Icing Detection Sensor Placement on Wind Turbine Blades
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for detecting icing on wind turbine blades are unreliable, often causing rotor unbalance issues and providing inaccurate icing forecasts due to the installation of sensors on fixed surfaces, which fail to accurately represent the conditions on aerodynamic surfaces, leading to premature shutdowns or false alarms.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a temperature sensor and a water/ice presence sensor installed close to the aerodynamic surface, specifically at positions corresponding to maximum fluid pressure, allowing direct detection of temperature and water presence to effectively forecast icing risks by processing these parameters to prevent false alarms and ensure timely activation of anti-icing systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If Rosemount type sensors are installed on wind turbine blades to detect icing conditions, then accurate icing detection is achieved, but rotor unbalance problems occur due to the sensor mass
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses acoustic waves as an intermediary to detect icing conditions indirectly. Instead of placing mass sensors on the blades, acoustic sensors are mounted on the nacelle and use sound wave propagation through air as the intermediary medium to detect icing on rotating blades without adding blade mass.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical vibration sensors with acoustic sensors. Instead of mechanically coupling sensors to the rotating blades (which causes unbalance), acoustic sensors mounted on the stationary nacelle detect icing through acoustic wave propagation, substituting mechanical measurement with acoustic measurement.
2Ease of manufacture
If sensors are installed on fixed surfaces like the nacelle to detect icing, then the detection system is simple to implement, but the indications about actual icing on rotor blades become unreliable
Solution Approach 1:
Acoustic waves serve as the intermediary that connects the fixed nacelle-mounted sensors to the rotating blades. The acoustic properties of air change when icing occurs on the blades, and these changes are detected by sensors on the nacelle through the acoustic field, maintaining both simplicity and reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The acoustic sensor system mounted on the nacelle serves multiple functions: it detects icing on rotating blades, monitors atmospheric conditions, and provides reliable indications across different operating conditions, making the fixed installation universally applicable and reliable.
3Device complexity
If sensors detect icing conditions only when already present, then the detection system is simple, but premature shutdowns or false alarms occur when only remote risk exists
Solution Approach 1:
The acoustic sensor system detects changes in acoustic wave propagation that precede actual icing formation. By monitoring these preliminary acoustic indicators, the system can trigger preventive anti-icing measures before ice accumulates to dangerous levels, avoiding both false alarms and delayed response.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors acoustic parameters and provides feedback about icing risk levels. This real-time feedback allows the control system to adjust anti-icing activation thresholds dynamically, reducing false alarms while maintaining timely response to actual icing conditions.
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 system provides accurate and timely detection of icing risks, reducing the likelihood of premature shutdowns and false alarms, maintaining optimal operating conditions for wind turbines by directly measuring critical parameters on the surface, thus enhancing the reliability and efficiency of icing detection.
Implementation Method 1
a temperature sensor... installed in the immediate vicinity of the aerodynamic surface on which the risk of icing is to be detected, to detect the temperature of the fluid flow lapping said surface
Implementation Method 2
a sensor for detecting the presence of water or ice... installed in the immediate vicinity of the aerodynamic surface... to detect... the presence of water in the fluid flow lapping said surface
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to a method and a system for detecting the risk of icing on aerodynamic surfaces lapped by a fluid flow (F), in particular on load-bearing surfaces of fluid machines, of the type comprising a temperature sensor (20). The system is characterized in that the temperature sensor (20) is located close to the aerodynamic surface (5S) to be monitored for detecting the temperature of the surface (5S), and that the system comprises a rain sensor (30) located close to the surface (5S) for detecting the presence of water on said surface (5S). The system can thus detect the risk of icing on aerodynamic surfaces in a very effective, simple and inexpensive manner.