Wind Turbine Blade Trailing Edge Composite Segmentation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wind turbine blades face instability and weight issues due to increased gravitational and centrifugal loads, with existing stabilization methods either increasing weight or making it difficult to support the trailing edge region effectively.
Innovation Solution
A wind turbine blade with a trailing edge structure that includes composite materials distributed in a strip-like manner, reinforced by fiber fabrics and auxiliary spars, and a manufacturing method that involves resin infusion and mold heating to create a stable, lightweight design.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If foam is filled to support the trailing edge region, then the trailing edge stability is improved, but the blade weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The trailing edge bonding region is divided into multiple segments along the spanwise direction, with composite materials arranged at intervals rather than continuous filling. This segmentation allows the trailing edge to be stabilized while leaving gaps that reduce overall material usage and weight.
Solution Approach 2:
Composite materials are concentrated in the trailing edge bonding region where stabilization is most needed, rather than uniform distribution throughout the blade. The strip-like arrangement provides localized reinforcement exactly where the trailing edge requires support.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a trailing edge web is increased, then the trailing edge stability is improved, but the manufacturing difficulty increases due to narrow bonding region
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of increasing web thickness in the traditional direction, the solution transitions to a strip-like composite material arrangement that extends along the spanwise dimension. This dimensional change allows stabilization without requiring a wider bonding region, making manufacturing feasible.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials with fiber fabric wrapping around foam reinforcements to create a structurally efficient trailing edge bonding region. This composite construction provides high strength-to-weight ratio and can be manufactured in the narrow bonding region without requiring excessive web width.
3Power
If the blade chord is increased to capture more wind energy, then the power generation capacity is improved, but the gravitational and centrifugal loads increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The use of composite materials with foam reinforcements and fiber fabric wrapping provides high structural efficiency, allowing the blade to maintain increased chord dimensions for power generation while keeping the overall weight and loads manageable through optimized material distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
Reinforcements are concentrated in the trailing edge bonding region where stresses are highest, rather than uniform distribution throughout the blade. This localized reinforcement allows the blade to handle increased loads from larger chord dimensions without proportionally increasing overall weight.
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
The solution provides a stable and lightweight trailing edge structure that reduces adhesive and reinforcement usage, improving strength and stability while being suitable for large-scale industrialization.
Implementation Method 1
performing resin infusion for integral curing and moulding
Implementation Method 2
combining the upper shell and the lower shell, performing heating, and performing resin infusion for integral curing and moulding
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~6
Figure 7~9
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a wind turbine blade with an improved trailing edge structure and a manufacturing method thereof. The wind turbine blade includes an upper shell, a lower shell, and a trailing edge. A trailing edge bonding region enclosed by the upper shell, the lower shell and the trailing edge is filled with composite materials, the composite materials are distributed in a strip-like manner along a length direction of the blade; and the composite materials (3) are arranged at intervals in an airfoil chordwise direction. The discontinuous filling structure reduces usages of the adhesive and the reinforcements of the composite materials. The small web can improve a strength of the trailing edge region, and reduce a bonding width of the trailing edge. Therefore, the present disclosure realizes a light weight of the wind turbine blade.