principle, are based on a moderate deflection theory. Composite blade cross-sectbnal properties are calculated by a separate linear, two-dimensional cross section analysis. The aerodynamic loads are obtained from quasi-steady, incompressible aerodynamics, based on an implicit formulation. The trim and steady state blade aeroelastic response are solved in a fully coupled manner. In forward flight, where the blade equations of motion are periodic, the coupled trim-aeroelastic response solution is obtained from the harmonic balance method. Subsequently, the periodic system is linearized about the steady state response, and its stability is determined from Floquet theory.

Design of a fibrous composite preform for wind turbine rotor blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Jens Zangenberg; Brøndsted, Povl; Kofoed, M.

2014-01-01

The present work addresses the different factors and challenges one must cope with in the design process of a composite preform used for the load-carrying main laminate of a wind turbine rotor blade. The design process is split up into different key elements, each of which are presented...... and discussed separately. The key elements are all interconnected, which complicate the design process and involves an iterative procedure. The aim is to provide an overview of the process that governs the design of composite preforms for wind turbine blades. The survey can be used as an information source...... on composite preform manufacturing. Basic knowledge on wind turbine blade technology and composites is assumed. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved....

Structural degradation of a large composite wind turbine blade in a full-scale fatigue test

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, Xiao

carried out at a coupon level to characterize fatigue degradation of composite materials, there is no much study focusing on fatigue degradation of rotor blades at a fullscale structural level. Do structural properties of composite blades degrade in a similar manner to what has been observed in material...... tests at a coupon level? What might be the concerns one should take into account when predicting residual structural properties of rotor blades? To answer, at least to a partial extent, these questions, this study conducts a full-scale fatigue test on a 47m composite rotor blade according to IEC 61400......Wind turbine blades are expected to sustain a high number of loading cycles typically up to a magnitude of 1,000 million during their targeted service lifetime of 20-25 years. Structural properties of composite blades degrade with the time. Although substantial studies, such as [1,2], have been...

Structural and mechanism design of an active trailing-edge flap blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lee, Jae Hwan; Natarajan, Balakumaran; Eun, Won Jong

2013-01-01

, as the blade is able to withstand increased centrifugal force. The cross-section of the active blade is designed first. A stress/strain recovery analysis is then conducted to verify its structural integrity. A one-dimensional beam analysis is also carried out to assist with the construction of the fan diagram...... of the rotor through modification of unsteady aerodynamic loads. Piezoelectric actuators installed inside the blade manipulate the motion of the trailing edge flap. The proposed blade rotates at higher speed and additional structures are included to support the actuators and the flap. This improves the design....... To select the actuator and design the flap actuation region, the flap hinge moment is estimated via a CFD analysis. To obtain the desired flap deflection of ±4°, three actuators are required. The design of the flap actuation region is validated using a test bed with a skin hinge. However, because the skin...

A CFD analysis of blade row interactions within a high-speed axial compressor

Science.gov (United States)

Richman, Michael Scott

Aircraft engine design provides many technical and financial hurdles. In an effort to streamline the design process, save money, and improve reliability and performance, many manufacturers are relying on computational fluid dynamic simulations. An overarching goal of the design process for military aircraft engines is to reduce size and weight while maintaining (or improving) reliability. Designers often turn to the compression system to accomplish this goal. As pressure ratios increase and the number of compression stages decrease, many problems arise, for example stability and high cycle fatigue (HCF) become significant as individual stage loading is increased. CFD simulations have recently been employed to assist in the understanding of the aeroelastic problems. For accurate multistage blade row HCF prediction, it is imperative that advanced three-dimensional blade row unsteady aerodynamic interaction codes be validated with appropriate benchmark data. This research addresses this required validation process for TURBO, an advanced three-dimensional multi-blade row turbomachinery CFD code. The solution/prediction accuracy is characterized, identifying key flow field parameters driving the inlet guide vane (IGV) and stator response to the rotor generated forcing functions. The result is a quantified evaluation of the ability of TURBO to predict not only the fundamental flow field characteristics but the three dimensional blade loading.

Genetic fuzzy system for online structural health monitoring of composite helicopter rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Pawar, Prashant M.; Ganguli, Ranjan

2007-07-01

A structural health monitoring (SHM) methodology is developed for composite rotor blades. An aeroelastic analysis of composite rotor blades based on the finite element method in space and time and with implanted matrix cracking and debonding/delamination damage is used to obtain measurable system parameters such as blade response, loads and strains. A rotor blade with a two-cell airfoil section and [0/±45/90]s family of laminates is used for numerical simulations. The model based measurements are contaminated with noise to simulate real data. Genetic fuzzy systems (GFS) are developed for global online damage detection using displacement and force-based measurement deviations between damaged and undamaged conditions and for local online damage detection using strains. It is observed that the success rate of the GFS depends on number of measurements, type of measurements and training and testing noise level. The GFS work quite well with noisy data and is recommended for online SHM of composite helicopter rotor blades.

Materials for Wind Turbine Blades: An Overview

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mishnaevsky, Leon; Branner, Kim; Petersen, Helga Nørgaard

2017-01-01

A short overview of composite materials for wind turbine applications is presented here. Requirements toward the wind turbine materials, loads, as well as available materials are reviewed. Apart from the traditional composites for wind turbine blades (glass fibers/epoxy matrix composites), natural...... composites, hybrid and nanoengineered composites are discussed. Manufacturing technologies for wind turbine composites, as well their testing and modelling approaches are reviewed....

Materials for Wind Turbine Blades: An Overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Mishnaevsky, Leon; Branner, Kim; Petersen, Helga Nørgaard; Beauson, Justine; McGugan, Malcolm; Sørensen, Bent F

2017-11-09

A short overview of composite materials for wind turbine applications is presented here. Requirements toward the wind turbine materials, loads, as well as available materials are reviewed. Apart from the traditional composites for wind turbine blades (glass fibers/epoxy matrix composites), natural composites, hybrid and nanoengineered composites are discussed. Manufacturing technologies for wind turbine composites, as well their testing and modelling approaches are reviewed.

Tunneling cracks in full scale wind turbine blade joints

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Jeppe Bjørn; Sørensen, Bent F.; Kildegaard, C.

2017-01-01

A novel approach is presented and used in a generic tunneling crack tool for the prediction of crack growth rates for tunneling cracks propagating across a bond-line in a wind turbine blade under high cyclic loadings. In order to test and demonstrate the applicability of the tool, model predictions...

Multiscale modelling of single crystal superalloys for gas turbine blades

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tinga, T.

2009-01-01

Gas turbines are extensively used for power generation and for the propulsion of aircraft and vessels. Their most severely loaded parts, the turbine rotor blades, are manufactured from single crystal nickel-base superalloys. The superior high temperature behaviour of these materials is attributed to

Inflow measurements from blade-mounted flow sensors: Flow analysis, application and aeroelastic response

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Mads Mølgaard

-mounted flow sensor, BMFS, e.g. a five-hole pitot tube, which has been used in several research experiments over the last 30 years. The BMFS measured flow velocity is, however, located inside the induction zone and thereby influenced by the aerodynamic properties, the control strategy and the operational......The power and load performance of wind turbines are both crucial for the development and expansion of wind energy. The power and loads are highly dependent on the inflow conditions, which can be measured using different types of sensors mounted on nearby met masts, on the nacelle, at the spinner...... or at the blade. Each combination of sensor type and mounting position has advantages and shortcomings. To characterise the inflow that results in high and low fatigue loads, information about the temporal and spatial variations within the rotor area is required. This information can be obtained from a blade...

Multiple piece turbine rotor blade

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Russell B; Fedock, John A

2013-05-21

A multiple piece turbine rotor blade with a shell having an airfoil shape and secured between a spar and a platform with the spar including a tip end piece. a snap ring fits around the spar and abuts against the spar tip end piece on a top side and abuts against a shell on the bottom side so that the centrifugal loads from the shell is passed through the snap ring and into the spar and not through a tip cap dovetail slot and projection structure.

Numerical simulation of turbulent flows past the RoBin helicopter with a four-bladed rotor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, H.; Mamou, M.; Khalid, M. [National Research Council, Inst. for Aerospace Research, Ottawa, Ontario (Canada)]. E-mail: Hongyi.Xu@nrc.ca

2003-07-01

The current paper presents a turbulent flow simulation study past a generic helicopter RoBin with a four-bladed rotor using the Chimera moving grid approach. The aerodynamic performance of the rotor blades and their interactions with the RoBin fuselage are investigated using the k - {omega} SST turbulence model contained in the WIND code. The rotor is configured as a Chimera moving grid in a quasisteady flow field. The rotor blades are rectangular, untapered, linearly twisted and are made from NACA 0012 airfoil profile. The blade motion (rotation and cyclic pitching) schedule is specified in the NASA wind tunnel testing of a generic helicopter RoBin. The aerodynamic radial load distributions in the rotor plane are generated by integrating the pressure on each blade surfaces along the blade chordwise direction. The rotor flow interacts strongly with the flow coming off from the fuselage and thus has a significant impact on helicopter aerodynamic performance. (author)

Study on Blade Fatigue Life of Rotating Power Machinery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fu Xi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The linear damage model (LDM is widely applied in engineering calculation, but it does not consider the relationship between damage variable and load parameters. Therefore, the life prediction based on LDM is not satisfied for the aero-engine blades. Besides, it easily brings about error in predicting fatigue life by common nonlinear damage model which neglect the influence of torsional stress. Hence, a modified nonlinear continuum damage model (CDM is put forward based on Chaboche nonlinear damage model in this research. And to determine the damage and fatigue life of TC4 material used in aero-engine blades, axial tension and compression fatigue test is conducted. Compared with LDM results, the fatigue life prediction results of the modified CDM in this work show a good agreement with the tests data. So the correctness of the modified model is verified. Finally, the fatigue life of a certain aero-engine high pressure compressor blade is predicted by the modified nonlinear continuum damage model.

Characterization of Deficiencies in the Frequency Domain Forced Response Analysis Technique for Turbine Bladed Disks

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Andrew M.; Schmauch, Preston

2012-01-01

Turbine blades in rocket and jet engine turbomachinery experience enormous harmonic loading conditions. These loads result from the integer number of upstream and downstream stator vanes as well as the other turbine stages. The standard technique for forced response analysis to assess structural integrity is to decompose a CFD generated flow field into its harmonic components, and to then perform a frequency response analysis at the problematic natural frequencies. Recent CFD analysis and water-flow testing at NASA/MSFC, though, indicates that this technique may miss substantial harmonic and non-harmonic excitation sources that become present in complex flows. These complications suggest the question of whether frequency domain analysis is capable of capturing the excitation content sufficiently. Two studies comparing frequency response analysis with transient response analysis, therefore, have been performed. The first is of a bladed disk with each blade modeled by simple beam elements. It was hypothesized that the randomness and other variation from the standard harmonic excitation would reduce the blade structural response, but the results showed little reduction. The second study was of a realistic model of a bladed-disk excited by the same CFD used in the J2X engine program. The results showed that the transient analysis results were up to 10% higher for "clean" nodal diameter excitations and six times larger for "messy" excitations, where substantial Fourier content around the main harmonic exists.

A comparison study of the two-bladed partial pitch turbine during normal operation and an extreme gust conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, T; Petersen, M M; Larsen, T J

2014-01-01

This paper shows the load comparisons between the numerical simulation and the full-scale load measurement data. First part of this paper includes the comparisons of statistic load in terms of maximum, mean, and minimum values for the selected normal operation cases. The blade root bending moments and tower top bending moments are compared. Second part of this paper introduces the dynamic response comparisons during an extreme wind gust condition where the wind speed changed approximately 10 m/s during three seconds. The rotor speed and blade root flapwise and edgewise bending moment are compared. The nonlinear aeroelastic simulation code HAWC2 is used for the simulations. A very fine agreement between the simulated and the full-scale measured loads is seen for the both comparisons

Investigation of the maximum load alleviation potential using trailing edge flaps controlled by inflow data

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fischer, Andreas; Aagaard Madsen, Helge

2014-01-01

The maximum fatigue load reduction potential when using trailing edge flaps on mega-watt wind turbines was explored. For this purpose an ideal feed forward control algorithm using the relative velocity and angle of attack at the blade to control the loads was implemented. The algorithm was applied...... to time series from computations with the aeroelastic code HAWC2 and to measured time series. The fatigue loads could be reduced by 36% in the computations if the in flow sensor was at the same position as the blade load. The decrease of the load reduction potential when the sensor was at a distance from...... the blade load location was investigated. When the algorithm was applied to measured time series a load reduction of 23% was achieved which is still promissing, but significantly lower than the value achieved in computations....

Computational Modelling of Materials for Wind Turbine Blades: Selected DTUWind Energy Activities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkelsen, Lars Pilgaard; Mishnaevsky, Leon

2017-01-01

Computational and analytical studies of degradation of wind turbine blade materials at the macro-, micro-, and nanoscale carried out by the modelling team of the Section Composites and Materials Mechanics, Department of Wind Energy, DTU, are reviewed. Examples of the analysis of the microstructural...... effects on the strength and fatigue life of composites are shown. Computational studies of degradation mechanisms of wind blade composites under tensile and compressive loading are presented. The effect of hybrid and nanoengineered structures on the performance of the composite was studied...

Wind Turbine Blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2010-01-01

The invention relates to a blade for a wind turbine, particularly to a blade that may be produced by an advanced manufacturing process for producing a blade with high quality structural components. Particularly, the structural components, which are preferably manufactured from fibre reinforced...

Integrated approach for stress based lifing of aero gas turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Abu, Abdullahi Obonyegba

In order to analyse the turbine blade life, the damage due to the combined thermal and mechanical loads should be adequately accounted for. This is more challenging when detailed component geometry is limited. Therefore, a compromise between the level of geometric detail and the complexity of the lifing method to be implemented would be necessary. This research focuses on how the life assessment of aero engine turbine blades can be done, considering the balance between available design inputs and adequate level of fidelity. Accordingly, the thesis contributes to developing a generic turbine blade lifing method that is based on the engine thermodynamic cycle; as well as integrating critical design/technological factors and operational parameters that influence the aero engine blade life. To this end, thermo-mechanical fatigue was identified as the critical damage phenomenon driving the life of the turbine blade.. The developed approach integrates software tools and numerical models created using the minimum design information typically available at the early design stages. Using finite element analysis of an idealised blade geometry, the approach captures relevant impacts of thermal gradients and thermal stresses that contribute to the thermo-mechanical fatigue damage on the gas turbine blade. The blade life is evaluated using the Neu/Sehitoglu thermo-mechanical fatigue model that considers damage accumulation due to fatigue, oxidation, and creep. The leading edge is examined as a critical part of the blade to estimate the damage severity for different design factors and operational parameters. The outputs of the research can be used to better understand how the environment and the operating conditions of the aircraft affect the blade life consumption and therefore what is the impact on the maintenance cost and the availability of the propulsion system. This research also finds that the environmental (oxidation) effect drives the blade life and the blade coolant

Mechanical Design, Analysis, and Testing of a Two-Bladed Wind Turbine Hub

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cotrell, J.

2002-06-01

Researchers at the National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) in Golden, Colorado, began performing the Unsteady Aerodynamics Experiment in 1993 to better understand the unsteady aerodynamics and structural responses of horizontal-axis wind turbines. The experiment consists of an extensively instrumented, downwind, three-bladed, 20-kilowatt wind turbine. In May 1995, I received a request from the NWTC to design a two-bladed hub for the experiment. For my thesis, I present the results of the mechanical design, analysis, and testing of the hub. The hub I designed is unique because it runs in rigid, teetering, or independent blade-flapping modes. In addition, the design is unusual because it uses two servomotors to pitch the blades independently. These features are used to investigate new load reduction, noise reduction, blade pitch optimization, and yaw control techniques for two-bladed turbines. I used a methodology by G. Phal and W. Bietz to design the hub. The hub meets all the performance specifications except that it achieves only 90% of the specified teeter range. In my thesis, I focus on the analysis and testing of the hub body. I performed solid-mechanics calculations, ran a finite-element analysis simulation, and experimentally investigated the structural integrity of the hub body.

Intubation of prehospital patients with curved laryngoscope blade is more successful than with straight blade.

Science.gov (United States)

Alter, Scott M; Haim, Eithan D; Sullivan, Alex H; Clayton, Lisa M

2018-02-17

Direct laryngoscopy can be performed using curved or straight blades, and providers usually choose the blade they are most comfortable with. However, curved blades are anecdotally thought of as easier to use than straight blades. We seek to compare intubation success rates of paramedics using curved versus straight blades. Design: retrospective chart review. hospital-based suburban ALS service with 20,000 annual calls. prehospital patients with any direct laryngoscopy intubation attempt over almost 9years. First attempt and overall success rates were calculated for attempts with curved and straight blades. Differences between the groups were calculated. 2299 patients were intubated by direct laryngoscopy. 1865 had attempts with a curved blade, 367 had attempts with a straight blade, and 67 had attempts with both. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. First attempt success was 86% with a curved blade and 73% with a straight blade: a difference of 13% (95% CI: 9-17). Overall success was 96% with a curved blade and 81% with a straight blade: a difference of 15% (95% CI: 12-18). There was an average of 1.11 intubation attempts per patient with a curved blade and 1.13 attempts per patient with a straight blade (2% difference, 95% CI: -3-7). Our study found a significant difference in intubation success rates between laryngoscope blade types. Curved blades had higher first attempt and overall success rates when compared to straight blades. Paramedics should consider selecting a curved blade as their tool of choice to potentially improve intubation success. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Measurement of Tip Apex Distance and Migration of Lag Screws and Novel Blade Screw Used for the Fixation of Intertrochanteric Fractures.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jesse Chieh-Szu Yang

Full Text Available Fixation with a dynamic hip screw (DHS is one of the most common methods for stabilizing intertrochanteric fractures, except for unstable and reverse oblique fracture types. However, failure is often observed in osteoporotic patients whereby the lag screw effectively 'cuts out' through the weak bone. Novel anti-migration blades have been developed to be used in combination with a lag screw ('Blade Screw' to improve the fixation strength in osteoporotic intertrochanteric fractures. An in-vitro biomechanical study and a retrospective clinical study were performed to evaluate lag screw migration when using the novel Blade Screw and a traditional threaded DHS. The biomechanical study showed both the Blade Screw and DHS displayed excessive migration (≥10 mm before reaching 20,000 loading cycles in mild osteoporotic bone, but overall migration of the Blade Screw was significantly less (p ≤ 0.03. Among the patients implanted with a Blade Screw in the clinical study, there was no significant variation in screw migration at 3-months follow-up (P = 0.12. However, the patient's implanted with a DHS did display significantly greater migration (P<0.001 than those implanted with the Blade Screw. In conclusion, the Blade Screw stabilizes the bone fragments during dynamic loading so as to provide significantly greater resistance to screw migration in patients with mild osteoporosis.

