In:
Wind Energy Science, Copernicus GmbH, Vol. 8, No. 3 ( 2023-03-27), p. 421-431
Abstract:
Abstract. Wind turbines have grown in size in recent years, making
efficient structural health monitoring of all of their structures even
more important. Wind turbine blades deform elastically under the loads
applied to them by wind and inertial forces acting on the rotating rotor
blades. In order to properly analyze these deformations, an earthbound
system is desirable that can measure the blade deformation, as well as the
tower–blade tip clearance from a large measurement working distance of over
150 m and a single location. To achieve this, a terrestrial laser scanner
(TLS) in line-scanning mode with vertical alignment is used to measure the
distance to passing blades and the tower for different wind loads over time.
In detail, the blade deformations for two different wind load categories are
evaluated and compared. Additionally, the tower–blade tip clearance is
calculated and analyzed with regard to the rotor speed. Using a Monte Carlo
simulation, the measurement uncertainty is determined to be in the millimeter range
for both the blade deformation analysis and the tower–blade tip clearance.
The in-process applicable measurement methods are applied and validated on a
3.4 MW wind turbine with a hub height of 128 m. The deformation of the blade
increases with higher wind speed in the wind direction, while the tower–blade
tip clearance decreases with higher wind speed. Both relations are measured
not only qualitatively but also quantitatively. Furthermore, no difference
between the three rotor blades is observed, and each of the three blades is
shown to be separately measurable. The tower–blade tip clearance is compared
to a reference video measurement, which recorded the tower–blade tip
clearance from the side, validating the novel measurement approach.
Therefore, the proposed setup and methods are proven to be effective tools
for the in-process structural health monitoring of wind turbine blades.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2366-7451
DOI:
10.5194/wes-8-421-2023
Language:
English
Publisher:
Copernicus GmbH
Publication Date:
2023
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2846783-8
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