Wind Turbine Blade Reinforcement With Air-Pocket-Free Protective Shells
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wind turbine blades suffer from structural integrity issues due to debris impact, leading to aerodynamic losses and potential disintegration, with existing solutions either requiring new blades or temporary protective measures that fail over time.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a protective shell and mounting shell with a topography matching the blade's surface, applied using an adhesive and force to ensure a secure fit without air pockets, allowing for surface defect coverage and improved aerodynamics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If protective tape is applied to the blade surface, then protection against debris impact is improved, but the solution is only applicable to new blades or blades with regenerated surfaces, not those with existing surface defects
Solution Approach 1:
The protective shell is designed to cover only the specific leading portion of the blade that requires protection, rather than requiring the entire blade surface to be defect-free. This localized approach allows application on blades with surface defects in areas not covered by the shell.
2Reliability
If protective shell is applied without proper mounting, then protection is provided, but air pockets may form causing structural issues and potential disintegration
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting shell is designed with features that enable preliminary pressing and bonding of the protective shell to the blade surface before final curing. This preliminary action ensures air pockets are eliminated during the bonding process, preventing future structural issues.
3Reliability
If blade surface defects are repaired before applying protective measures, then proper adhesion is achieved, but maintenance time and operational downtime increase
Solution Approach 1:
The protective shell is designed to cover only the critical leading portion of the blade where debris impact is most severe. This localized protection eliminates the need to repair the entire blade surface, significantly reducing maintenance time while maintaining adequate adhesion in the protected area.
4Reliability
If the protective shell is securely attached to prevent air pockets, then structural integrity is improved, but the complexity of the mounting process increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting shell acts as an intermediary component between the protective shell and the blade. It provides a simplified interface for mounting, enabling secure attachment and air pocket elimination through its designed pressing features, while the mounting shell itself can be easily removed after curing.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances structural integrity and aerodynamic performance by securely attaching a protective shell to wind turbine blades, preventing disintegration from debris and lightning strikes, and reducing maintenance needs.
Implementation Method 1
applying an adhesive to at least part of the inner surface of said protective shell and/or to at least part of the outer surface of at least a leading portion of said outer surface of said wind turbine blade; fitting the inner surface of said protective shell onto at least a leading portion of the outer surface of said wind turbine blade
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for reinforcing a part of the outer surface of a wind turbine blade, said method comprises the steps: i) providing a blade plug having an outer surface resembling the topography of the outer surface of at least a leading portion of at least part of the length of a wind turbine blade; ii) casting a mold of part of the blade plug obtained in step i) in such a way that the topography of an inner surface of said mold corresponds to the topography of part of an outer surface of said blade plug provided in step i); iii) from the mold obtained in step ii), preparing a protective shell by making a casting of the inner surface of said mold; said protective shell is comprising an inner surface and an outer surface, said protective shell is being made from one or more predetermined materials; iv) starting from the topography of the surface of the wind turbine blade; or starting from a blade plug as obtained in step i) preparing an enlarged plug; said enlarged plug thereby comprising an outer surface resembling the topography of the outer surface of at least a leading part of said wind turbine blade; said outer surface of said enlarged plug is having larger dimensions than said outer surface of said blade plug; v) from the enlarged plug obtained in step iv), casting a mounting shell having an inner surface and an outer surface, in such a way that the topography of at least part of an inner surface of said mounting shell corresponds to the topography of part of an outer surface of said enlarged plug; vi) applying an adhesive to at least part of the inner surface of said protective shell and/or to at least part of the outer surface of at least a leading portion of said outer surface of said wind turbine blade; vii) fitting the inner surface of said protective shell onto at least a leading portion of the outer surface of said wind turbine blade; viii) fitting the inner surface of said mounting shell onto said outer surface of said protective shell; ix) applying a force to said mounting shell, and thereby also to said outer surface of said protective shell;wherein said force comprises a force component in a cord direction from the leading surface to the trailing surface of said wind turbine blade; wherein said force additionally comprises a force component in a direction perpendicular to the cord direction and perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of said wind turbine blade; thereby pressing said mounting shell and said protective shell against the outer surface of the wind turbine blade; x) allowing said adhesive applied in step vi) to cure, and subsequently removing said mounting shell from said wind turbine blade and from said protective shell.