Delamination-Debond Behaviour of Composite T- Joints in Wind Turbine Blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gulasik, H; Coker, D

2014-01-01

Wind turbine industry utilizes composite materials in turbine blade structural designs because of their high strength/stiffness to weight ratio. T-joint is one of the design configurations of composite wind turbine blades. T-joints consist of a skin panel and a stiffener co-bonded or co-cured together with a filler material between them. T-joints are prone to delaminations between skin/stiffener plies and debonds between skin-stiffener-filler interfaces. In this study, delamination/debond behavior of a co-bonded composite T-joint is investigated under 0° pull load condition by 2D finite element method. Using Abaqus® commercial FE software, zero-thickness cohesive elements are used to simulate delamination/debond in ply interfaces and bonding lines. Pulling load at 0° is applied and load-displacement behavior and failure scenario are observed. The failure sequence consists of debonding of filler/stringer interface during one load drop followed by a second drop in which the 2nd filler/stringer debonds, filler/skin debonding and skin delamination leading to total loss of load carrying capacity. This type of failure initiation has been observed widely in the literature. When the debond strength is increased 30%, failure pattern is found to change in addition to increasing the load capacity by 200% before total loss of loading carrying capacity occurs. Failure initiation and propagation behavior, initial and max failure loads and stress fields are affected by the property change. In all cases mixed-mode crack tip loading is observed in the failure initiation and propagation stages. In this paper, the detailed delamination/debonding history in T-joints is predicted with cohesive elements for the first time

Turbomachine blade reinforcement

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia Crespo, Andres Jose

2016-09-06

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a system having a turbomachine blade segment including a blade and a mounting segment coupled to the blade, wherein the mounting segment has a plurality of reinforcement pins laterally extending at least partially through a neck of the mounting segment.

Manufacturing technology of integrated textile-based sensor networks for in situ monitoring applications of composite wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Haentzsche, Eric; Mueller, Ralf; Huebner, Matthias; Ruder, Tristan; Unger, Reimar; Nocke, Andreas; Cherif, Chokri

2016-10-01

Based on in situ strain sensors consisting of piezo-resistive carbon filament yarns (CFYs), which have been successfully integrated into textile reinforcement structures during their textile-technological manufacturing process, a continuous load of fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) components has been realised. These sensors are also suitable for structural health monitoring (SHM) applications. The two-dimensional sensor layout is made feasible by the usage of a modular warp yarn path manipulation unit. Using a functional model of a small wind turbine blade in thermoset composite design, the sensor function for basic SHM applications (e.g. static load monitoring) are demonstrated. Any mechanical loads along the pressure or suction side of the wind turbine blade can be measured and calculated via a correlative change in resistance of the CFYs within the textile reinforcement plies. Performing quasi-static load tests on both tensile specimen and full-scale wind turbine blade, elementary results have been obtained concerning electro-mechanical behaviour and spatial resolution of global and even local static stresses according to the CFY sensor integration length. This paper demonstrates the great potential of textile-based and textile-technological integrated sensors in reinforcement structures for future SHM applications of FRPs.

Experimental and numerical study of the British Experimental Rotor Programme blade

Science.gov (United States)

Brocklehurst, Alan; Duque, Earl P. N.

1990-01-01

Wind-tunnel tests on the British Experimental Rotor Programme (BERP) tip are described, and the results are compared with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results. The test model was molded using the Lynx-BERP blade tooling to provide a semispan, cantilever wing comprising the outboard 30 percent of the rotor blade. The tests included both surface-pressure measurements and flow visualization to obtain detailed information of the flow over the BERP tip for a range of angles of attack. It was observed that, outboard of the notch, favorable pressure gradients exist which ensure attached flow, and that the tip vortex also remains stable to large angles of attack. On the rotor, these features yield a very gradual break in control loads when the retreating-blade limit is eventually reached. Computational and experimental results were generally found to be in good agreement.

Performance characterization of active fiber-composite actuators for helicopter rotor blade applications

Science.gov (United States)

Wickramasinghe, Viresh K.; Hagood, Nesbitt W.

2002-07-01

The primary objective of this work was to characterize the performance of the Active Fiber Composite (AFC) actuator material system for the Boeing Active Material Rotor (AMR) blade application. The AFCs were a new structural actuator system consisting of piezoceramic fibers embedded in an epoxy matrix and sandwiched between interdigitated electrodes to orient the driving electric field in the fiber direction to use the primary piezoelectric effect. These actuators were integrated directly into the blade spar laminate as active plies within the composite structure to perform structural actuation for vibration control in helicopters. Therefore, it was necessary to conduct extensive electromechanical material characterization to evaluate AFCs both as actuators and as structural components of the rotor blade. The characterization tests designed to extract important electromechanical properties under simulated blade operating conditions included stress-strain tests, free strain tests and actuation under tensile load tests. This paper presents the test results as well as the comprehensive testing process developed to evaluate the relevant AFC material properties. The results from this comprehensive performance characterization of the AFC material system supported the design and operation of the Boeing AMR blade scheduled for hover and forward flight wind tunnel tests.

Interlaminar/interfiber Failure of Unidirectional GFRP used for Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Leong, Martin; Hvejsel, C.F.; Lund, Erik

2013-01-01

A unidirectional glass fiber/epoxy composite material system used for wind turbine blades was characterized under multi-axial loading by cutting specimens in varying off-axis angles relative to the fiber direction. In addition, Iosipescu shear tests were performed on both symmetric and asymmetric...

Aerodynamic load control strategy of wind turbine in microgrid

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiangming; Liu, Heshun; Chen, Yanfei

2017-12-01

A control strategy is proposed in the paper to optimize the aerodynamic load of the wind turbine in micro-grid. In grid-connection mode, the wind turbine adopts a new individual variable pitch control strategy. The pitch angle of the blade is rapidly given by the controller, and the pitch angle of each blade is fine tuned by the weight coefficient distributor. In islanding mode, according to the requirements of energy storage system, a given power tracking control method based on fuzzy PID control is proposed. Simulation result shows that this control strategy can effectively improve the axial aerodynamic load of the blade under rated wind speed in grid-connection mode, and ensure the smooth operation of the micro-grid in islanding mode.

Turbomachine blade assembly

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia Crespo, Andres Jose

2016-11-01

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a system comprising a turbomachine blade assembly having a blade portion, a shank portion, and a mounting portion, wherein the blade portion, the shank portion, and the mounting portion comprise a first plurality of plies extending from a tip of the airfoil to a base of the dovetail.

Fatigue fracture of cutter blade made of high-speed steel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beata Letkowska

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The quality of the surface of cyclically loaded components is very important. Many observations confirm that the root cause of the micro cracks (causing the fatigue fracture are primarily a surface's defects appearing during production process. These surface defects can be also caused by engraving processes used to perform identification marks. This paper presents the failure analysis of broken blade of the cutter Ku 500VX. The blade was subject of standard metallographic examination, hardness measurements, fractography analysis and metallographic studies using stereoscopic, light and scanning electron microscopes. The damage of the blade was caused by changes of the structure (formation of the brittle micro dendritic structure that occurred during manual electric engraving process when the material was heated till its melting point. As a result the stresses occurred in surface what provided to micro cracking and to propagate the fatigue fracture. The origin of this fatigue fracture was in the place where the inscription was made.

Investigation of the theoretical load alleviation potential using trailing edge flaps controlled by inflow data

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fischer, Andreas; Aagaard Madsen, Helge

2016-01-01

the rotational frequency. The highest fatigue load reduction was achieved when the inflow sensor was placed at the outer parts of the blade. In the best case, the reduction of the local fatigue loads induced by the blade sectional normal force was 60%. The control method gave the highest fatigue load reductions...... effects seem to be negligible. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd....

Design and construction of a simple blade pitch measurement system for small wind turbines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Whale, Jonathan [Research Institute of Sustainable Energy, Murdoch University, Perth, WA 6150 (Australia)

2009-02-15

For small wind turbines to be reliable they must have in place good mechanisms to protect themselves against very high winds or sudden removal of load. One common protection method in small wind turbines is that of blade feathering. It is important that the blade feathering mechanism of a small wind turbine is tested before the turbine is installed in the field. This paper presents a simple system for monitoring the blade feathering of a turbine with an overall component cost that small wind turbine manufacturers can afford. The Blade Pitch Measurement System (BPMS) has been designed and constructed by the Research Institute of Sustainable Energy (RISE) and aids small wind turbine manufacturers in testing and optimising the settings of the blade feathering mechanisms on their machines. The results show that the BPMS was successful in recording the behaviour of the blade feathering mechanism in field trials with a 20 kW and a 30 kW wind turbine. The BPMS displays significant potential as an effective, inexpensive system for small wind turbine manufacturers to ensure the reliability of their pitch regulating over-speed protection mechanisms. (author)

Metallurgy of gas turbine blades with integral shroud and its influence on blades performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazur, Z.; Marino, C.; Kubiak, J.

1999-01-01

The influence of the microstructure of the gas turbine blades with integral shroud on the blades performance is presented. The analysis of the solidification process of the gas turbine blades during conventionally casting process (equiaxed grains) with all elements which has influence on the mode of its solidification and variation of the microstructure is carried out. Also, the evaluation of the failure of the gas turbine blade is present. A detailed analysis of the blade tip shroud microstructure (presence of the equiaxed and columnar grains) and its influence on the failure initiation and propagation is carried out. Finally, conclusions and some necessary improvements of the blades casting process to prevent blades failures are presented. (Author) 2 refs

Structural design optimization of a morphing trailing edge flap for wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Barlas, Athanasios; Lin, Yu-Huan; Aagaard Madsen, Helge

A flap actuation system, the Controllable Rubber Trailing Edge Flap (CRTEF), for distributed load control on a wind turbine blade had been developed in the period from 2006 to 2013 at DTU (http://www.induflap.dk/). The purpose of the presented work is to optimize the structural design of the flex......A flap actuation system, the Controllable Rubber Trailing Edge Flap (CRTEF), for distributed load control on a wind turbine blade had been developed in the period from 2006 to 2013 at DTU (http://www.induflap.dk/). The purpose of the presented work is to optimize the structural design...... of the flexible part of the CRTEF based on a realistic blade section geometry in order to meet the required objectives and constraints. The objectives include the deflection requirements and the energy efficiency, while the constraints include the bending stiffness of the structure, the local shape deformations......, critical material strength, and manufacturing limitations. A model with arches forming concave on the flap surface and enclosing the voids to be pressurized results in the bending movement of the flap when pressure is applied on the voids to straighten the arches. The model is designed using SolidWorks...

Iterative tuning of feedforward IPC for two-bladed wind turbines

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mulders, S.P.; van Solingen, E.; van Wingerden, J.W.; Beerens, J; Bossanyi, E.; Chaviaropoulos, T.; Cheng, P.W.

2016-01-01

At present, the cost of offshore wind energy does not meet the level of onshore wind and fossil-based energy sources. One way to extend the turbine lifetime, and thus reduce cost, is by reduction of the fatigue loads of blades and other turbine parts using Individual Pitch Control (IPC). This type

BWR control blade replacement strategies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kennard, M W [Stoller Nuclear Fuel, NAC International, Pleasantville, NY (United States); Harbottle, J E [Stoller Nuclear Fuel, NAC International, Thornbury, Bristol (United Kingdom)

2000-02-01

The reactivity control elements in a BWR, the control blades, perform three significant functions: provide shutdown margin during normal and accident operating conditions; provide overall core reactivity control; and provide axial power shaping control. As such, the blades are exposed to the core's neutron flux, resulting in irradiation of blade structural and absorber materials. Since the absorber depletes with time (if B{sub 4}C is used, it also swells) and the structural components undergo various degradation mechanisms (e.g., embrittlement, corrosion), the blades have limits on their operational lifetimes. Consequently, BWR utilities have implemented strategies that aim to maximize blade lifetimes while balancing operational costs, such as extending a refuelling outage to shuffle high exposure blades. This paper examines the blade replacement strategies used by BWR utilities operating in US, Europe and Asia by assembling information related to: the utility's specific blade replacement strategy; the impact the newer blade designs and changes in core operating mode were having on those strategies; the mechanical and nuclear limits that determined those strategies; the methods employed to ensure that lifetime limits were not exceeded during operation; and blade designs used (current and replacement blades). (author)

BWR control blade replacement strategies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennard, M.W.; Harbottle, J.E.

2000-01-01

The reactivity control elements in a BWR, the control blades, perform three significant functions: provide shutdown margin during normal and accident operating conditions; provide overall core reactivity control; and provide axial power shaping control. As such, the blades are exposed to the core's neutron flux, resulting in irradiation of blade structural and absorber materials. Since the absorber depletes with time (if B 4 C is used, it also swells) and the structural components undergo various degradation mechanisms (e.g., embrittlement, corrosion), the blades have limits on their operational lifetimes. Consequently, BWR utilities have implemented strategies that aim to maximize blade lifetimes while balancing operational costs, such as extending a refuelling outage to shuffle high exposure blades. This paper examines the blade replacement strategies used by BWR utilities operating in US, Europe and Asia by assembling information related to: the utility's specific blade replacement strategy; the impact the newer blade designs and changes in core operating mode were having on those strategies; the mechanical and nuclear limits that determined those strategies; the methods employed to ensure that lifetime limits were not exceeded during operation; and blade designs used (current and replacement blades). (author)

Derivation of airfoil characteristics for the LM 19.1 blade based on 3D CFD rotor calculations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bak, C; Soerensen, N N; Madsen, H A [Risoe National Lab., Roskilde (Denmark)

1999-03-01

Airfoil characteristics for the LM 19.1 blade are derived from 3D CFD computations on a full-scale 41-m rotor. Based on 3D CFD the force distributions on the blades are determined, from which airfoil characteristics are derived using the momentum theory. The final airfoil characteristics are constructed using both wind tunnel measurements and 3D CFD. Compared to 2D wind tunnel measurements they show a low lift in stall for the airfoil sections at the tip. At the airfoil sections at the inner part of the blade, they show a high lift in stall. At about 60% radius the lift agrees well to 2D wind tunnel measurements. Aero-elastic calculations using the final airfoil characteristics show good agreement to measured power and flap moments. Furthermore, a fatigue load analysis shows a reduction of up to 15% of the load compared to commonly used data. (au)

Complementary Aerodynamic Performance Datasets for Variable Speed Power Turbine Blade Section from Two Independent Transonic Turbine Cascades

Science.gov (United States)

Flegel, Ashlie B.; Welch, Gerard E.; Giel, Paul W.; Ames, Forrest E.; Long, Jonathon A.

2015-01-01

Two independent experimental studies were conducted in linear cascades on a scaled, two-dimensional mid-span section of a representative Variable Speed Power Turbine (VSPT) blade. The purpose of these studies was to assess the aerodynamic performance of the VSPT blade over large Reynolds number and incidence angle ranges. The influence of inlet turbulence intensity was also investigated. The tests were carried out in the NASA Glenn Research Center Transonic Turbine Blade Cascade Facility and at the University of North Dakota (UND) High Speed Compressible Flow Wind Tunnel Facility. A large database was developed by acquiring total pressure and exit angle surveys and blade loading data for ten incidence angles ranging from +15.8deg to -51.0deg. Data were acquired over six flow conditions with exit isentropic Reynolds number ranging from 0.05×106 to 2.12×106 and at exit Mach numbers of 0.72 (design) and 0.35. Flow conditions were examined within the respective facility constraints. The survey data were integrated to determine average exit total-pressure and flow angle. UND also acquired blade surface heat transfer data at two flow conditions across the entire incidence angle range aimed at quantifying transitional flow behavior on the blade. Comparisons of the aerodynamic datasets were made for three "match point" conditions. The blade loading data at the match point conditions show good agreement between the facilities. This report shows comparisons of other data and highlights the unique contributions of the two facilities. The datasets are being used to advance understanding of the aerodynamic challenges associated with maintaining efficient power turbine operation over a wide shaft-speed range.

Axial compressor blade design for desensitization of aerodynamic performance and stability to tip clearance

Science.gov (United States)

Erler, Engin

Tip clearance flow is the flow through the clearance between the rotor blade tip and the shroud of a turbomachine, such as compressors and turbines. This flow is driven by the pressure difference across the blade (aerodynamic loading) in the tip region and is a major source of loss in performance and aerodynamic stability in axial compressors of modern aircraft engines. An increase in tip clearance, either temporary due to differential radial expansion between the blade and the shroud during transient operation or permanent due to engine wear or manufacturing tolerances on small blades, increases tip clearance flow and results in higher fuel consumption and higher risk of engine surge. A compressor design that can reduce the sensitivity of its performance and aerodynamic stability to tip clearance increase would have a major impact on short and long-term engine performance and operating envelope. While much research has been carried out on improving nominal compressor performance, little had been done on desensitization to tip clearance increase beyond isolated observations that certain blade designs such as forward chordwise sweep, seem to be less sensitive to tip clearance size increase. The current project aims to identify through a computational study the flow features and associated mechanisms that reduces sensitivity of axial compressor rotors to tip clearance size and propose blade design strategies that can exploit these results. The methodology starts with the design of a reference conventional axial compressor rotor followed by a parametric study with variations of this reference design through modification of the camber line and of the stacking line of blade profiles along the span. It is noted that a simple desensitization method would be to reduce the aerodynamic loading of the blade tip which would reduce the tip clearance flow and its proportional contribution to performance loss. However, with the larger part of the work on the flow done in this

Experimental Evaluation of Cermet Turbine Stator Blades for Use at Elevated Gas Temperatures

Science.gov (United States)

Chiarito, Patrick T.; Johnston, James R.

1959-01-01

The suitability of cermets for turbine stator blades of a modified turbojet engine was determined at an average turbine-inlet-gas temperature of 2000 F. Such an increase in temperature would yield a premium in thrust from a service engine. Because the cermet blades require no cooling, all the available compressor bleed air could be used to cool a turbine made from conventional ductile alloys. Cermet blades were first run in 100-hour endurance tests at normal gas temperatures in order to evaluate two methods for mounting them. The elevated gas-temperature test was then run using the method of support considered best for high-temperature operation. After 52 hours at 2000 F, one of the group of four cermet blades fractured probably because of end loads resulting from thermal distortion of the spacer band of the nozzle diaphragm. Improved design of a service engine would preclude this cause of premature failure.

Evaluation of the Effect of Spar Cap Fiber Angle of Bending-Torsion Coupled Blades on the Aero-Structural Performance of Wind Turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sener, Ozgun; Farsadi, Touraj; Gozc, M. Ozan

2018-01-01

with the fatigue load mitigation in the whole wind turbine system, tower clearances, peak stresses in the blades, and power generation of wind turbines. For this purpose, a full E-glass/epoxy reference blade has been designed, following the inverse design methodology for a 5-MW wind turbine. An E-glass/epoxy blade...... with IBTC, and besides the fiber orientation angle, sectional properties of hybrid blades must be adjusted accordingly using proper number of carbon/epoxy layers in the sections of the blade with IBTC, in order to simultaneously reduce generator power losses and the FEL....

Synthetic jet actuation for load control

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Vries, Hein; van der Weide, Edwin Theodorus Antonius; Hoeijmakers, Hendrik Willem Marie

2014-01-01

The reduction of wind turbine blade loads is an important issue in the reduction of the costs of energy production. Reduction of the loads of a non-cyclic nature requires so-called smart rotor control, which involves the application of distributed actuators and sensors to provide fast and local

A multi-frequency fatigue testing method for wind turbine rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Eder, M. A.; Belloni, F.; Tesauro, A.; Hanis, T.

