Corrugated Pre-Cured Laminate Plates for Wind Turbine Blades

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Solution Overview

Problem

Wind turbine rotor blades face challenges in conforming to desired curvature during manufacturing due to the stiffness of pre-cured laminate composites, which are defect-prone and labor-intensive to handle, especially when trying to achieve increased stiffness and buckling resistance.

Innovation Solution

The use of pre-cured laminate plates with corrugations or channels that allow for reduced thickness regions, enabling easier conformation to the chordwise curvature of the blade and improved resin transfer during infusion, thereby enhancing the manufacturing process and structural integrity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If pre-cured laminate plates are used to increase stiffness and buckling resistance, then structural strength is improved, but the plates become difficult to conform to the desired curvature of the blade

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestiffness and buckling resistanceVSAvoidconformance to curvature

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The laminate plate is segmented by forming channels or corrugations that divide the plate body into multiple sections. This segmentation allows the plate to flex and conform to the curved surfaces of the blade while maintaining overall structural integrity and stiffness when assembled.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The laminate plate incorporates channels that create a porous or hollow structure within the plate body. This reduces the plate's rigidity enough to allow conforming to curvature during manufacturing, while the pre-cured laminate material maintains defect resistance and structural strength when properly positioned and assembled.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #31Porous materials

2Ease of manufacture

If channels are formed in the plate body to improve conformance, then ease of manufacture is improved, but the plate thickness is reduced which may compromise structural integrity

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconformance to curvatureVSAvoidstructural integrity

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The channels are strategically positioned within the plate body to create local flexibility where needed for conformance, while the overall plate thickness and laminate structure are maintained in critical load-bearing regions. This allows the plate to conform to curvature without compromising structural integrity where the channels are not present.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS10077758B2Corrugated pre-cured laminate plates for use within wind turbine rotor blades

Publication Date: 2018.09.18 GE INFRASTRUCTURE TECH LLC

AI summary

A pre-cured laminate plate for use within a component of a wind turbine rotor blade may generally include a plate body extending in a thickness direction between a first side and a second side and in a widthwise direction between a first end and a second end. The plate body may define a plate thickness between the first and second sides. The pre-cured laminate plate may also include a plurality of channels formed in the plate body between the first and second ends. Each channel may extend in the thickness direction between a top end that is open along the first side of the plate body and a bottom end that terminates at a location between the first and second sides of the plate body such that the plate body defines a reduced thickness between the bottom end of each channel and the second side of the plate body.