2017-02-01

Rotor blades are among the most delicate components of modern wind turbines. Reliability is a crucial aspect, since blades shall ideally remain free of failure under ultra-high cycle loading conditions throughout their designated lifetime of 20-25 years. Full-scale blade tests are the most accurate means to experimentally simulate damage evolution under operating conditions, and are therefore used to demonstrate that a blade type fulfils the reliability requirements to an acceptable degree of confidence. The state-of-the-art testing method for rotor blades in industry is based on resonance excitation where typically a rotating mass excites the blade close to its first natural frequency. During operation the blade response due to external forcing is governed by a weighted combination of its eigenmodes. Current test methodologies which only utilise the lowest eigenfrequency induce a fictitious damage where additional tuning masses are required to recover the desired damage distribution. Even with the commonly adopted amplitude upscaling technique fatigue tests remain a time-consuming and costly endeavour. The application of tuning masses increases the complexity of the problem by lowering the natural frequency of the blade and therefore increasing the testing time. The novel method presented in this paper aims at shortening the duration of the state-of-the-art fatigue testing method by simultaneously exciting the blade with a combination of two or more eigenfrequencies. Taking advantage of the different shapes of the excited eigenmodes, the actual spatial damage distribution can be more realistically simulated in the tests by tuning the excitation force amplitudes rather than adding tuning masses. This implies that in portions of the blade the lowest mode is governing the damage whereas in others higher modes contribute more significantly due to their higher cycle count. A numerical feasibility study based on a publicly available large utility rotor blade is used to

Predicting the Extreme Loads on a Wind Turbine Considering Uncertainty in Airfoil Data

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abdallah, Imad; Natarajan, Anand; Sørensen, John Dalsgaard

2014-01-01

The sources contributing to uncertainty in a wind turbine blade static airfoil data include wind tunnel testing, CFD calculations, 3D rotational corrections based on CFD or emprircal models, surface roughness corrections, Reynolds number corrections, expansion to the full 360-degree angle of attack...... range, validation by full scale measurements, and geometric distortions of the blade during manufacturing and under loading. In this paper a stochastic model of the static airfoil data is proposed to supplement the prediction of extreme loads effects for large wind turbines. It is shown...... that the uncertainty in airfoil data can have e significant impact on the prediction of extreme loads effects depending on the component, and the correlation along the span of the blade....

Influence of pitch, twist, and taper on a blade`s performance loss due to roughness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tangler, J.L. [National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)

1996-12-31

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of blade geometric parameters such as pitch, twist, and taper on a blade`s sensitivity to leading edge roughness. The approach began with an evaluation of available test data of performance degradation due to roughness effects for several rotors. In addition to airfoil geometry, this evaluation suggested that a rotor`s sensitivity to roughness was also influenced by the blade geometric parameters. Parametric studies were conducted using the PROP computer code with wind-tunnel airfoil characteristics for smooth and rough surface conditions to quantify the performance loss due to roughness for tapered and twisted blades relative to a constant-chord, non-twisted blade at several blade pitch angles. The results indicate that a constant-chord, non-twisted blade pitched toward stall will have the greatest losses due to roughness. The use of twist, taper, and positive blade pitch angles all help reduce the angle-of-attack distribution along the blade for a given wind speed and the associated performance degradation due to roughness. 8 refs., 6 figs.

Influence of pitch, twist, and taper on a blade`s performance loss due to roughness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tangler, J.L. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado (United States)

1997-08-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of blade geometric parameters such as pitch, twist, and taper on a blade`s sensitivity to leading edge roughness. The approach began with an evaluation of available test data of performance degradation due to roughness effects for several rotors. In addition to airfoil geometry, this evaluation suggested that a rotor`s sensitivity to roughness was also influenced by the blade geometric parameters. Parametric studies were conducted using the PROP computer code with wind-tunnel airfoil characteristics for smooth and rough surface conditions to quantify the performance loss due to roughness for tapered and twisted blades relative to a constant-chord, non-twisted blade at several blade pitch angles. The results indicate that a constant-chord, non-twisted blade pitched toward stall will have the greatest losses due to roughness. The use of twist, taper, and positive blade pitch angles all help reduce the angle-of-attack distribution along the blade for a given wind speed and the associated performance degradation due to roughness. (au)

Computational Modelling of Materials for Wind Turbine Blades: Selected DTU Wind Energy Activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikkelsen, Lars Pilgaard; Mishnaevsky, Leon

2017-11-08

Computational and analytical studies of degradation of wind turbine blade materials at the macro-, micro-, and nanoscale carried out by the modelling team of the Section Composites and Materials Mechanics, Department of Wind Energy, DTU, are reviewed. Examples of the analysis of the microstructural effects on the strength and fatigue life of composites are shown. Computational studies of degradation mechanisms of wind blade composites under tensile and compressive loading are presented. The effect of hybrid and nanoengineered structures on the performance of the composite was studied in computational experiments as well.

Modeling dynamic stall on wind turbine blades under rotationally augmented flow fields

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Guntur, Srinivas; Sørensen, Niels N.; Schreck, Scott

2016-01-01

a reduced order dynamic stall model that uses rotationally augmented steady-state polars obtained from steady Phase VI experimental sequences, instead of the traditional two-dimensional, non-rotating data. The aim of this work is twofold. First, the blade loads estimated by the DDES simulations are compared...... Experiment Phase VI experimental data, including constant as well as continuously pitching blade conditions during axial operation; (2) data from unsteady delayed detached eddy simulations (DDES) carried out using the Technical University of Denmark’s in-house flow solver Ellipsys3D; and (3) data from...... with those from the dynamic stall model. This allowed the differences between the stall phenomenon on the inboard parts of harmonically pitching blades on a rotating wind turbine and the classic dynamic stall representation in two-dimensional flow to be investigated. Results indicated a good qualitative...

On the impact of multi-axial stress states on trailing edge bondlines in wind turbine rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Noever Castelos, Pablo; Balzani, Claudio

2016-09-01

For a reliable design of wind turbine systems all of their components have to be designed to withstand the loads appearing in the turbine's lifetime. When performed in an integral manner this is called systems engineering, and is exceptionally important for components that have an impact on the entire wind turbine system, such as the rotor blade. Bondlines are crucial subcomponents of rotor blades, but they are not much recognized in the wind energy research community. However, a bondline failure can lead to the loss of a rotor blade, and potentially of the entire turbine, and is extraordinarily relevant to be treated with strong emphasis when designing a wind turbine. Modern wind turbine rotor blades with lengths of 80 m and more offer a degree of flexibility that has never been seen in wind energy technology before. Large deflections result in high strains in the adhesive connections, especially at the trailing edge. The latest edition of the DNV GL guideline from end of 2015 demands a three-dimensional stress analysis of bondlines, whereas before an isolated shear stress proof was sufficient. In order to quantify the lack of safety from older certification guidelines this paper studies the influence of multi-axial stress states on the ultimate and fatigue load resistance of trailing edge adhesive bonds. For this purpose, detailed finite element simulations of the IWES IWT-7.5-164 reference wind turbine blades are performed. Different yield criteria are evaluated for the prediction of failure and lifetime. The results show that the multi-axial stress state is governed by span-wise normal stresses. Those are evidently not captured in isolated shear stress proofs, yielding non-conservative estimates of lifetime and ultimate load resistance. This finding highlights the importance to include a three-dimensional stress state in the failure analysis of adhesive bonds in modern wind turbine rotor blades, and the necessity to perform a three-dimensional characterization

Large-area photogrammetry based testing of wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Poozesh, Peyman; Baqersad, Javad; Niezrecki, Christopher; Avitabile, Peter; Harvey, Eric; Yarala, Rahul

2017-03-01

An optically based sensing system that can measure the displacement and strain over essentially the entire area of a utility-scale blade leads to a measurement system that can significantly reduce the time and cost associated with traditional instrumentation. This paper evaluates the performance of conventional three dimensional digital image correlation (3D DIC) and three dimensional point tracking (3DPT) approaches over the surface of wind turbine blades and proposes a multi-camera measurement system using dynamic spatial data stitching. The potential advantages for the proposed approach include: (1) full-field measurement distributed over a very large area, (2) the elimination of time-consuming wiring and expensive sensors, and (3) the need for large-channel data acquisition systems. There are several challenges associated with extending the capability of a standard 3D DIC system to measure entire surface of utility scale blades to extract distributed strain, deflection, and modal parameters. This paper only tries to address some of the difficulties including: (1) assessing the accuracy of the 3D DIC system to measure full-field distributed strain and displacement over the large area, (2) understanding the geometrical constraints associated with a wind turbine testing facility (e.g. lighting, working distance, and speckle pattern size), (3) evaluating the performance of the dynamic stitching method to combine two different fields of view by extracting modal parameters from aligned point clouds, and (4) determining the feasibility of employing an output-only system identification to estimate modal parameters of a utility scale wind turbine blade from optically measured data. Within the current work, the results of an optical measurement (one stereo-vision system) performed on a large area over a 50-m utility-scale blade subjected to quasi-static and cyclic loading are presented. The blade certification and testing is typically performed using International

Assessment of Interlaminar/Interfiber Failure of UD GRFP for Wind Turbine Blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Leong, Martin Klitgaard; Hvejsel, C.F.; Lund, Erik

2012-01-01

A unidirectional glass fiber/epoxy composite material system used for wind turbine blades was characterized under multi-axial loading by cutting specimens in varying off-axis angles relative to the fiber direction. In addition, Iosipescu shear tests were performed on both symmetric and asymmetric...

Fatigue life prediction and strength degradation of wind turbine rotor blade composites

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nijssen, R.P.L.

2006-01-01

Wind turbine rotor blades are subjected to a large number of highly variable loads, but life predictions are typically based on constant amplitude fatigue behaviour. Therefore, it is important to determine how service life under variable amplitude fatigue can be estimated from constant amplitude

Airfoil family design for large offshore wind turbine blades

Science.gov (United States)

Méndez, B.; Munduate, X.; San Miguel, U.

2014-06-01

Wind turbine blades size has scaled-up during last years due to wind turbine platform increase especially for offshore applications. The EOLIA project 2007-2010 (Spanish Goverment funded project) was focused on the design of large offshore wind turbines for deep waters. The project was managed by ACCIONA Energia and the wind turbine technology was designed by ACCIONA Windpower. The project included the design of a wind turbine airfoil family especially conceived for large offshore wind turbine blades, in the order of 5MW machine. Large offshore wind turbines suffer high extreme loads due to their size, in addition the lack of noise restrictions allow higher tip speeds. Consequently, the airfoils presented in this work are designed for high Reynolds numbers with the main goal of reducing blade loads and mantainig power production. The new airfoil family was designed in collaboration with CENER (Spanish National Renewable Energy Centre). The airfoil family was designed using a evolutionary algorithm based optimization tool with different objectives, both aerodynamic and structural, coupled with an airfoil geometry generation tool. Force coefficients of the designed airfoil were obtained using the panel code XFOIL in which the boundary layer/inviscid flow coupling is ineracted via surface transpiration model. The desing methodology includes a novel technique to define the objective functions based on normalizing the functions using weight parameters created from data of airfoils used as reference. Four airfoils have been designed, here three of them will be presented, with relative thickness of 18%, 21%, 25%, which have been verified with the in-house CFD code, Wind Multi Block WMB, and later validated with wind tunnel experiments. Some of the objectives for the designed airfoils concern the aerodynamic behavior (high efficiency and lift, high tangential coefficient, insensitivity to rough conditions, etc.), others concern the geometry (good for structural design

Airfoil family design for large offshore wind turbine blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Méndez, B; Munduate, X; Miguel, U San

2014-01-01

Wind turbine blades size has scaled-up during last years due to wind turbine platform increase especially for offshore applications. The EOLIA project 2007-2010 (Spanish Goverment funded project) was focused on the design of large offshore wind turbines for deep waters. The project was managed by ACCIONA Energia and the wind turbine technology was designed by ACCIONA Windpower. The project included the design of a wind turbine airfoil family especially conceived for large offshore wind turbine blades, in the order of 5MW machine. Large offshore wind turbines suffer high extreme loads due to their size, in addition the lack of noise restrictions allow higher tip speeds. Consequently, the airfoils presented in this work are designed for high Reynolds numbers with the main goal of reducing blade loads and mantainig power production. The new airfoil family was designed in collaboration with CENER (Spanish National Renewable Energy Centre). The airfoil family was designed using a evolutionary algorithm based optimization tool with different objectives, both aerodynamic and structural, coupled with an airfoil geometry generation tool. Force coefficients of the designed airfoil were obtained using the panel code XFOIL in which the boundary layer/inviscid flow coupling is ineracted via surface transpiration model. The desing methodology includes a novel technique to define the objective functions based on normalizing the functions using weight parameters created from data of airfoils used as reference. Four airfoils have been designed, here three of them will be presented, with relative thickness of 18%, 21%, 25%, which have been verified with the in-house CFD code, Wind Multi Block WMB, and later validated with wind tunnel experiments. Some of the objectives for the designed airfoils concern the aerodynamic behavior (high efficiency and lift, high tangential coefficient, insensitivity to rough conditions, etc.), others concern the geometry (good for structural design

Performance Limiting Flow Processes in High-State Loading High-Mach Number Compressors

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Tan, Choon S

2008-01-01

In high-stage loading high-Mach number (HLM) compressors, counter-rotating pairs of discrete vortices are shed at the trailing edge of the upstream blade row at a frequency corresponding to the downstream rotor blade passing frequency...

Blade attachment assembly

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Crespo, Andres Jose; Delvaux, John McConnell; Miller, Diane Patricia

2016-05-03

An assembly and method for affixing a turbomachine rotor blade to a rotor wheel are disclosed. In an embodiment, an adaptor member is provided disposed between the blade and the rotor wheel, the adaptor member including an adaptor attachment slot that is complementary to the blade attachment member, and an adaptor attachment member that is complementary to the rotor wheel attachment slot. A coverplate is provided, having a coverplate attachment member that is complementary to the rotor wheel attachment slot, and a hook for engaging the adaptor member. When assembled, the coverplate member matingly engages with the adaptor member, and retains the blade in the adaptor member, and the assembly in the rotor wheel.

Blade-Pitch Control for Wind Turbine Load Reductions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lio, Alan Wai Hou

Large wind turbines are subjected to the harmful loads that arise from the spatially uneven and temporally unsteady oncoming wind. Such loads are the known sources of fatigue damage that reduce the turbine operational lifetime, ultimately increasing the cost of wind energy to the end-users. In re...

An Innovative Technique for Evaluating the Integrity and Durability of Wind Turbine Blade Composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Jy-An John [ORNL; Ren, Fei [ORNL

2010-09-01

Wind turbine blades are subjected to complex multiaxial stress states during operation. A review of the literature suggests that mixed mode fracture toughness can be significantly less than that of the tensile opening mode (Mode I), implying that fracture failure can occur at a much lower load capacity if the structure is subject to mixed-mode loading. Thus, it will be necessary to identify the mechanisms that might lead to failure in blade materials under mixed-mode loading conditions. Meanwhile, wind turbine blades are typically fabricated from fiber reinforced polymeric materials, e.g. fiber glass composites. Due to the large degree of anisotropy in mechanical properties that is usually associated with laminates, the fracture behavior of these composite materials is likely to be strongly dependent on the loading conditions. This may further strengthen the need to study the effect of mixed-mode loading on the integrity and durability of the wind turbine blade composites. To quantify the fracture behavior of composite structures under mixed mode loading conditions, particularly under combined Mode I (flexural or normal tensile stress) and Mode III (torsional shear stress) loading, a new testing technique is proposed based on the spiral notch torsion test (SNTT). As a 2002 R&D 100 Award winner, SNTT is a novel fracture testing technology. SNTT has many advantages over conventional fracture toughness methods and has been used to determine fracture toughness values on a wide spectrum of materials. The current project is the first attempt to utilize SNTT on polymeric and polymer-based composite materials. It is expected that mixed-mode failure mechanisms of wind turbine blades induced by typical in-service loading conditions, such as delamination, matrix cracking, fiber pull-out and fracture, can be effectively and economically investigated by using this methodology. This project consists of two phases. The Phase I (FY2010) effort includes (1) preparation of testing

The use of wood for wind turbine blade construction

Science.gov (United States)

Gougeon, M.; Zuteck, M.

1979-01-01

The interrelationships between moisture and wood, conditions for dry rot spore activity, the protection of wood fibers from moisture, wood resin composites, wood laminating, quality control, and the mechanical properties of wood are discussed. The laminated veneer and the bonded sawn stock fabrication techniques, used in the construction of a turbine blade with a monocoque 'D' section forming the leading edge and a built up trailing edge section, are described. A 20 foot root end sample complete with 24 bonded-in studs was successfully subjected to large onetime loads in both the flatwise and edgewise directions, and to fatigue tests. Results indicate that wood is both a viable and advantageous material for use in wind turbine blades. The basic material is reasonably priced, domestically available, ecologically sound, and easily fabricated with low energy consumption.

Performance and load data from Mod-0A and Mod-1 wind turbine generators

Science.gov (United States)

Spera, D. A.; Janetzke, D. C.

1982-01-01

Experimental data, together with supporting analysis, are presented on the power conversion performance and blade loading of large, horizontal-axis wind turbines tested at electric utility sites in the U.S. Four turbine rotor configurations, from 28 to 61 meters in diameter, and data from five test sites are included. Performance data are presented in the form of graphs of power and system efficiency versus free-stream wind speed. Deviations from theoretical performance are analyzed statistically. Power conversion efficiency averaged 0.34 for all tests combined, compared with 0.31 predicted. Round blade tips appeared to improve performance significantly. Cyclic blade loads were normalized to develop load factors which can be used in the design of rotors with rigid hubs.

Output characteristics of torsion arc blade type horizontal axis windmill; Nejire enko yokugata suiheijiku fusha no shutsuryoku tokusei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kojima, N; Kishimura, K [Meiji University, Tokyo (Japan)

1997-11-25

The previous paper theoretically analyzes characteristics of a torsion arc blade type (TABT) horizontal axis windmill to derive the theoretical equations, which give the results in good agreement with the observed ones, when multiplied by a blade shape factor. This paper discusses that the theoretical and observed results are in good agreement with each other by taking into consideration shape-related solidity and number of blades. The following findings are obtained, when parameters related to a 6-blade TABT horizontal axis wind mill are introduced and hysteresis brake is used as the load resistance for torque measurement. Shape factor can be represented by two factors of blade number and solidity. The same equation for shape factor is applicable to both elliptical and rectangular blades. These blades need different theoretical equations to give the results in agreement with the observed ones, when operated at a tip speed ratio (TSR) of 1.77 and 1.58, respectively. Rotational force is affected by the rear blade shape when they are operated at a respective TSR below the above level, but unaffected at beyond the above level. 5 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab.

The Internal Stress Evaluation of Pultruded Blades for a Darrieus Wind Turbine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baran, Ismet; Tutum, Cem Celal; Hattel, Jesper Henri

2013-01-01

This paper investigates the integrated modeling of a pultruded NACA0018 blade profile which is a part of the FP7 EU project DeepWind. The pultrusion process simulation is combined with the preliminary subsequent in-service load scenario. In particular, the process induced residual stresses...

The Internal Stress Evaluation of Pultruded Blades for a Darrieus Wind Turbine

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baran, Ismet; Tutum, Cem C.; Hattel, Jesper Henri

2013-01-01

This paper investigates the integrated modeling of a pultruded NACA0018 blade profile which is a part of the FP7 EU project DeepWind. The pultrusion process simulation is combined with the preliminary subsequent in-service load scenario. In particular, the process induced residual stresses and

Characterization of Deficiencies in the Frequency Domain Forced Response Analysis Technique for Supersonic Turbine Bladed Disks

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Andrew M.; Schmauch, Preston

2011-01-01

Turbine blades in rocket and jet engine turbomachinery experience enormous harmonic loading conditions. These loads result from the integer number of upstream and downstream stator vanes as well as the other turbine stages. Assessing the blade structural integrity is a complex task requiring an initial characterization of whether resonance is possible and then performing a forced response analysis if that condition is met. The standard technique for forced response analysis in rocket engines is to decompose a CFD-generated flow field into its harmonic components, and to then perform a frequency response analysis at the problematic natural frequencies. Recent CFD analysis and water-flow testing at NASA/MSFC, though, indicates that this technique may miss substantial harmonic and non-harmonic excitation sources that become present in complex flows. A substantial effort has been made to account for this denser spatial Fourier content in frequency response analysis (described in another paper by the author), but the question still remains whether the frequency response analysis itself is capable of capturing the excitation content sufficiently. Two studies comparing frequency response analysis with transient response analysis, therefore, of bladed-disks undergoing this complex flow environment have been performed. The first is of a bladed disk with each blade modeled by simple beam elements. Six loading cases were generated by varying a baseline harmonic excitation in different ways based upon cold-flow testing from Heritage Fuel Air Turbine Test. It was hypothesized that the randomness and other variation from the standard harmonic excitation would reduce the blade structural response, but the results showed little reduction. The second study was of a realistic model of a bladed-disk excited by the same CFD used in the J2X engine program. It was hypothesized that enforcing periodicity in the CFD (inherent in the frequency response technique) would overestimate the

Method to predict fatigue lifetimes of GRP wind turbine blades and comparison with experiments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Echtermeyer, A.T. [Det Norske Veritas Research AS, Hoevik (Norway); Kensche, C. [Deutsche Forschungsanstalt fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR), Stuttgart (Germany, F.R); Bach, P. [Netherlands Energy Research Foundation (ECN), Petten (Netherlands); Poppen, M. [Aeronautical Research Inst. of Sweden, Bromma (Sweden); Lilholt, H.; Andersen, S.I.; Broendsted, P. [Risoe National Lab., Roskilde (Denmark)

1996-12-01

This paper describes a method to predict fatigue lifetimes of fiber reinforced plastics in wind turbine blades. It is based on extensive testing within the EU-Joule program. The method takes the measured fatigue properties of a material into account so that credit can be given to materials with improved fatigue properties. The large number of test results should also give confidence in the fatigue calculation method for fiber reinforced plastics. The method uses the Palmgren-Miner sum to predict lifetimes and is verified by tests using well defined load sequences. Even though this approach is generally well known in fatigue analysis, many details in the interpretation and extrapolation of the measurements need to be clearly defined, since they can influence the results considerably. The following subjects will be described: Method to measure SN curves and to obtain tolerance bounds, development of a constant lifetime diagram, evaluation of the load sequence, use of Palmgren-Miner sum, requirements for load sequence testing. The fatigue lifetime calculation method has been compared against measured data for simple loading sequences and the more complex WISPERX loading sequence for blade roots. The comparison is based on predicted mean lifetimes, using the same materials to obtain the basic SN curves and to measure laminates under complicated loading sequences. 24 refs, 7 figs, 5 tabs

Experimental investigation on ultimate strength and failure response of composite box beams used in wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tang, Jing; Chen, Xiao

2018-01-01

This study focuses on the ultimate strength and failure response of composite box beams under three-point bending. The box beams consist of spar caps and shear webs and they are typically used in wind turbine blades as load-carrying members. Different spar cap configurations and loading directions...

The relationship between loads and power of a rotor and an actuator disc

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Kuik, Gijs A M

2014-01-01

Most state of the art rotor design methods are based on the actuator disc theory developed about one century ago. The actuator disc is an axisymmetric permeable surface carrying a load that represents the load on a real rotor with a finite number of blades N. However, the mathematics of the transition from a real rotor load to an axisymmetrically loaded disc is not yet presented in literature. By formulating an actuator disc equation of motion in which the Bernoulli constant H is expressed in kinematical terms, a comparison of the power conversion and load on the disc and rotor is possible. For both the converted power is expressed as a change of angular momentum times rotational speed. The limits for N → ∞ while the chord c → 0, the rotational speed Ω → ∞, the load F becoming uniform by ∂F/∂r → 0 and the thickness ε → 0 confirm that the classical disc represents the rotor with an infinite number of blades. Furthermore, the expressions for the blade load are compared to the expressions in current design and analysis tools. The latter do not include the load on chord-wise vorticity. Including this is expected to give a better modelling of the tip and root flow

The relationship between loads and power of a rotor and an actuator disc

Science.gov (United States)

van Kuik, Gijs A. M.

2014-12-01

Most state of the art rotor design methods are based on the actuator disc theory developed about one century ago. The actuator disc is an axisymmetric permeable surface carrying a load that represents the load on a real rotor with a finite number of blades N. However, the mathematics of the transition from a real rotor load to an axisymmetrically loaded disc is not yet presented in literature. By formulating an actuator disc equation of motion in which the Bernoulli constant H is expressed in kinematical terms, a comparison of the power conversion and load on the disc and rotor is possible. For both the converted power is expressed as a change of angular momentum times rotational speed. The limits for N → ∞ while the chord c → 0, the rotational speed Ω → ∞, the load F becoming uniform by ∂F/∂r → 0 and the thickness epsilon → 0 confirm that the classical disc represents the rotor with an infinite number of blades. Furthermore, the expressions for the blade load are compared to the expressions in current design and analysis tools. The latter do not include the load on chord-wise vorticity. Including this is expected to give a better modelling of the tip and root flow.

Reinforced wind turbine blades--an environmental life cycle evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Merugula, Laura; Khanna, Vikas; Bakshi, Bhavik R

2012-09-04

A fiberglass composite reinforced with carbon nanofibers (CNF) at the resin-fiber interface is being developed for potential use in wind turbine blades. An energy and midpoint impact assessment was performed to gauge impacts of scaling production to blades 40 m and longer. Higher loadings force trade-offs in energy return on investment and midpoint impacts relative to the base case while remaining superior to thermoelectric power generation in these indicators. Energy-intensive production of CNFs forces impacts disproportionate to mass contribution. The polymer nanocomposite increases a 2 MW plant's global warming potential nearly 100% per kWh electricity generated with 5% CNF by mass in the blades if no increase in electrical output is realized. The relative scale of impact must be compensated by systematic improvements whether by deployment in higher potential zones or by increased life span; the trade-offs are expected to be significantly lessened with CNF manufacturing maturity. Significant challenges are faced in evaluating emerging technologies including uncertainty in future scenarios and process scaling. Inventories available for raw materials and monte carlos analysis have been used to gain insight to impacts of this development.

Bioinspired turbine blades offer new perspectives for wind energy

Science.gov (United States)

Cognet, V.; Courrech du Pont, S.; Dobrev, I.; Massouh, F.; Thiria, B.

2017-02-01

Wind energy is becoming a significant alternative solution for future energy production. Modern turbines now benefit from engineering expertise, and a large variety of different models exists, depending on the context and needs. However, classical wind turbines are designed to operate within a narrow zone centred around their optimal working point. This limitation prevents the use of sites with variable wind to harvest energy, involving significant energetic and economic losses. Here, we present a new type of bioinspired wind turbine using elastic blades, which passively deform through the air loading and centrifugal effects. This work is inspired from recent studies on insect flight and plant reconfiguration, which show the ability of elastic wings or leaves to adapt to the wind conditions and thereby to optimize performance. We show that in the context of energy production, the reconfiguration of the elastic blades significantly extends the range of operating regimes using only passive, non-consuming mechanisms. The versatility of the new turbine model leads to a large increase of the converted energy rate, up to 35%. The fluid/elasticity mechanisms involved for the reconfiguration capability of the new blades are analysed in detail, using experimental observations and modelling.

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Design Load Cases Investigation and Comparison with Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Galinos, Christos; Larsen, Torben J.; Aagaard Madsen, Helge

2016-01-01

The paper studies the applicability of the IEC 61400-1 ed.3, 2005 International Standard of wind turbine minimum design requirements in the case of an onshore Darrieus VAWT and compares the results of basic Design Load Cases (DLCs) with those of a 3-bladed HAWT. The study is based on aeroelastic...... computations using the HAWC2 aero-servo-elastic code A 2-bladed 5 MW VAWT rotor is used based on a modified version of the DeepWind rotor For the HAWT simulations the NREL 3-bladed 5 MW reference wind turbine model is utilized Various DLCs are examined including normal power production, emergency shut down...... and parked situations, from cut-in to cut-out and extreme wind conditions. The ultimate and 1 Hz equivalent fatigue loads of the blade root and turbine base bottom are extracted and compared in order to give an insight of the load levels between the two concepts. According to the analysis the IEC 61400-1 ed...

The Strength Analysis of CFM56 Engine Blade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liu Zhenzhen

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Aero engine is a kind of thermodynamic machinery, which require have strict aerodynamic load, mechanical load and strong durability, its longevity depends largely on the life of its main components. In this paper, a series of studies are carried out on the strength of fan blades of CFM56 engine, which provide a reference value for improving the reliability of the engine. The finite element model of the engine fan is established by using CATIA’s finite element software.The centrifugal stress distribution of the fan at different speeds and the influence of torque on fans under different speeds are calculated respectively, and the static strength of the fan is checked.

Large Scale Flutter Data for Design of Rotating Blades Using Navier-Stokes Equations

Science.gov (United States)

Guruswamy, Guru P.

2012-01-01

A procedure to compute flutter boundaries of rotating blades is presented; a) Navier-Stokes equations. b) Frequency domain method compatible with industry practice. Procedure is initially validated: a) Unsteady loads with flapping wing experiment. b) Flutter boundary with fixed wing experiment. Large scale flutter computation is demonstrated for rotating blade: a) Single job submission script. b) Flutter boundary in 24 hour wall clock time with 100 cores. c) Linearly scalable with number of cores. Tested with 1000 cores that produced data in 25 hrs for 10 flutter boundaries. Further wall-clock speed-up is possible by performing parallel computations within each case.

Structural Analysis and Optimization of a Composite Fan Blade for Future Aircraft Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Coroneos, Rula M.

2012-01-01

This report addresses the structural analysis and optimization of a composite fan blade sized for a large aircraft engine. An existing baseline solid metallic fan blade was used as a starting point to develop a hybrid honeycomb sandwich construction with a polymer matrix composite face sheet and honeycomb aluminum core replacing the original baseline solid metallic fan model made of titanium. The focus of this work is to design the sandwich composite blade with the optimum number of plies for the face sheet that will withstand the combined pressure and centrifugal loads while the constraints are satisfied and the baseline aerodynamic and geometric parameters are maintained. To satisfy the requirements, a sandwich construction for the blade is proposed with composite face sheets and a weak core made of honeycomb aluminum material. For aerodynamic considerations, the thickness of the core is optimized whereas the overall blade thickness is held fixed so as to not alter the original airfoil geometry. Weight is taken as the objective function to be minimized by varying the core thickness of the blade within specified upper and lower bounds. Constraints are imposed on radial displacement limitations and ply failure strength. From the optimum design, the minimum number of plies, which will not fail, is back-calculated. The ply lay-up of the blade is adjusted from the calculated number of plies and final structural analysis is performed. Analyses were carried out by utilizing the OpenMDAO Framework, developed at NASA Glenn Research Center combining optimization with structural assessment.

Active Blade Pitch Control for Straight Bladed Darrieus Vertical Axis Wind Turbine of New Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chougule, Prasad; Nielsen, Søren R.K.; Basu, Biswajit

2013-01-01

in a previous publication. Further, it is well know that the variation of the blade pitch angle during the rotation improves the power efficiency. A blade pitch variation is implemented by active blade pitch control, which operates as per wind speed and position of the blade with respect to the rotor. A double...

Active aerodynamic load control on wind turbines : Aeroservoelastic modeling and wind tunnel

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Barlas, A.

2011-01-01

This thesis investigates particular concepts and technologies that can alleviate fatigue loads on wind turbines by using distributed active aerodynamic devices on the blades, a concept briefly referred to as `smart blades'. Firstly, published research work on smart control devices is reviewed, and

Helicopter Rotor Load Prediction Using a Geometrically Exact Beam with Multicomponent Model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lee, Hyun-Ku; Viswamurthy, S.R.; Park, Sang Chul

2010-01-01

In this paper, an accurate structural dynamic analysis was developed for a helicopter rotor system including rotor control components, which was coupled to various aerodynamic and wake models in order to predict an aeroelastic response and the loads acting on the rotor. Its blade analysis was based...... rotor-blade/control-system model was loosely coupled with various inflow and wake models in order to simulate both hover and forward-flight conditions. The resulting rotor blade response and pitch link loads are in good agreement with those predicted byCAMRADII. The present analysis features both model...... on an intrinsic formulation of moving beams implemented in the time domain. The rotor control system was modeled as a combination of rigid and elastic components. A multicomponent analysis was then developed by coupling the beam finite element model with the rotor control system model to obtain a complete rotor-blade/control...

Non-Harmonic Fourier Analysis for bladed wheels damage detection

Science.gov (United States)

Neri, P.; Peeters, B.

2015-11-01

The interaction between bladed wheels and the fluid distributed by the stator vanes results in cyclic loading of the rotating components. Compressors and turbines wheels are subject to vibration and fatigue issues, especially when resonance conditions are excited. Even if resonance conditions can be often predicted and avoided, high cycle fatigue failures can occur, causing safety issues and economic loss. Rigorous maintenance programs are then needed, forcing the system to expensive shut-down. Blade crack detection methods are beneficial for condition-based maintenance. While contact measurement systems are not always usable in exercise conditions (e.g. high temperature), non-contact methods can be more suitable. One (or more) stator-fixed sensor can measure all the blades as they pass by, in order to detect the damaged ones. The main drawback in this situation is the short acquisition time available for each blade, which is shortened by the high rotational speed of the components. A traditional Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) analysis would result in a poor frequency resolution. A Non-Harmonic Fourier Analysis (NHFA) can be executed with an arbitrary frequency resolution instead, allowing to obtain frequency information even with short-time data samples. This paper shows an analytical investigation of the NHFA method. A data processing algorithm is then proposed to obtain frequency shift information from short time samples. The performances of this algorithm are then studied by experimental and numerical tests.

Wind inflow observation from load harmonics

OpenAIRE

Marta, Bertelè; Bottasso, Carlo L.; Cacciola, Stefano; Fabiano Daher Adegas,; Sara, Delport

2017-01-01

The wind field leaves its fingerprint on the rotor response. This fact can be exploited by using the rotor as a sensor: by looking at the rotor response, in the present case in terms of blade loads, one may infer the wind characteristics. This paper describes a wind state observer that estimates four wind parameters, namely the vertical and horizontal shears and the yaw and upflow misalignment angles, from out-of-plane and in-plane blade bending moments. The resulting observ...

Adaptive trailing edge flaps for active load alleviation in a smart rotor configuration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bergami, L.

2013-08-15

The work investigates the development of an active smart rotor concept from an aero-servo-elastic perspective. An active smart rotor is a wind turbine rotor that, through a combination of sensors, control units and actuators, is able to alleviate the fluctuating part of the aerodynamic loads it has to withstand. The investigation focuses on a specific actuator type: the Adaptive Trailing Edge Flap (ATEF), which introduces a continuous deformation of the aft part of the airfoil camber-line. An aerodynamic model that accounts for the steady and unsteady effects of the flap deflection on a 2D airfoil section is developed, and, considering both attached and separated flow conditions, is validated by comparison against Computational Fluid Dynamic solutions and a panel code method. The aerodynamic model is integrated in the BEM-based aeroelastic simulation code HAWC2, thus providing a tool able to simulate the response of a wind turbine equipped with ATEF. A load analysis of the NREL 5 MW reference turbine in its baseline configuration reveals that the highest contribution to the blade flapwise fatigue damage originates from normal operation above rated wind speed, and from loads characterized by frequencies below 1 Hz. The analysis also reports that periodic load variations on the turbine blade account for nearly 11 % of the blade flapwise lifetime fatigue damage, while the rest is ascribed to load variations from disturbances of stochastic nature. The study proposes a smart rotor configuration with flaps laid out on the outer 20 % of the blade span, from 77 % to 97% of the blade length. The configuration is first tested with a simplified cyclic control approach, which gives a preliminary indication of the load alleviation potential, and also reveals the possibility to enhance the rotor energy capture below rated conditions by using the flaps. Two model based control algorithms are developed to actively alleviate the fatigue loads on the smart rotor with ATEF. The first

Multi-Objective Structural Optimization Design of Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine Blades Using the Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II and Finite Element Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jie Zhu

2014-02-01

Full Text Available A multi-objective optimization method for the structural design of horizontal-axis wind turbine (HAWT blades is presented. The main goal is to minimize the weight and cost of the blade which uses glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP coupled with carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP materials. The number and the location of layers in the spar cap, the width of the spar cap and the position of the shear webs are employed as the design variables, while the strain limit, blade/tower clearance limit and vibration limit are taken into account as the constraint conditions. The optimization of the design of a commercial 1.5 MW HAWT blade is carried out by combining FEM analysis and a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm under ultimate (extreme flap-wise load and edge-wise load conditions. The best solutions are described and the comparison of the obtained results with the original design is performed to prove the efficiency and applicability of the method.

Calculation of blade-data for the Hamilton standard structural analysis of the composite blade for the 18 meter diameter rotor and a comparison with FFA-calculation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lundemo, C

1979-04-01

Section property data for the composite blade manufactured by Karlskronavarvet was calculated for the analysis performed by Hamilton Standard. The HS investigation was carried out for various operating conditions, including dynamic response loads, stresses, frequencies and dynamic stability. The Hamilton Standard results has been compared with the FFA (The Aeronautical Research Institute of Sweden) calculation. The results show that the stresses and moments calculated by HS never exceed the allowable levels for the hinged hub configuration. The natural frequencies seem to agree quite well with the measured frequencies. In the input data of the Hamilton Standard dynamic response analysis a too far aft position of the cordwise center of gravity of the outher third of the blade was used. Correct position will give lower stresses.

Structural Analysis and Optimization of a Composite Fan Blade for Future Aircraft Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Coroneos, Rula M.; Gorla, Rama Subba Reddy

2012-09-01

This paper addresses the structural analysis and optimization of a composite sandwich ply lay-up of a NASA baseline solid metallic fan blade comparable to a future Boeing 737 MAX aircraft engine. Sandwich construction with a polymer matrix composite face sheet and honeycomb aluminum core replaces the original baseline solid metallic fan model made of Titanium. The focus of this work is to design the sandwich composite blade with the optimum number of plies for the face sheet that will withstand the combined pressure and centrifugal loads while the constraints are satisfied and the baseline aerodynamic and geometric parameters are maintained. To satisfy the requirements a sandwich construction for the blade is proposed with composite face sheets and a weak core made of honeycomb aluminum material. For aerodynamic considerations, the thickness of the core is optimized where as the overall blade thickness is held fixed in order not to alter the original airfoil geometry. Weight reduction is taken as the objective function by varying the core thickness of the blade within specified upper and lower bounds. Constraints are imposed on radial displacement limitations and ply failure strength. From the optimum design, the minimum number of plies, which will not fail, is back-calculated. The ply lay-up of the blade is adjusted from the calculated number of plies and final structural analysis is performed. Analyses were carried out by utilizing the OpenMDAO Framework, developed at NASA Glenn Research Center combining optimization with structural assessment.

A Critical Evaluation of Structural Analysis Tools used for the Design of Large Composite Wind Turbine Rotor Blades under Ultimate and Cycle Loading

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lekou, D.J.; Bacharoudis, K. C.; Farinas, A. B.

2015-01-01

Rotor blades for 10-20MW wind turbines may exceed 120m. To meet the demanding requirements of the blade design, structural analysis tools have been developed individually and combined with commercial available ones by blade designers. Due to the various available codes, understanding and estimating...

Jet Engine Bird Ingestion Simulations: Comparison of Rotating to Non-Rotating Fan Blades

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, Samuel A.; Hammer, Jeremiah T.; Carney, Kelly S.; Pereira, J. Michael

2013-01-01

Bird strike events in commercial airliners are a fairly common occurrence. According to data collected by the US Department of Agriculture, over 80,000 bird strikes were reported in the period 1990 to 2007 in the US alone (Ref. 1). As a result, bird ingestion is an important factor in aero engine design and FAA certification. When it comes to bird impacts on engine fan blades, the FAA requires full-scale bird ingestion tests on an engine running at full speed to pass certification requirements. These rotating tests are complex and very expensive. To reduce development costs associated with new materials for fan blades, it is desirable to develop more cost effective testing procedures than full-scale rotating engine tests for material evaluation. An impact test on a nonrotating single blade that captures most of the salient physics of the rotating test would go a long way towards enabling large numbers of evaluative material screening tests. NASA Glenn Research Center has been working to identify a static blade test procedure that would be effective at reproducing similar results as seen in rotating tests. The current effort compares analytical simulations of a bird strike on various non-rotating blades to a bird strike simulation on a rotating blade as a baseline case. Several different concepts for simulating the rotating loads on a non-rotating blade were analyzed with little success in duplicating the deformation results seen in the rotating case. The rotating blade behaves as if it were stiffer than the non-rotating blade resulting in less plastic deformation from a given bird impact. The key factor limiting the success of the non-rotating blade simulations is thought to be the effect of gyroscopics. Prior to this effort, it was anticipated the difficulty would be in matching the prestress in the blade due to centrifugal forces Additional work is needed to verify this assertion, and to determine if a static test procedure can simulate the gyroscopic effects in

Model Predictive Control of Trailing Edge Flaps on a wind turbine blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Castaignet, Damien; Poulsen, Niels Kjølstad; Buhl, Thomas

2011-01-01

Trailing Edge Flaps on wind turbine blades have been studied in order to achieve fatigue load reduction on the turbine components. We show in this paper how Model Predictive Control can be used to do frequency weighted control of the trailing edge flaps in order to reduce fatigue damage on the bl...

Behavior of Brittle Materials Under Dynamic Loading

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kanel, G

2000-01-01

Dynamic loading of brittle materials is related to many applications, including explosive excavation of rocks, design of ceramic armor, meteor impact on spacecraft windows, particle damage to turbine blades, etc...

Investigation on pitch system loads by means of an integral multi body simulation approach

Science.gov (United States)

Berroth, J.; Jacobs, G.; Kroll, T.; Schelenz, R.

2016-09-01

In modern horizontal axis wind turbines the rotor blades are adjusted by three individual pitch systems to control power output. The pitch system consists of either a hydraulic or an electrical actuator, the blade bearing, the rotor blade itself and the control. In case of an electrical drive a gearbox is used to transmit the high torques that are required for blade pitch angle adjustment. In this contribution a new integral multi body simulation approach is presented that enables detailed assessment of dynamic pitch system loads. The simulation results presented are compared and evaluated with measurement data of a 2 MW-class reference wind turbine. Major focus of this contribution is on the assessment of non linear tooth contact behaviour incorporating tooth backlash for the single gear stages and the impact on dynamic pitch system loads.

The SNL100-01 blade :

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Griffith, Daniel

2013-02-01

A series of design studies to investigate the effect of carbon on blade weight and performance for large blades was performed using the Sandia 100-meter All-glass Baseline Blade design as a starting point. This document provides a description of the final carbon blade design, which is termed as SNL100-01. This report includes a summary of the design modifications applied to the baseline all-glass 100-meter design and a description of the NuMAD model files that are made publicly available. This document is intended primarily to be a companion document to the distribution of the NuMAD blade model files for SNL100-01.

Low cycle fatigue analysis of a last stage steam turbine blade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Měšťánek P.

2008-11-01

Full Text Available The present paper deals with the low cycle fatigue analysis of the low pressure (LP steam turbine blade. The blade is cyclically loaded by the centrifugal force because of the repeated startups of the turbine. The goal of the research is to develop a technique to assess fatigue life of the blade and to determine the number of startups to the crack initiation. Two approaches were employed. First approach is based on the elastic finite element analysis. Fictive 'elastic' results are recalculated using Neuber's rule and the equivalent energy method. Triaxial state of stress is reduced using von Mises theory. Strain amplitude is calculated employing the cyclic deformation curve. Second approach is based on elastic-plastic FE analysis. Strain amplitude is determined directly from the FE analysis by reducing the triaxial state of strain. Fatigue life was assessed using uniaxial damage parameters. Both approaches are compared and their applicability is discussed. Factors that can influence the fatigue life are introduced. Experimental low cycle fatigue testing is shortly described.

Design and initial testing of a one-bladed 30-meter-diameter rotor on the NASA/DOE mod-O wind turbine

Science.gov (United States)

Corrigan, R. D.; Ensworth, C. B. F.

1986-01-01

The concept of a one-bladed horizontal-axis wind turbine has been of interest to wind turbine designers for many years. Many designs and economic analyses of one-bladed wind turbines have been undertaken by both United States and European wind energy groups. The analyses indicate significant economic advantages but at the same time, significant dynamic response concerns. In an effort to develop a broad data base on wind turbine design and operations, the NASA Wind Energy Project Office has tested a one-bladed rotor at the NASA/DOE Mod-O Wind Turbine Facility. This is the only known test on an intermediate-sized one-bladed rotor in the United States. The 15.2-meter-radius rotor consists of a tip-controlled blade and a counterweight assembly. A rigorous test series was conducted in the Fall of 1985 to collect data on rotor performance, drive train/generator dynamics, structural dynamics, and structural loads. This report includes background information on one-bladed rotor concepts, and Mod-O one-bladed rotor test configuration, supporting design analysis, the Mod-O one-blade rotor test plan, and preliminary test results.

Aeroelastic analysis of an offshore wind turbine: Design and Fatigue Performance of Large Utility-Scale Wind Turbine Blades

OpenAIRE

Fossum, Peter Kalsaas

2012-01-01

Aeroelastic design and fatigue analysis of large utility-scale wind turbine blades are performed. The applied fatigue model is based on established methods and is incorporated in an iterative numerical design tool for realistic wind turbine blades. All aerodynamic and structural design properties are available in literature. The software tool FAST is used for advanced aero-servo-elastic load calculations and stress-histories are calculated with elementary beam theory.According to wind energy ...

Navier-Stokes analysis of an oxidizer turbine blade with tip clearance

Science.gov (United States)

Gibeling, Howard J.; Sabnis, Jayant S.

1992-01-01

The Gas Generator Oxidizer Turbine (GGOT) Blade is being analyzed by various investigators under the NASA MSFC sponsored Turbine Stage Technology Team design effort. The present work concentrates on the tip clearance region flow and associated losses; however, flow details for the passage region are also obtained in the simulations. The present calculations simulate the rotor blade row in a rotating reference frame with the appropriate coriolis and centrifugal acceleration terms included in the momentum equation. The upstream computational boundary is located about one axial chord from the blade leading edge. The boundary conditions at this location were determined by using a Euler analysis without the vanes to obtain approximately the same flow profiles at the rotor as were obtained with the Euler stage analysis including the vanes. Inflow boundary layer profiles are then constructed assuming the skin friction coefficient at both the hub and the casing. The downstream computational boundary is located about one axial chord from the blade trailing edge, and the circumferentially averaged static pressure at this location was also obtained from the Euler analysis. Results were obtained for the 3-D baseline GGOT geometry at the full scale design Reynolds number. Details of the clearance region flow behavior and blade pressure distributions were computed. The spanwise variation in blade loading distributions are shown, and circumferentially averaged spanwise distributions of total pressure, total temperature, Mach number, and flow angle are shown at several axial stations. The spanwise variation of relative total pressure loss shows a region of high loss in the region near the casing. Particle traces in the near tip region show vortical behavior of the fluid which passes through the clearance region and exits at the downstream edge of the gap.

Numerical simulation on vacuum solution heat treatment and gas quenching process of a low rhenium-containing Ni-based single crystal turbine blade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhe-xin Xu

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Numerical heat-transfer and turbulent flow model for an industrial high-pressure gas quenching vacuum furnace was established to simulate the heating, holding and gas fan quenching of a low rhenium-bearing Ni-based single crystal turbine blade. The mesh of simplified furnace model was built using finite volume method and the boundary conditions were set up according to the practical process. Simulation results show that the turbine blade geometry and the mutual shielding among blades have significant influence on the uniformity of the temperature distribution. The temperature distribution at sharp corner, thin wall and corner part is higher than that at thick wall part of blade during heating, and the isotherms show a toroidal line to the center of thick wall. The temperature of sheltered units is lower than that of the remaining part of blade. When there is no shelteration among multiple blades, the temperature distribution for all blades is almost identical. The fluid velocity field, temperature field and cooling curves of the single and multiple turbine blades during gas fan quenching were also simulated. Modeling results indicate that the loading tray, free outlet and the location of turbine blades have important influences on the flow field. The high-speed gas flows out from the nozzle is divided by loading tray, and the free outlet enhanced the two vortex flow at the end of the furnace door. The closer the blade is to the exhaust outlet and the nozzle, the greater the flow velocity is and the more adequate the flow is. The blade geometry has an effect on the cooling for single blade and multiple blades during gas fan quenching, and the effects in double layers differs from that in single layer. For single blade, the cooing rate at thin-walled part is lower than that at thick-walled part, the cooling rate at sharp corner is greater than that at tenon and blade platform, and the temperature at regions close to the internal position is

Ceramic blade attachment system

Science.gov (United States)

Frey, G.A.; Jimenez, O.D.

1996-12-03

A turbine blade having a preestablished rate of thermal expansion is attached to a turbine flange having a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being greater than the preestablished rate of thermal expansion of the turbine blade. The turbine flange includes a first upstanding flange and a second upstanding flange having a groove formed between them. The turbine flange further includes a recess. Each of the first and second upstanding flanges have a plurality of bores therein. A turbine blade has a first member and a second member positioned in one of the groove and the recess. Each of the first member and the second member have a plurality of bores therein. A pin is positioned in respective ones of the plurality of bores in the first and second upstanding members and the first and second members and attach the blade to the turbine flange. The pin has a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being substantially equal to the rate of thermal expansion of the blade. 4 figs.

Parametric study of turbine NGV blade lean and vortex design

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhang Shaowen

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The effects of blade lean and vortex design on the aerodynamics of a turbine entry nozzle guide vane (NGV are considered using computational fluid dynamics. The aim of the work is to address some of the uncertainties which have arisen from previous studies where conflicting results have been reported for the effect on the NGV. The configuration was initially based on the energy efficient engine turbine which also served as the validation case for the computational method. A total of 17 NGV configurations were evaluated to study the effects of lean and vortex design on row efficiency and secondary kinetic energy. The distribution of mass flow ratio is introduced as an additional factor in the assessment of blade lean effects. The results show that in the turbine entry NGV, the secondary flow strength is not a dominant factor that determines NGV losses and therefore the changes of loading distribution due to blade lean and the associated loss mechanisms should be regarded as a key factor. Radial mass flow redistribution under different NGV lean and twist is demonstrated as an addition key factor influencing row efficiency.

Development and application of a dynamic stall model for rotating wind turbine blades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, B F; Yuan, Y; Wang, T G

2014-01-01

In unsteady conditions of wind turbines, both the dynamic stall phenomenon and the three-dimensional (3D) rotational effect affect the rotor aerodynamics. The dynamic stall mechanism for rotating wind turbine blades is first investigated. Through the comparison of the aerodynamic data between the rotating blade and the two-dimensional (2D) airfoil, the normal force slope in the attached flow and the separation point expression in the separated flow are modified in the Beddoes-Leishman (B-L) dynamic stall model for rotating NREL wind turbine blades. The modified model is validated by the comparison between the calculation results and the experimental results of the lift and drag coefficients at different radial positions. Both the hysteresis loop shapes and the calculation values are closer to the experiment than the 2D dynamic stall model. The present dynamic stall model is then coupled to a free vortex wake model. The coupled model is used to calculate the unsteady blade aerodynamic loads and the low speed shaft torque of the NREL wind turbine in a yawed condition. The accuracy is greatly improved by the corrections presented in the paper

Flapping inertia for selected rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Berry, John D.; May, Matthew J.

1991-01-01

Aerodynamics of helicopter rotor systems cannot be investigated without consideration for the dynamics of the rotor. One of the principal properties of the rotor which affects the rotor dynamics is the inertia of the rotor blade about its root attachment. Previous aerodynamic investigation have been performed on rotor blades with a variety of planforms to determine the performance differences due to blade planform. The blades tested for this investigation have been tested on the U.S. Army 2 meter rotor test system (2MRTS) in the NASA Langley 14 by 22 foot subsonic tunnel for hover performance. This investigation was intended to provide fundamental information on the flapping inertia of five rotor blades with differing planforms. The inertia of the bare cuff and the cuff with a blade extension were also measured for comparison with the inertia of the blades. Inertia was determined using a swing testing technique, using the period of oscillation to determine the effective flapping inertia. The effect of damping in the swing test was measured and described. A comparison of the flapping inertials for rectangular and tapered planform blades of approximately the same mass showed the tapered blades to have a lower inertia, as expected.

New blades shape up for dozers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chironis, N.P.

1985-05-01

This article discusses the design of blades used on dozers for the reclamation work following surface mining. Two blades are described which have led to a 50% reduction in reclamation costs and a 20% reduction in fuel requirements over conventional equipment. These results are from work carried out at the Kayenta mine in Arizona, USA. Design considerations in the development of the blades are described. Descriptions of both the centre flow blades and the universal blades are given.

Aeroelastic response and stability of tiltrotors with elastically-coupled composite rotor blades. Ph.D. Thesis

Science.gov (United States)

Nixon, Mark W.

1993-01-01

There is a potential for improving the performance and aeroelastic stability of tiltrotors through the use of elastically-coupled composite rotor blades. To study the characteristics of tiltrotors with these types of rotor blades it is necessary to formulate a new analysis which has the capabilities of modeling both a tiltrotor configuration and an anisotropic rotor blade. Background for these formulations is established in two preliminary investigations. In the first, the influence of several system design parameters on tiltrotor aeroelastic stability is examined for the high-speed axial flight mode using a newly-developed rigid-blade analysis with an elastic wing finite element model. The second preliminary investigation addresses the accuracy of using a one-dimensional beam analysis to predict frequencies of elastically-coupled highly-twisted rotor blades. Important aspects of the new aeroelastic formulations are the inclusion of a large steady pylon angle which controls tilt of the rotor system with respect to the airflow, the inclusion of elastic pitch-lag coupling terms related to rotor precone, the inclusion of hub-related degrees of freedom which enable modeling of a gimballed rotor system and engine drive-train dynamics, and additional elastic coupling terms which enable modeling of the anisotropic features for both the rotor blades and the tiltrotor wing. Accuracy of the new tiltrotor analysis is demonstrated by a comparison of the results produced for a baseline case with analytical and experimental results reported in the open literature. Two investigations of elastically tailored blades on a baseline tiltrotor are then conducted. One investigation shows that elastic bending-twist coupling of the rotor blade is a very effective means for increasing the flutter velocity of a tiltrotor, and the magnitude of coupling required does not have an adverse effect on performance or blade loads. The second investigation shows that passive blade twist control via

On the impact of multi-axial stress states on trailing edge bondlines in wind turbine rotor blades

OpenAIRE

Castelos, Pablo Noever; Balzani, Claudio

2016-01-01

For a reliable design of wind turbine systems all of their components have to be designed to withstand the loads appearing in the turbine's lifetime. When performed in an integral manner this is called systems engineering, and is exceptionally important for components that have an impact on the entire wind turbine system, such as the rotor blade. Bondlines are crucial subcomponents of rotor blades, but they are not much recognized in the wind energy research community. However, a bondline fai...

A blade deflection monitoring system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2017-01-01

A wind turbine blade comprising a system for monitoring the deflection of a wind turbine blade is described. The system comprises a wireless range-measurement system, having at least one wireless communication device located towards the root end of the blade and at least one wireless communication...

Effect of Reynolds number, turbulence level and periodic wake flow on heat transfer on low pressure turbine blades.

Science.gov (United States)

Suslov, D; Schulz, A; Wittig, S

2001-05-01

The development of effective cooling methods is of major importance for the design of new gas turbines blades. The conception of optimal cooling schemes requires a detailed knowledge of the heat transfer processes on the blade's surfaces. The thermal load of turbine blades is predominantly determined by convective heat transfer which is described by the local heat transfer coefficient. Heat transfer is closely related to the boundary layer development along the blade surface and hence depends on various flow conditions and geometrical parameters. Particularly Reynolds number, pressures gradient and turbulence level have great impact on the boundary layer development and the according heat transfer. Therefore, in the present study, the influence of Reynolds number, turbulence intensity, and periodic unsteady inflow on the local heat transfer of a typical low pressure turbine airfoil is experimentally examined in a plane cascade.

Damage detection in carbon composite material typical of wind turbine blades using auto-associative neural networks

Science.gov (United States)

Dervilis, N.; Barthorpe, R. J.; Antoniadou, I.; Staszewski, W. J.; Worden, K.

2012-04-01

The structure of a wind turbine blade plays a vital role in the mechanical and structural operation of the turbine. As new generations of offshore wind turbines are trying to achieve a leading role in the energy market, key challenges such as a reliable Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of the blades is significant for the economic and structural efficiency of the wind energy. Fault diagnosis of wind turbine blades is a "grand challenge" due to their composite nature, weight and length. The damage detection procedure involves additional difficulties focused on aerodynamic loads, environmental conditions and gravitational loads. It will be shown that vibration dynamic response data combined with AANNs is a robust and powerful tool, offering on-line and real time damage prediction. In this study the features used for SHM are Frequency Response Functions (FRFs) acquired via experimental methods based on an LMS system by which identification of mode shapes and natural frequencies is accomplished. The methods used are statistical outlier analysis which allows a diagnosis of deviation from normality and an Auto-Associative Neural Network (AANN). Both of these techniques are trained by adopting the FRF data for normal and damage condition. The AANN is a method which has not yet been widely used in the condition monitoring of composite materials of blades. This paper is trying to introduce a new scheme for damage detection, localisation and severity assessment by adopting simple measurements such as FRFs and exploiting multilayer neural networks and outlier novelty detection.

Design Procedure of 4-Bladed Propeller

African Journals Online (AJOL)

PROF. O. E. OSUAGWU

2013-09-01

Sep 1, 2013 ... West African Journal of Industrial and Academic Research Vol.8 No.1 September 2013 ..... Number of blades. 5. Taylor's wake friction (w). The speed of ship (Vs), the number of propeller revolution (n), the blade number (Z) and the blade area ratio.... .... moment of inertia of a blade, the approximate.

Part 1 - Experimental study of the pressure fluctuations on propeller turbine runner blades during steady-state operation

Science.gov (United States)

Houde, S.; Fraser, R.; Ciocan, G. D.; Deschênes, C.

2012-11-01

A good evaluation of the unsteady pressure field on hydraulic turbine blades is critical in evaluating the turbine lifespan and its maintenance schedule. Low-head turbines such as Kaplan and Propeller, using a relatively low number of blades supported only at the hub, may also undergo significant deflections at the blade tips which will lead to higher amplitude vibration compared to Francis turbines. Furthermore, the precise evaluation of the unsteady pressure distribution on low-head turbines is still a challenge for computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Within the framework of an international research consortium on low-head turbines, a research project was instigated at the Hydraulic Machines Laboratory in Laval University (LAMH) to perform experimental measurements of the unsteady pressure field on propeller turbine model runner blades. The main objective of the project was to measure the pressure fluctuations on a wide band of frequencies, both in a blade-to-blade channel and on the pressure and suction side of the same blade, to provide validation data for CFD computations. To do so, a 32 channels telemetric data transmission system was used to extract the signal of 31 pressure transducers and two strain gages from the rotating part at an acquisition frequency of 5 KHz. The miniature piezoelectric pressure transducers were placed on two adjacent runner blades according to an estimated pressure distribution coming from flow simulations. Two suction sides and one pressure side were instrumented. The strain gages were mounted in full-bridge on both pressure and suction sides to measure the blade span wise deflection. In order to provide boundary conditions for flow simulations, the test bench conditions during the measurements were acquired. The measurements were made in different operating conditions ranging from part load, where a cavitating vortex occurs, to full load under different heads. The results enabled the identification and the quantification of the

Tower Based Load Measurements for Individual Pitch Control and Tower Damping of Wind Turbines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, A A; Hugues-Salas, O; Savini, B; Keogh, W

2016-01-01

The cost of IPC has hindered adoption outside of Europe despite significant loading advantages for large wind turbines. In this work we presented a method for applying individual pitch control (including for higher-harmonics) using tower-top strain gauge feedback instead of blade-root strain gauge feedback. Tower-top strain gauges offer hardware savings of approximately 50% in addition to the possibility of easier access for maintenance and installation and requiring a less specialised skill-set than that required for applying strain gauges to composite blade roots. A further advantage is the possibility of using the same tower-top sensor array for tower damping control. This method is made possible by including a second order IPC loop in addition to the tower damping loop to reduce the typically dominating 3P content in tower-top load measurements. High-fidelity Bladed simulations show that the resulting turbine spectral characteristics from tower-top feedback IPC and from the combination of tower-top IPC and damping loops largely match those of blade-root feedback IPC and nacelle- velocity feedback damping. Lifetime weighted fatigue analysis shows that the methods allows load reductions within 2.5% of traditional methods. (paper)

Anisotropic beam model for analysis and design of passive controlled wind turbine blades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Branner, K; Blasques, J P; Kim, T; Fedorov, V A; Berring, P; Bitsche, R D; Berggreen, C

2012-02-15

The main objective of the project was, through theoretical and experimental research, to develop and validate a fully coupled, general beam element that can be used for advanced and rapid analysis of wind turbine blades. This is fully achieved in the project and the beam element has even been implemented in the aeroelastic code HAWC2. It has also been demonstrated through a parametric study in the project that a promising possibility with the tool is to reduce fatigue loads through structural couplings. More work is needed before these possibilities are fully explored and blades with structural couplings can be put into production. A cross section analysis tool BECAS (BEam Cross section Analysis Software) has been developed and validated in the project. BECAS is able to predict all geometrical and material induced couplings. This tool has obtained great interest from both industry and academia. The developed fully coupled beam element and cross section analysis tool has been validated against both numerical calculations and experimental measurements. Numerical validation has been performed against beam type calculations including Variational Asymptotical Beam Section Analysis (VABS) and detailed shell and solid finite element analyses. Experimental validation included specially designed beams with built-in couplings, a full-scale blade section originally without couplings, which subsequently was modified with extra composite layers in order to obtain measurable couplings. Both static testing and dynamic modal analysis tests have been performed. The results from the project now make it possible to use structural couplings in an intelligent manner for the design of future wind turbine blades. The developed beam element is especially developed for wind turbine blades and can be used for modeling blades with initial curvature (pre-bending), initial twist and taper. Finally, it have been studied what size of structural couplings can be obtained in current and future

Improved design for large wind turbine blades of fibre composites (Phase 4) - Summary report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soerensen, B.F.; Toftegaard, H.; Goutanos, S. (Risoe DTU, Materials Research Div., Roskilde (Denmark)); Branner, K.; Berring, P. (Risoe DTU, Wind Energy Div., Roskilde (Denmark)); Lund, E. (Aalborg Univ., Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Aalborg (Denmark)); Wedel-Heinen, J. (Vestas Wind System, Randers (Denmark)); Garm, J.H. (LM Wind Power, Kolding (Denmark))

2010-06-15

Results are summarised for the project 'Improved design for large wind turbine blades (Phase 4)', partially supported by the Danish Energy Agency under the Ministry of Climate and Energy through the EUDP journal no.: 33033-0267. The aim of the project was to develop new and better design methods for wind turbine blades, so that uncertainties associated with damage and defects can be reduced. The topics that are studied include buckling-driven delamination of flat load-carrying laminates, cracking along interfaces in material joints (fracture mechanical characterisation and modelling), cyclic crack growth with large scale bridging and the use of cohesive laws in finite element programmes for simulating wind turbine blade failure. An overview is given of the methods and the major research results of the project. The implementation of the knowledge in the industry is discussed. Finally, some ideas for future research activities are considered. (author)

The SNL100-02 blade :

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Griffith, Daniel

2013-11-01

A series of design studies are performed to investigate the effects of advanced core materials and a new core material strategy on blade weight and performance for large blades using the Sandia 100-meter blade designs as a starting point. The initial core material design studies were based on the SNL100-01 100- meter carbon spar design. Advanced core material with improved performance to weight was investigated with the goal to reduce core material content in the design and reduce blade weight. A secondary element of the core study was to evaluate the suitability of core materials from natural, regrowable sources such as balsa and recyclable foam materials. The new core strategy for the SNL100-02 design resulted in a design mass of 59 tons, which is a 20% reduction from the most recent SNL100-01 carbon spar design and over 48% reduction from the initial SNL100-00 all-glass baseline blade. This document provides a description of the final SNL100-02 design, includes a description of the major design modifications, and summarizes the pertinent blade design information. This document is also intended to be a companion document to the distribution of the NuMAD blade model files for SNL100-02 that are made publicly available.

Instrumented figure skating blade for measuring on-ice skating forces

Science.gov (United States)

Acuña, S. A.; Smith, D. M.; Robinson, J. M.; Hawks, J. C.; Starbuck, P.; King, D. L.; Ridge, S. T.; Charles, S. K.

2014-12-01

Competitive figure skaters experience substantial, repeated impact loading during jumps and landings. Although these loads, which are thought to be as high as six times body weight, can lead to overuse injuries, it is not currently possible to measure these forces on-ice. Consequently, efforts to improve safety for skaters are significantly limited. Here we present the development of an instrumented figure skating blade for measuring forces on-ice. The measurement system consists of strain gauges attached to the blade, Wheatstone bridge circuit boards, and a data acquisition device. The system is capable of measuring forces in the vertical and horizontal directions (inferior-superior and anterior-posterior directions, respectively) in each stanchion with a sampling rate of at least 1000 Hz and a resolution of approximately one-tenth of body weight. The entire system weighs 142 g and fits in the space under the boot. Calibration between applied and measured force showed excellent agreement (R > 0.99), and a preliminary validation against a force plate showed good predictive ability overall (R ≥ 0.81 in vertical direction). The system overestimated the magnitude of the first and second impact peaks but detected their timing with high accuracy compared to the force plate.

New techniques for experimental generation of two-dimensional blade-vortex interaction at low Reynolds numbers

Science.gov (United States)

Booth, E., Jr.; Yu, J. C.

1986-01-01

An experimental investigation of two dimensional blade vortex interaction was held at NASA Langley Research Center. The first phase was a flow visualization study to document the approach process of a two dimensional vortex as it encountered a loaded blade model. To accomplish the flow visualization study, a method for generating two dimensional vortex filaments was required. The numerical study used to define a new vortex generation process and the use of this process in the flow visualization study were documented. Additionally, photographic techniques and data analysis methods used in the flow visualization study are examined.

Design considerations for a Space Shuttle Main Engine turbine blade made of single crystal material

Science.gov (United States)

Abdul-Aziz, A.; August, R.; Nagpal, V.

1993-01-01

Nonlinear finite-element structural analyses were performed on the first stage high-pressure fuel turbopump blade of the Space Shuttle Main Engine. The analyses examined the structural response and the dynamic characteristics at typical operating conditions. Single crystal material PWA-1480 was considered for the analyses. Structural response and the blade natural frequencies with respect to the crystal orientation were investigated. The analyses were conducted based on typical test stand engine cycle. Influence of combined thermal, aerodynamic, and centrifugal loadings was considered. Results obtained showed that the single crystal secondary orientation effects on the maximum principal stresses are not highly significant.

Numerical Validation of a Vortex Model against ExperimentalData on a Straight-Bladed Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eduard Dyachuk

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Cyclic blade motion during operation of vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs imposes challenges on the simulations models of the aerodynamics of VAWTs. A two-dimensional vortex model is validated against the new experimental data on a 12-kW straight-bladed VAWT, which is operated at an open site. The results on the normal force on one blade are analyzed. The model is assessed against the measured data in the wide range of tip speed ratios: from 1.8 to 4.6. The predicted results within one revolution have a similar shape and magnitude as the measured data, though the model does not reproduce every detail of the experimental data. The present model can be used when dimensioning the turbine for maximum loads.

Aeroelastic equations of motion of a Darrieus vertical-axis wind-turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Kaza, K. R. V.; Kvaternik, R. G.

1979-01-01

The second-degree nonlinear aeroelastic equations of motion for a slender, flexible, nonuniform, Darrieus vertical-axis wind turbine blade which is undergoing combined flatwise bending, edgewise bending, torsion, and extension are developed using Hamilton's principle. The blade aerodynamic loading is obtained from strip theory based on a quasi-steady approximation of two-dimensional incompressible unsteady airfoil theory. The derivation of the equations has its basis in the geometric nonlinear theory of elasticity and the resulting equations are consistent with the small deformation approximation in which the elongations and shears are negligible compared to unity. These equations are suitable for studying vibrations, static and dynamic aeroelastic instabilities, and dynamic response. Several possible methods of solution of the equations, which have periodic coefficients, are discussed.

Aerodynamic loads calculation and analysis for large scale wind turbine based on combining BEM modified theory with dynamic stall model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dai, J.C. [College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Central South University, Changsha (China); School of Electromechanical Engineering, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan (China); Hu, Y.P.; Liu, D.S. [School of Electromechanical Engineering, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan (China); Long, X. [Hara XEMC Windpower Co., Ltd., Xiangtan (China)

2011-03-15

The aerodynamic loads for MW scale horizontal-axis wind turbines are calculated and analyzed in the established coordinate systems which are used to describe the wind turbine. In this paper, the blade element momentum (BEM) theory is employed and some corrections, such as Prandtl and Buhl models, are carried out. Based on the B-L semi-empirical dynamic stall (DS) model, a new modified DS model for NACA63-4xx airfoil is adopted. Then, by combing BEM modified theory with DS model, a set of calculation method of aerodynamic loads for large scale wind turbines is proposed, in which some influence factors such as wind shear, tower, tower and blade vibration are considered. The research results show that the presented dynamic stall model is good enough for engineering purpose; the aerodynamic loads are influenced by many factors such as tower shadow, wind shear, dynamic stall, tower and blade vibration, etc, with different degree; the single blade endures periodical changing loads but the variations of the rotor shaft power caused by the total aerodynamic torque in edgewise direction are very small. The presented study approach of aerodynamic loads calculation and analysis is of the university, and helpful for thorough research of loads reduction on large scale wind turbines. (author)

Study on Unified Chaotic System-Based Wind Turbine Blade Fault Diagnostic System

Science.gov (United States)

Kuo, Ying-Che; Hsieh, Chin-Tsung; Yau, Her-Terng; Li, Yu-Chung

At present, vibration signals are processed and analyzed mostly in the frequency domain. The spectrum clearly shows the signal structure and the specific characteristic frequency band is analyzed, but the number of calculations required is huge, resulting in delays. Therefore, this study uses the characteristics of a nonlinear system to load the complete vibration signal to the unified chaotic system, applying the dynamic error to analyze the wind turbine vibration signal, and adopting extenics theory for artificial intelligent fault diagnosis of the analysis signal. Hence, a fault diagnostor has been developed for wind turbine rotating blades. This study simulates three wind turbine blade states, namely stress rupture, screw loosening and blade loss, and validates the methods. The experimental results prove that the unified chaotic system used in this paper has a significant effect on vibration signal analysis. Thus, the operating conditions of wind turbines can be quickly known from this fault diagnostic system, and the maintenance schedule can be arranged before the faults worsen, making the management and implementation of wind turbines smoother, so as to reduce many unnecessary costs.

Load modeling for sharp V-cutter cutting litchi ( Litchi chinensis Sonn ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

harvesting. Cutting load is a key parameter for 'hand-held auto-picker' operation. However, there is still no suitable model for cutting load setting. Hence, a model describing the relationship among cutting load, blade angle and friction coefficient was developed for cutting operation by sharp V-cutters. The model was based ...

Comparative Study on Uni- and Bi-Directional Fluid Structure Coupling of Wind Turbine Blades

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mesfin Belayneh Ageze

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The current trends of wind turbine blade designs are geared towards a longer and slender blade with high flexibility, exhibiting complex aeroelastic loadings and instability issues, including flutter; in this regard, fluid-structure interaction (FSI plays a significant role. The present article will conduct a comparative study between uni-directional and bi-directional fluid-structural coupling models for a horizontal axis wind turbine. A full-scale, geometric copy of the NREL 5MW blade with simplified material distribution is considered for simulation. Analytical formulations of the governing relations with appropriate approximation are highlighted, including turbulence model, i.e., Shear Stress Transport (SST k-ω. These analytical relations are implemented using Multiphysics package ANSYS employing Fluent module (Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD-based solver for the fluid domain and Transient Structural module (Finite Element Analysis-based solver for the structural domain. ANSYS system coupling module also is configured to model the two fluid-structure coupling methods. The rated operational condition of the blade for a full cycle rotation is considered as a comparison domain. In the bi-directional coupling model, the structural deformation alters the angle of attack from the designed values, and by extension the flow pattern along the blade span; furthermore, the tip deflection keeps fluctuating whilst it tends to stabilize in the uni-directional coupling model.

Integrated circuit cooled turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Ching-Pang; Jiang, Nan; Um, Jae Y.; Holloman, Harry; Koester, Steven

2017-08-29

A turbine rotor blade includes at least two integrated cooling circuits that are formed within the blade that include a leading edge circuit having a first cavity and a second cavity and a trailing edge circuit that includes at least a third cavity located aft of the second cavity. The trailing edge circuit flows aft with at least two substantially 180-degree turns at the tip end and the root end of the blade providing at least a penultimate cavity and a last cavity. The last cavity is located along a trailing edge of the blade. A tip axial cooling channel connects to the first cavity of the leading edge circuit and the penultimate cavity of the trailing edge circuit. At least one crossover hole connects the penultimate cavity to the last cavity substantially near the tip end of the blade.

Part 1 – Experimental study of the pressure fluctuations on propeller turbine runner blades during steady-state operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houde, S; Fraser, R; Ciocan, G D; Deschênes, C

2012-01-01

A good evaluation of the unsteady pressure field on hydraulic turbine blades is critical in evaluating the turbine lifespan and its maintenance schedule. Low-head turbines such as Kaplan and Propeller, using a relatively low number of blades supported only at the hub, may also undergo significant deflections at the blade tips which will lead to higher amplitude vibration compared to Francis turbines. Furthermore, the precise evaluation of the unsteady pressure distribution on low-head turbines is still a challenge for computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Within the framework of an international research consortium on low-head turbines, a research project was instigated at the Hydraulic Machines Laboratory in Laval University (LAMH) to perform experimental measurements of the unsteady pressure field on propeller turbine model runner blades. The main objective of the project was to measure the pressure fluctuations on a wide band of frequencies, both in a blade-to-blade channel and on the pressure and suction side of the same blade, to provide validation data for CFD computations. To do so, a 32 channels telemetric data transmission system was used to extract the signal of 31 pressure transducers and two strain gages from the rotating part at an acquisition frequency of 5 KHz. The miniature piezoelectric pressure transducers were placed on two adjacent runner blades according to an estimated pressure distribution coming from flow simulations. Two suction sides and one pressure side were instrumented. The strain gages were mounted in full-bridge on both pressure and suction sides to measure the blade span wise deflection. In order to provide boundary conditions for flow simulations, the test bench conditions during the measurements were acquired. The measurements were made in different operating conditions ranging from part load, where a cavitating vortex occurs, to full load under different heads. The results enabled the identification and the quantification of the

Design and testing of a deformable wind turbine blade control surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daynes, S; Weaver, P M

2012-01-01

Wind tunnel tests were conducted on a 1.3 m chord NACA 63–418 blade section fitted with an adaptive trailing edge flap. The 20% chord flap had an aramid honeycomb core covered with a silicone skin and was actuated using servo motors. The honeycomb core had a high stiffness in the thickness direction but was compliant in chordwise bending. These anisotropic properties offer a potential solution for the conflicting design requirements found in morphing trailing edge structures. Static and dynamic tests were performed up to a Reynolds number of 5.4 × 10 6 . The tests showed that deflecting the flap from − 10° to + 10° changes the blade section lift coefficient by 1.0 in non-stalled conditions. Dynamic tests showed the flap to be capable of operating up to 9° s −1 using a 15 V power supply. A two-dimensional static aeroelastic model of the morphing flap was developed to analyse strains, predict actuator requirements and study fluid–structure interaction effects. The model was used to conduct parametric studies to further improve the flap design. Potential applications include wind turbine blade load alleviation and increased wind energy capture. (paper)

Noise aspects at aerodynamic blade optimisation projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schepers, J.G.

1997-06-01

The Netherlands Energy Research Foundation (ECN) has often been involved in industrial projects, in which blade geometries are created automatic by means of numerical optimisation. Usually, these projects aim at the determination of the aerodynamic optimal wind turbine blade, i.e. the goal is to design a blade which is optimal with regard to energy yield. In other cases, blades have been designed which are optimal with regard to cost of generated energy. However, it is obvious that the wind turbine blade designs which result from these optimisations, are not necessarily optimal with regard to noise emission. In this paper an example is shown of an aerodynamic blade optimisation, using the ECN-program PVOPT. PVOPT calculates the optimal wind turbine blade geometry such that the maximum energy yield is obtained. Using the aerodynamic optimal blade design as a basis, the possibilities of noise reduction are investigated. 11 figs., 8 refs

Ceramic blade with tip seal

Science.gov (United States)

Glezer, B.; Bhardwaj, N.K.; Jones, R.B.

1997-08-05

The present gas turbine engine includes a disc assembly defining a disc having a plurality of blades attached thereto. The disc has a preestablished rate of thermal expansion and the plurality of blades have a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being less than the preestablished rate of thermal expansion of the disc. A shroud assembly is attached to the gas turbine engine and is spaced from the plurality of blades a preestablished distance forming an interface there between. Positioned in the interface is a seal having a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being generally equal to the rate of thermal expansion of the plurality of blades. 4 figs.

Adaptor assembly for coupling turbine blades to rotor disks

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Crespo, Andres Jose; Delvaux, John McConnell

2014-09-23

An adaptor assembly for coupling a blade root of a turbine blade to a root slot of a rotor disk is described. The adaptor assembly includes a turbine blade having a blade root and an adaptor body having an adaptor root. The adaptor body defines a slot having an open end configured to receive the blade root of the turbine blade such that the adaptor root of the adaptor body and the blade root of the turbine blade are adjacent to one another when the blade root of the turbine blade is positioned within the slot. Both the adaptor root of the adaptor body and the blade root of the turbine blade are configured to be received within the root slot of the rotor disk.

Computer Οptimization of Geometric Form of Tool and Preform for Closed-die Forging of Compressor Blade Simulator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. V. Botkin

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Using the software package DEFORM 3D when developing technology of isothermal forging workpiece blades it is possible to reduce the pre-production time, to improve the quality of forgings and increase lifetime of forging dies. Computer modeling allows to predict the formation of such defects during forging as notches and wrinkles, underfilling of die impression, to estimate tool loads. Preform shape and angular position of the blade simulator were optimized in order to minimize the lateral forces generated during the forging operation.

A Non-Uniformly Under-Sampled Blade Tip-Timing Signal Reconstruction Method for Blade Vibration Monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zheng Hu

2015-01-01

Full Text Available High-speed blades are often prone to fatigue due to severe blade vibrations. In particular, synchronous vibrations can cause irreversible damages to the blade. Blade tip-timing methods (BTT have become a promising way to monitor blade vibrations. However, synchronous vibrations are unsuitably monitored by uniform BTT sampling. Therefore, non-equally mounted probes have been used, which will result in the non-uniformity of the sampling signal. Since under-sampling is an intrinsic drawback of BTT methods, how to analyze non-uniformly under-sampled BTT signals is a big challenge. In this paper, a novel reconstruction method for non-uniformly under-sampled BTT data is presented. The method is based on the periodically non-uniform sampling theorem. Firstly, a mathematical model of a non-uniform BTT sampling process is built. It can be treated as the sum of certain uniform sample streams. For each stream, an interpolating function is required to prevent aliasing in the reconstructed signal. Secondly, simultaneous equations of all interpolating functions in each sub-band are built and corresponding solutions are ultimately derived to remove unwanted replicas of the original signal caused by the sampling, which may overlay the original signal. In the end, numerical simulations and experiments are carried out to validate the feasibility of the proposed method. The results demonstrate the accuracy of the reconstructed signal depends on the sampling frequency, the blade vibration frequency, the blade vibration bandwidth, the probe static offset and the number of samples. In practice, both types of blade vibration signals can be particularly reconstructed by non-uniform BTT data acquired from only two probes.

Nonlinear aeroelastic modelling for wind turbine blades based on blade element momentum theory and geometrically exact beam theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Lin; Liu, Xiongwei; Renevier, Nathalie; Stables, Matthew; Hall, George M.

2014-01-01

Due to the increasing size and flexibility of large wind turbine blades, accurate and reliable aeroelastic modelling is playing an important role for the design of large wind turbines. Most existing aeroelastic models are linear models based on assumption of small blade deflections. This assumption is not valid anymore for very flexible blade design because such blades often experience large deflections. In this paper, a novel nonlinear aeroelastic model for large wind turbine blades has been developed by combining BEM (blade element momentum) theory and mixed-form formulation of GEBT (geometrically exact beam theory). The nonlinear aeroelastic model takes account of large blade deflections and thus greatly improves the accuracy of aeroelastic analysis of wind turbine blades. The nonlinear aeroelastic model is implemented in COMSOL Multiphysics and validated with a series of benchmark calculation tests. The results show that good agreement is achieved when compared with experimental data, and its capability of handling large deflections is demonstrated. Finally the nonlinear aeroelastic model is applied to aeroelastic modelling of the parked WindPACT 1.5 MW baseline wind turbine, and reduced flapwise deflection from the nonlinear aeroelastic model is observed compared to the linear aeroelastic code FAST (Fatigue, Aerodynamics, Structures, and Turbulence). - Highlights: • A novel nonlinear aeroelastic model for wind turbine blades is developed. • The model takes account of large blade deflections and geometric nonlinearities. • The model is reliable and efficient for aeroelastic modelling of wind turbine blades. • The accuracy of the model is verified by a series of benchmark calculation tests. • The model provides more realistic aeroelastic modelling than FAST (Fatigue, Aerodynamics, Structures, and Turbulence)

Structural Optimization Design of Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine Blades Using a Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm and Finite Element Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pan Pan

2012-11-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an optimization method for the structural design of horizontal-axis wind turbine (HAWT blades based on the particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO combined with the finite element method (FEM. The main goal is to create an optimization tool and to demonstrate the potential improvements that could be brought to the structural design of HAWT blades. A multi-criteria constrained optimization design model pursued with respect to minimum mass of the blade is developed. The number and the location of layers in the spar cap and the positions of the shear webs are employed as the design variables, while the strain limit, blade/tower clearance limit and vibration limit are taken into account as the constraint conditions. The optimization of the design of a commercial 1.5 MW HAWT blade is carried out by combining the above method and design model under ultimate (extreme flap-wise load conditions. The optimization results are described and compared with the original design. It shows that the method used in this study is efficient and produces improved designs.

Standard practice for examination of fiberglass reinforced plastic fan blades using acoustic emission

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

2010-01-01

1.1 This practice provides guidelines for acoustic emission (AE) examinations of fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) fan blades of the type used in industrial cooling towers and heat exchangers. 1.2 This practice uses simulated service loading to determine structural integrity. 1.3 This practice will detect sources of acoustic emission in areas of sensor coverage that are stressed during the course of the examination. 1.4 This practice applies to examinations of new and in-service fan blades. 1.5 This practice is limited to fan blades of FRP construction, with length (hub centerline to tip) of less than 3 m [10 ft], and with fiberglass content greater than 15 % by weight. 1.6 AE measurements are used to detect emission sources. Other nondestructive examination (NDE) methods may be used to evaluate the significance of AE sources. Procedures for other NDE methods are beyond the scope of this practice. 1.7 Units—The values stated in either SI units or inch-pound units are to be regarded separately as sta...

Numerical Investigation on Effect of Immersed Blade Depth on the Performance of Undershot Water Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yah Nor Fadilah

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Energy, especially electricity, plays a vital role in global social and economic development. High annual rain rate in Malaysia seems a good potential for electricity generation especially through small hydro powers. Undershot water turbines are one of the hydropower turbines used for many years. However, the effect of blade depth immersed in the flowing water is not fully investigated. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study the effect of immersed blade depth for straight blade undershot water turbine in power generation by using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD method. ANSYS CFX 15.0 was used to perform three dimensional analysis under steady state, incompressible, and non-isothermal conditions. The water wheel with number of blades of 6 and four different immersed depth was applied for each simulation. There are four different immersed depth was applied to each simulation, which are 20 mm, 40 mm, 60 mm and 80 mm. From the simulation result, it was found that the optimum immersed depth is 40 mm where the torque load and power generated were 0.264 N.m and 1.318 Watt respectively.

Investigating dynamic stall, 3-D and rotational effects on wind turbine blades by means of an unsteady quasi-3D Navier-Stokes solver

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chaviaropoulos, P.K. [CRES-Center for Renewable Energy Sources, Pikermi Attiki (Greece)

1997-08-01

The blade element codes provide surprisingly accurate predictions of the aerodynamic loads provided that they are `fed` with proper lift and drag - incidence curves for the profiles mounted on the rotor blades. The evident question is how one can obtain such data. It is common experience that the use of the mostly available steady two-dimensional profile data may lead to serious discrepancies between measured and simulated loads. Although several correction techniques have been proposed as a remedy during the last years, from simplified dynamic stall models suitably tuned for wind turbines to 3-D correction schemes for profile data, the problem is by no means over-passed. Especially for the three-dimensional effects it seems that part of the difficulty is due to our limited understanding of the physical mechanism which is responsible for the extra loading of the inner part of the blades. Recognizing the importance of the above aspects two relevant Joule projects have been launched, the concluded `Dynamic Stall and 3-D Effects` JOU2-CT93-0345 and the ongoing `VISCWIND` JOR3-CT95-0007 project. Part of the activities in the first and all the activities in the second project are devoted to the identification and quantification of the dynamic stall and three-dimensional effects experienced by the wind turbine blades using Navier-Stokes computations. The contribution of CRES in these two projects is briefly presented in this paper. (EG)

Wind turbine blade shear web disbond detection using rotor blade operational sensing and data analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Myrent, Noah; Adams, Douglas E; Griffith, D Todd

2015-02-28

A wind turbine blade's structural dynamic response is simulated and analysed with the goal of characterizing the presence and severity of a shear web disbond. Computer models of a 5 MW offshore utility-scale wind turbine were created to develop effective algorithms for detecting such damage. Through data analysis and with the use of blade measurements, a shear web disbond was quantified according to its length. An aerodynamic sensitivity study was conducted to ensure robustness of the detection algorithms. In all analyses, the blade's flap-wise acceleration and root-pitching moment were the clearest indicators of the presence and severity of a shear web disbond. A combination of blade and non-blade measurements was formulated into a final algorithm for the detection and quantification of the disbond. The probability of detection was 100% for the optimized wind speed ranges in laminar, 30% horizontal shear and 60% horizontal shear conditions. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Wind blade spar cap and method of making

Science.gov (United States)

Mohamed, Mansour H [Raleigh, NC

2008-05-27

A wind blade spar cap for strengthening a wind blade including an integral, unitary three-dimensional woven material having a first end and a second end, corresponding to a root end of the blade and a tip end of the blade, wherein the material tapers in width from the first to the second end while maintaining a constant thickness and decreasing weight therebetween, the cap being capable of being affixed to the blade for providing increased strength with controlled variation in weight from the root end to the tip end based upon the tapered width of the material thereof. The present inventions also include the method of making the wind blade spar cap and a wind blade including the wind blade spar cap.

Composite ceramic blade for a gas turbine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rossmann, A; Hoffmueller, W; Krueger, W

1980-06-26

The gas turbine blade consists of a supporting metal core which has at its lower end a modelled root and a profile blade made of ceramics enclosing it at some distance. The invention deals with a reliable connection between these two parts of the rotor blade: from the top end of the blade core a head protrudes supporting the thin-walled profile blade from below with a projection each pointing into the interior. The design of the projections and supporting surfaces is described and illustrated by drawings.

Joint excitation synchronization characteristics of fatigue test for offshore wind turbine blade

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lei-an; Yu, Xiang-yong; Wei, Xiu-ting; Liu, Wei-sheng

2018-02-01

In the case of the stiffness of offshore wind turbine blade is relatively large, the joint excitation device solves the problem of low accuracy of bending moment distribution, insufficient driving ability and long fatigue test period in single-point loading. In order to study the synchronous characteristics of joint excitation system, avoid blade vibration disturbance. First, on the base of a Lagrange equation, a mathematical model of combined excitation is formulated, and a numerical analysis of vibration synchronization is performed. Then, the model is constructed via MATLAB/Simulink, and the effect of the phase difference on the vibration synchronization characteristics is obtained visually. Finally, a set of joint excitation platform for the fatigue test of offshore wind turbine blades are built. The parameter measurement scheme is given and the correctness of the joint excitation synchronization in the simulation model is verified. The results show that when the rotational speed difference is 2 r/min, 30 r/min, the phase difference is 0, π/20, π/8 and π/4, as the rotational speed difference and the phase difference increase, the time required for the blade to reach a steady state is longer. When the phase difference is too large, the electromechanical coupling can no longer make the joint excitation device appear self-synchronizing phenomenon, so that the value of the phase difference develops toward a fixed value (not equal to 0), and the blade vibration disorder is serious, at this time, the effect of electromechanical coupling must be eliminated. The research results provide theoretical basis for the subsequent decoupling control algorithm and synchronization control strategy, and have good application value.

Joint excitation synchronization characteristics of fatigue test for offshore wind turbine blade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lei-an Zhang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available In the case of the stiffness of offshore wind turbine blade is relatively large, the joint excitation device solves the problem of low accuracy of bending moment distribution, insufficient driving ability and long fatigue test period in single-point loading. In order to study the synchronous characteristics of joint excitation system, avoid blade vibration disturbance. First, on the base of a Lagrange equation, a mathematical model of combined excitation is formulated, and a numerical analysis of vibration synchronization is performed. Then, the model is constructed via MATLAB/Simulink, and the effect of the phase difference on the vibration synchronization characteristics is obtained visually. Finally, a set of joint excitation platform for the fatigue test of offshore wind turbine blades are built. The parameter measurement scheme is given and the correctness of the joint excitation synchronization in the simulation model is verified. The results show that when the rotational speed difference is 2 r/min, 30 r/min, the phase difference is 0, π/20, π/8 and π/4, as the rotational speed difference and the phase difference increase, the time required for the blade to reach a steady state is longer. When the phase difference is too large, the electromechanical coupling can no longer make the joint excitation device appear self-synchronizing phenomenon, so that the value of the phase difference develops toward a fixed value (not equal to 0, and the blade vibration disorder is serious, at this time, the effect of electromechanical coupling must be eliminated. The research results provide theoretical basis for the subsequent decoupling control algorithm and synchronization control strategy, and have good application value.

Development of SMA Actuated Morphing Airfoil for Wind Turbine Load Alleviation

Science.gov (United States)

Karakalas, A.; Machairas, T.; Solomou, A.; Riziotis, V.; Saravanos, D.

Wind turbine rotor upscaling has entered a range of rotor diameters where the blade structure cannot sustain the increased aerodynamic loads without novel load alleviation concepts. Research on load alleviation using morphing blade sections is presented. Antagonistic shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators are implemented to deflect the section trailing edge (TE) to target shapes and target time-series relating TE movement with changes in lift coefficient. Challenges encountered by the complex thermomechanical response of morphing section and the enhancement of SMA transient response to achieve frequencies meaningful for aerodynamic load alleviation are addressed. Using a recently developed finite element for SMA actuators [1], actuator configurations are considered for fast cooling and heating cycles. Numerical results quantify the attained ranges of TE angle movement, the moving time period and the developed stresses. Estimations of the attained variations of lift coefficient vs. time are also presented to assess the performance of the morphing section.

H∞ Based Control for Load Mitigation in Wind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aron Pujana-Arrese

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This article demonstrates a strategy to design multivariable and multi-objective controllers based on the H∞ norm reduction applied to a wind turbine. The wind turbine model has been developed in the GH Bladed software and it is based on a 5 MW wind turbine defined in the Upwind European project. The designed control strategy works in the above rated power production zone and performs generator speed control and load reduction on the drive train and tower. In order to do this, two robust H∞ MISO (Multi-Input Single-Output controllers have been developed. These controllers generate collective pitch angle and generator torque set-point values to achieve the imposed control objectives. Linear models obtained in GH Bladed 4.0 are used, but the control design methodology can be used with linear models obtained from any other modelling package. Controllers are designed by setting out a mixed sensitivity problem, where some notch filters are also included in the controller dynamics. The obtained H∞ controllers have been validated in GH Bladed and an exhaustive analysis has been carried out to calculate fatigue load reduction on wind turbine components, as well as to analyze load mitigation in some extreme cases. The analysis compares the proposed control strategy based on H∞ controllers to a baseline control strategy designed using the classical control methods implemented on the present wind turbines.

Analysis of time domain active sensing data from CX-100 wind turbine blade fatigue tests for damage assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Mi Jin [Dept. of Aerospace Engineering and LANL-CBNU Engineering Institute, Chunbuk National University, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of); Jung, Hwee Kwon; Park, Gyu Hae [School of Mechanical Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju (Korea, Republic of); Taylor, Stuart G.; Farinholt, Kevin M. [The Engineering Institute, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos (United States)

2016-04-15

This paper presents the results obtained using time-series-based methods for structural damage assessment. The methods are applied to a wind turbine blade structure subjected to fatigue loads. A 9 m CX-100 (carbon experimental 100 kW) blade is harmonically excited at its first natural frequency to introduce a failure mode. Consequently, a through-thickness fatigue crack is visually identified at 8.5 million cycles. The time domain data from the piezoelectric active-sensing techniques are measured during the fatigue loadings and used to detect incipient damage. The damage-sensitive features, such as the first four moments and a normality indicator, are extracted from the time domain data. Time series autoregressive models with exogenous inputs are also implemented. These features could efficiently detect a fatigue crack and are less sensitive to operational variations than the other methods.

Impact of Higher Fidelity Models on Simulation of Active Aerodynamic Load Control For Fatigue Damage Reduction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Resor, B.; Wilson, D.; Berg, D.; Berg, J.; Barlas, T.; Van Wingerden, J.W.; Van Kuik, G.A.M.

2010-01-01

Active aerodynamic load control of wind turbine blades is being investigated by the wind energy research community and shows great promise, especially for reduction of turbine fatigue damage in blades and nearby components. For much of this work, full system aeroelastic codes have been used to

Simulation analysis of turbine blade in 3D printing aquarium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chen Dyi-Cheng

2017-01-01

Full Text Available 3D printing of the flexibility is the most admirable place, no matter when or where, as long as the machine can make the abstract design of finished products or difficult to process the finished product printed out as a sample. And in the product design, through the 3D print out the entity, to more specific observation of the advantages and disadvantages of finished products, which shorten the time of many creative research and development, but also relatively reduce the defective factors. As in recent years, 3D printing technology is progressing, material adhesion, precision and parts of the degree of cooperation has increased, coupled with many parts taking into account the cost, production and other issues, and then let a lot of light load small parts or special parts choose to use 3D to print the finished product to replace. This study focuses on the plastic turbine blades that drive water in the aquarium, but the 3D printing is done by stacking. However, the general stress analysis software can set the material to analyze the deformation results of the force, nor the 3D to analyze the software. Therefore, this study first analyzes the deformation of turbine blade by software, and then verifies the situation of 3D printing turbine blade, and then compares the actual results of software analysis and 3D printing. The results can provide the future of 3D product consider the strength factor. The study found that the spiral blade design allows the force points to be dispersed to avoid hard focus.

Frequency-Weighted Model Predictive Control of Trailing Edge Flaps on a Wind Turbine Blade

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Castaignet, Damien; Couchman, Ian; Poulsen, Niels Kjølstad

2013-01-01

flapwise blade root moment and trailing edge flap deflection. Frequency-weighted MPC is chosen for its ability to handle constraints on the trailing edge flaps deflection, and to target at loads with given frequencies only. The controller is first tested in servo-aeroelastic simulations, before being......This paper presents the load reduction achieved with trailing edge flaps during a full-scale test on a Vestas V27 wind turbine. The trailing edge flap controller is a frequency-weighted linear model predictive control (MPC) where the quadratic cost consists of costs on the zero-phase filtered...

Comparison of individual pitch and smart rotor control strategies for load reduction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plumley, C; Leithead, W; Jamieson, P; Bossanyi, E; Graham, M

2014-01-01

Load reduction is increasingly seen as an essential part of controller and wind turbine design. On large multi-MW wind turbines that experience high levels of wind shear and turbulence across the rotor, individual pitch control and smart rotor control are being considered. While individual pitch control involves adjusting the pitch of each blade individually to reduce the cyclic loadings on the rotor, smart rotor control involves activating control devices distributed along the blades to alter the local aerodynamics of the blades. Here we investigate the effectiveness of using a DQ-axis control and a distributed (independent) control for both individual pitch and trailing edge flap smart rotor control. While load reductions are similar amongst the four strategies across a wide range of variables, including blade root bending moments, yaw bearing and shaft, the pitch actuator requirements vary. The smart rotor pitch actuator has reduced travel, rates, accelerations and power requirements than that of the individual pitch controlled wind turbines. This benefit alone however would be hard to justify the added design complexities of using a smart rotor, which can be seen as an alternative to upgrading the pitch actuator and bearing. In addition, it is found that the independent control strategy is apt at roles that the collective pitch usually targets, such as tower motion and speed control, and it is perhaps here, in supplementing other systems, that the future of the smart rotor lies

Comparison of individual pitch and smart rotor control strategies for load reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Plumley, C.; Leithead, W.; Jamieson, P.; Bossanyi, E.; Graham, M.

2014-06-01

Load reduction is increasingly seen as an essential part of controller and wind turbine design. On large multi-MW wind turbines that experience high levels of wind shear and turbulence across the rotor, individual pitch control and smart rotor control are being considered. While individual pitch control involves adjusting the pitch of each blade individually to reduce the cyclic loadings on the rotor, smart rotor control involves activating control devices distributed along the blades to alter the local aerodynamics of the blades. Here we investigate the effectiveness of using a DQ-axis control and a distributed (independent) control for both individual pitch and trailing edge flap smart rotor control. While load reductions are similar amongst the four strategies across a wide range of variables, including blade root bending moments, yaw bearing and shaft, the pitch actuator requirements vary. The smart rotor pitch actuator has reduced travel, rates, accelerations and power requirements than that of the individual pitch controlled wind turbines. This benefit alone however would be hard to justify the added design complexities of using a smart rotor, which can be seen as an alternative to upgrading the pitch actuator and bearing. In addition, it is found that the independent control strategy is apt at roles that the collective pitch usually targets, such as tower motion and speed control, and it is perhaps here, in supplementing other systems, that the future of the smart rotor lies.

Application of a modal-driven damage assessment framework for ice localization and quantification on wind turbine blades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, J. B.; Brincker, Rune; Glavind, L.

2017-01-01

Analysis algorithm. The vibrational data are extracted in the original state of the blade as well as various ice build-up scenario states. In the perturbation tests sand bags are used to simulate the presence of ice. The output of the detection algorithm is an estimate of location, within 4 discrete areas......Operating wind turbines in northern and/or mountainous regions create the demand for effective ice detection and ice removal systems. Ice accretion on the rotor blades of a wind turbine leads, among other things, to added loads, safety issues and diminished aerodynamic performance of the airfoil...

Massachusetts Large Blade Test Facility Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rahul Yarala; Rob Priore

2011-09-02

Project Objective: The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (CEC) will design, construct, and ultimately have responsibility for the operation of the Large Wind Turbine Blade Test Facility, which is an advanced blade testing facility capable of testing wind turbine blades up to at least 90 meters in length on three test stands. Background: Wind turbine blade testing is required to meet international design standards, and is a critical factor in maintaining high levels of reliability and mitigating the technical and financial risk of deploying massproduced wind turbine models. Testing is also needed to identify specific blade design issues that may contribute to reduced wind turbine reliability and performance. Testing is also required to optimize aerodynamics, structural performance, encourage new technologies and materials development making wind even more competitive. The objective of this project is to accelerate the design and construction of a large wind blade testing facility capable of testing blades with minimum queue times at a reasonable cost. This testing facility will encourage and provide the opportunity for the U.S wind industry to conduct more rigorous testing of blades to improve wind turbine reliability.

Numerical analysis of turbine blade tip treatments

Science.gov (United States)

Gopalaswamy, Nath S.; Whitaker, Kevin W.

1992-01-01

Three-dimensional solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations for a turbine blade with a turning angle of 180 degrees have been computed, including blade tip treatments involving cavities. The geometry approximates a preliminary design for the GGOT (Generic Gas Oxidizer Turbine). The data presented here will be compared with experimental data to be obtained from a linear cascade using original GGOT blades. Results have been computed for a blade with 1 percent clearance, based on chord, and three different cavity sizes. All tests were conducted at a Reynolds number of 4 x 10 exp 7. The grid contains 39,440 points with 10 spanwise planes in the tip clearance region of 5.008E-04 m. Streamline plots and velocity vectors together with velocity divergence plots reveal the general flow behavior in the clearance region. Blade tip temperature calculations suggest placement of a cavity close to the upstream side of the blade tip for reduction of overall blade tip temperature. The solutions do not account for the relative motion between the endwall and the turbine blade. The solutions obtained are generally consistent with previous work done in this area,

Wind turbine blade waste in 2050.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Pu; Barlow, Claire Y

2017-04-01

Wind energy has developed rapidly over the last two decades to become one of the most promising and economically viable sources of renewable energy. Although wind energy is claimed to provide clean renewable energy without any emissions during operation, but it is only one side of the coin. The blades, one of the most important components in the wind turbines, made with composite, are currently regarded as unrecyclable. With the first wave of early commercial wind turbine installations now approaching their end of life, the problem of blade disposal is just beginning to emerge as a significant factor for the future. This paper is aimed at discovering the magnitude of the wind turbine blade waste problem, looking not only at disposal but at all stages of a blade's lifecycle. The first stage of the research, the subject of this paper, is to accurately estimate present and future wind turbine blade waste inventory using the most recent and most accurate data available. The result will provide a solid reference point to help the industry and policy makers to understand the size of potential environmental problem and to help to manage it better. This study starts by estimating the annual blade material usage with wind energy installed capacity and average blade weight. The effect of other waste contributing factors in the full lifecycle of wind turbine blades is then included, using industrial data from the manufacturing, testing and in-service stages. The research indicates that there will be 43 million tonnes of blade waste worldwide by 2050 with China possessing 40% of the waste, Europe 25%, the United States 16% and the rest of the world 19%. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Take Stock of Turbine Blades Failure Phenomenon

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Abhijit

2018-02-01

Turbine Blade design and engineering is one of the most complicated and important aspects of turbine technology. Experiments with blades can be simple or very complicated, depending upon parameters of analysis. Turbine blades are subjected to vigorous environments, such as high temperatures, high stresses, and a potentially high vibration environment. All these factors can lead to blade failures, which can destroy the turbine, and engine, so careful design is the prime consideration to resist those conditions. A high cycle of fatigue of compressor and turbine blades due to high dynamic stress caused by blade vibration and resonance within the operating range of machinery is common failure mode for turbine machine. Continuous study and investigation on failure of turbine blades are going on since last five decades. Some review papers published during these days aiming to present a review on recent studies and investigations done on failures of turbine blades. All the detailed literature related with the turbine blades has not been described but emphasized to provide all the methodologies of failures adopted by various researches to investigate turbine blade. This paper illustrate on various factors of failure.

Wind Turbine Blade with Angled Girders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2011-01-01

The present invention relates to a reinforced blade for a wind turbine, particularly to a blade having a new arrangement of two or more girders in the blade, wherein each of the girders is connected to the upper part and the lower part of the shell and forms an angle with another girder thereby...

Test Rig for Evaluating Active Turbine Blade Tip Clearance Control Concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Lattime, Scott B.; Steinetz, Bruce M.; Robbie, Malcolm G.

2003-01-01

Improved blade tip sealing in the high pressure compressor and high pressure turbine can provide dramatic improvements in specific fuel consumption, time-on-wing, compressor stall margin and engine efficiency as well as increased payload and mission range capabilities of both military and commercial gas turbine engines. The preliminary design of a mechanically actuated active clearance control (ACC) system for turbine blade tip clearance management is presented along with the design of a bench top test rig in which the system is to be evaluated. The ACC system utilizes mechanically actuated seal carrier segments and clearance measurement feedback to provide fast and precise active clearance control throughout engine operation. The purpose of this active clearance control system is to improve upon current case cooling methods. These systems have relatively slow response and do not use clearance measurement, thereby forcing cold build clearances to set the minimum clearances at extreme operating conditions (e.g., takeoff, re-burst) and not allowing cruise clearances to be minimized due to the possibility of throttle transients (e.g., step change in altitude). The active turbine blade tip clearance control system design presented herein will be evaluated to ensure that proper response and positional accuracy is achievable under simulated high-pressure turbine conditions. The test rig will simulate proper seal carrier pressure and temperature loading as well as the magnitudes and rates of blade tip clearance changes of an actual gas turbine engine. The results of these evaluations will be presented in future works.

Monitoring fatigue loads on wind turbines using cycle counting data acquisition systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soeker, H; Seifert, H [Deutsches Windenergie-Institut (Germany); Fragoulis, A; Vionis, P; Foussekis, D [Center for Renewable Energy Sources (Greece); Dahlberg, J A; Poppen, M [The Aeronautical Research Institue of Sweden (Sweden)

1996-09-01

As in any industrial application, the duration of a wind turbine`s life is a key parameter for the evaluation of its economic potential. Assuming a service life of 20 years, components of the turbine have to withstand a number of load cycles of up to 10{sup 8}. Such numbers of load cycles impose high demands on the fatigue characteristics of both, the used materials and the design. Nevertheless, fatigue loading of wind turbine components still remains a parameter of high uncertainty in the design of wind turbines. The specific features of these fatigue loads can be expected to vary with the type of turbine and the site of operation. In order to ensure the reliability of the next generation of larger scale wind turbines improved load assumptions will be of vital importance. Within the scope of the presented research program DEWI, C.R.E.S. and FFA monitored fatigue loads of serial produced wind turbines by means of a monitoring method that uses on-line cycle counting techniques. The blade root bending moments of two pitch controlled, variable speed wind turbines operating in the Hamswehrum wind farm, and also that of a stall controlled, fixed speed wind turbine operating in CRES` complex terrain test site, were measured by DEWI and CRES. In parallel FFA used their database of time series measurements of blade root bending moments on a stall controlled, fixed speed turbine at Alsvik Windfarm in order to derive semi-empirical fatigue load data. The experience gained from application of the on-line measurement technique is discussed with respect to performance, data quality, reliability and cost effectiveness. Investigations on the effects of wind farm and complex terrain operation on the fatigue loads of wind turbine rotor blades are presented. (au)

Wireless Inductive Power Device Suppresses Blade Vibrations

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, Carlos R.; Provenza, Andrew J.; Choi, Benjamin B.; Bakhle, Milind A.; Min, James B.; Stefko, George L.; Duffy, Kirsten P.; Fougers, Alan J.

2011-01-01

Vibration in turbomachinery can cause blade failures and leads to the use of heavier, thicker blades that result in lower aerodynamic efficiency and increased noise. Metal and/or composite fatigue in the blades of jet engines has resulted in blade destruction and loss of lives. Techniques for suppressing low-frequency blade vibration, such as gtuned circuit resistive dissipation of vibratory energy, h or simply "passive damping," can require electronics incorporating coils of unwieldy dimensions and adding unwanted weight to the rotor. Other approaches, using vibration-dampening devices or damping material, could add undesirable weight to the blades or hub, making them less efficient. A wireless inductive power device (WIPD) was designed, fabricated, and developed for use in the NASA Glenn's "Dynamic Spin Rig" (DSR) facility. The DSR is used to simulate the functionality of turbomachinery. The relatively small and lightweight device [10 lb (approx.=4.5 kg)] replaces the existing venerable and bulky slip-ring. The goal is the eventual integration of this technology into actual turbomachinery such as jet engines or electric power generators, wherein the device will facilitate the suppression of potentially destructive vibrations in fan blades. This technology obviates slip rings, which require cooling and can prove unreliable or be problematic over time. The WIPD consists of two parts: a remote element, which is positioned on the rotor and provides up to 100 W of electrical power to thin, lightweight piezoelectric patches strategically placed on/in fan blades; and a stationary base unit that wirelessly communicates with the remote unit. The base unit supplies inductive power, and also acts as an input and output corridor for wireless measurement, and active control command to the remote unit. Efficient engine operation necessitates minimal disturbance to the gas flow across the turbine blades in any effort to moderate blade vibration. This innovation makes it

Dependence of offshore wind turbine fatigue loads on atmospheric stratification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hansen, K S; Larsen, G C; Ott, S

2014-01-01

The stratification of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) is classified in terms of the M-O length and subsequently used to determine the relationship between ABL stability and the fatigue loads of a wind turbine located inside an offshore wind farm. Recorded equivalent fatigue loads, representing blade-bending and tower bottom bending, are combined with the operational statistics from the instrumented wind turbine as well as with meteorological statistics defining the inflow conditions. Only a part of all possible inflow conditions are covered through the approximately 8200 hours of combined measurements. The fatigue polar has been determined for an (almost) complete 360° inflow sector for both load sensors, representing mean wind speeds below and above rated wind speed, respectively, with the inflow conditions classified into three different stratification regimes: unstable, neutral and stable conditions. In general, impact of ABL stratification is clearly seen on wake affected inflow cases for both blade and tower fatigue loads. However, the character of this dependence varies significantly with the type of inflow conditions – e.g. single wake inflow or multiple wake inflow

Contactless Diagnostics of Turbine Blade Vibration and Damage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prochazka, Pavel; Vanek, Frantisek

2011-01-01

The study deals with the contactless diagnostic method used for the identification of steam turbine blade strain, vibration and damage. The tip-timing method based on the evaluation of time differences of blade passages in different rotor revolutions has been modified and improved to provide more precise and reliable results. A new approach to the analysis of the amplitude and time differences of impulse signals generated by a blade passage has been applied. Amplitudes and frequencies of vibrations and static position of blades ascertained by the diagnostic process are used to establish the state of blade damage. A contactless diagnostic system VDS-UT based on magneto-resistive sensors was developed in the Institute of Thermomechanics Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. The system provides on-line monitoring of vibration amplitudes and frequencies of all blades and notification of possible blade damage. Evaluation of the axial and circumferential components of the deflections by measuring the amplitude of blade impulse signals results in an overall improvement of the method. Using magneto-resistive sensors, blade elongation and untwisting can be determined as well.

Doctor Blade-Coated Polymer Solar Cells

KAUST Repository

Cho, Nam Chul

2016-10-25

In this work, we report polymer solar cells based on blade-coated P3HT:PC71BM and PBDTTT-EFT:PC71BM bulk heterojunction photoactive layers. Enhanced power conversion efficiency of 2.75 (conventional structure) and 3.03% (inverted structure) with improved reproducibility was obtained from blade-coated P3HT:PC71BM solar cells, compared to spin-coated ones. Furthermore, by demonstrating 3.10% efficiency flexible solar cells using blade-coated PBDTTT-EFT:PC71BM films on the plastic substrates, we suggest the potential applicability of blade coating technique to the high throughput roll-to-roll fabrication systems.

The use of platform dampers to reduce turbine blade vibrations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jareland, Martin H.

2001-07-01

Friction damping is commonly used in jet engines to reduce the vibration level of the blades and thereby increase the reliability of the engine. This thesis deals with a specific type of friction damper denoted platform damper, which is frequently used in turbine stages. A platform damper is a piece of metal located in a cavity underneath two adjacent blade platforms. It is pressed against the platforms by centrifugal force and friction forces arise in the contacts when a relative motion between the platforms occurs. In this thesis, a number of phenomena regarding platform dampers are investigated and discussed. This is performed both experimentally and theoretically. In the simulations, friction interface models valid for both macroslip and microslip are used. Macroslip means that slipping occurs in the whole contact interface and microslip means that slipping occurs in only part of the interface. The latter is most likely in the contacts between the platform damper and the blade platforms due to the high normal force and the small motions. The first paper deals with mistuning of bladed disks due to variations in the properties of the platform dampers and the closely related topic wear of the dampers. This study indicates that damper mistuning can greatly affect the blade vibrations and that damper and blade mistuning constitutes a more severe case than blade mistuning alone. It is also found that wear of the contact areas can lead either to an increase or decrease in the resonance amplitude of the blades in the studied configuration. In the second paper, so-called cottage-roof dampers are studied. Cottage-roof dampers are a type of platform damper with inclined contact surfaces. The inclination leads to a varying normal load, which complicates the analysis. A model including this effect is presented and simulations are performed both in the time and frequency domain. A parametric study is performed with the aim of finding the optimal damper design with respect to

3D pressure imaging of an aircraft propeller blade-tip flow by phase-locked stereoscopic PIV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ragni, D.; Oudheusden, B.W. van; Scarano, F. [Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft (Netherlands)

2012-02-15

The flow field at the tip region of a scaled DHC Beaver aircraft propeller, running at transonic speed, has been investigated by means of a multi-plane stereoscopic particle image velocimetry setup. Velocity fields, phase-locked with the blade rotational motion, are acquired across several planes perpendicular to the blade axis and merged to form a 3D measurement volume. Transonic conditions have been reached at the tip region, with a revolution frequency of 19,800 rpm and a relative free-stream Mach number of 0.73 at the tip. The pressure field and the surface pressure distribution are inferred from the 3D velocity data through integration of the momentum Navier-Stokes equation in differential form, allowing for the simultaneous flow visualization and the aerodynamic loads computation, with respect to a reference frame moving with the blade. The momentum and pressure data are further integrated by means of a contour-approach to yield the aerodynamic sectional force components as well as the blade torsional moment. A steady Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes numerical simulation of the entire propeller model has been used for comparison to the measurement data. (orig.)

3D pressure imaging of an aircraft propeller blade-tip flow by phase-locked stereoscopic PIV

Science.gov (United States)

Ragni, D.; van Oudheusden, B. W.; Scarano, F.

2012-02-01

The flow field at the tip region of a scaled DHC Beaver aircraft propeller, running at transonic speed, has been investigated by means of a multi-plane stereoscopic particle image velocimetry setup. Velocity fields, phase-locked with the blade rotational motion, are acquired across several planes perpendicular to the blade axis and merged to form a 3D measurement volume. Transonic conditions have been reached at the tip region, with a revolution frequency of 19,800 rpm and a relative free-stream Mach number of 0.73 at the tip. The pressure field and the surface pressure distribution are inferred from the 3D velocity data through integration of the momentum Navier-Stokes equation in differential form, allowing for the simultaneous flow visualization and the aerodynamic loads computation, with respect to a reference frame moving with the blade. The momentum and pressure data are further integrated by means of a contour-approach to yield the aerodynamic sectional force components as well as the blade torsional moment. A steady Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes numerical simulation of the entire propeller model has been used for comparison to the measurement data.

Reduction mechanism of dynamic loads on down wind rotor; Furyoku hatsuden system down wind rotor no doteki kaju no keigen kiko ni kansuru kenkyu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seki, K; Shimizu, Y; Yasui, T [Tokai University, Tokyo (Japan)

1997-11-25

Dynamic force on blades in a large wind mill changes with rotational speed for various reasons, such as wind shear that causes vertical distribution of wind velocity or titling angle. Therefore, a 2-blade system on a teetered hub is a practical selection for the coned, down-wind type. Use of teetered axis greatly reduces bending moment in the flap direction and that at the axis of rotation. An attempt was made to understand dynamic loads by inertial force resulting from oscillation of the blade rotating on the teetered axis, and thereby to avoid them. The in-plane load can be diminished to zero when the teetered axis is coincided with the center of gravity, but generally cannot be avoided when the blade is strained significantly, except it is operated at the rated condition. The in-plane load and bending moment can be avoided, when rotational freedom is given around the y axis. Dynamic load on a down-wind rotor can be avoided by use of universal joint. 3 refs., 6 figs.

Analysis of Stainless Steel Sandwich Panels with a Metal Foam Care for Lightweight Fan Blade Design

Science.gov (United States)

Min, James B.; Ghosn, Louis J.; Lerch, Bradley A.; Raj, Sai V.; Holland, Frederic A., Jr.; Hebsur, Mohan G.

2004-01-01

The quest for cheap, low density and high performance materials in the design of aircraft and rotorcraft engine fan and propeller blades poses immense challenges to the materials and structural design engineers. Traditionally, these components have been fabricated using expensive materials such as light weight titanium alloys, polymeric composite materials and carbon-carbon composites. The present study investigates the use of P sandwich foam fan blade made up of solid face sheets and a metal foam core. The face sheets and the metal foam core material were an aerospace grade precipitation hardened 17-4 PH stainless steel with high strength and high toughness. The stiffness of the sandwich structure is increased by separating the two face sheets by a foam core. The resulting structure possesses a high stiffness while being lighter than a similar solid construction. Since the face sheets carry the applied bending loads, the sandwich architecture is a viable engineering concept. The material properties of 17-4 PH metal foam are reviewed briefly to describe the characteristics of the sandwich structure for a fan blade application. A vibration analysis for natural frequencies and P detailed stress analysis on the 17-4 PH sandwich foam blade design for different combinations of skin thickness and core volume %re presented with a comparison to a solid titanium blade.