Inflatable Strake for Wind Turbine Tower Vibration Damping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wind turbine towers experience vortex-induced vibrations during transportation and installation, which can cause damage and disrupt the installation process, and existing solutions for damping these vibrations are either ineffective or difficult to handle and store.
Innovation Solution
A detachable strake with a triangular shape and a fluid-filled cavity that can be inflated to increase stability during transport and deflated for easier storage, featuring a re-sealable opening to allow fluid entry and exit, allowing the strake to be reused and easily handled.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a detachable strake is installed on the wind turbine tower to reduce vortex-induced vibrations, then the vibration damping performance is improved, but the handling and storage difficulty increases due to the strake's large volume and weight
Solution Approach 1:
The strake incorporates an inflatable structure with a cavity that can be filled with fluid or gas. When inflated, the strake achieves its functional shape for vibration damping; when deflated, it reduces to a compact form for easy handling and storage. This dynamic transformation allows the same structure to satisfy both performance and operational requirements at different stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The physical state of the strake is changed by altering the volume of its internal cavity through inflation and deflation. By changing the amount of fluid or gas in the cavity, the strake transitions between a large-volume functional state and a compact storage state, resolving the contradiction between performance effectiveness and operational ease.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the strake is designed with a large volume to ensure stability during transportation, then the stability is improved, but the storage space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The strake's volume is made dynamic through the inflatable cavity structure. During transportation and installation, the cavity is inflated to provide the necessary stability and structural rigidity. During storage, the cavity is deflated to minimize the volume occupied. This dynamic volume adjustment resolves the contradiction between stability requirements and storage space constraints.
Solution Approach 2:
The strake structure allows the cavity to be nested within the outer shell. When deflated, the cavity material can be compressed and stored within the overall strake structure, significantly reducing the external volume required for storage while maintaining the ability to expand to full volume when needed for stability.
3Strength
If the strake is made rigid to maintain its shape for effective vibration reduction, then the structural integrity is improved, but the ease of folding and storage decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The strake employs a flexible yet structurally sound design where the outer shell and internal cavity work together. When inflated, the internal pressure provides structural integrity and rigidity for effective vibration reduction. When deflated, the structure becomes flexible and can be easily folded or rolled for storage. This dynamic rigidity-flexibility transformation resolves the contradiction between structural strength and storage ease.
Solution Approach 2:
The strake utilizes a flexible shell structure that can maintain structural integrity when pressurized but remains flexible when unpressurized. The thin film or shell material provides sufficient strength to maintain shape during operation while allowing the structure to be folded or compressed during storage, eliminating the need for rigid construction.
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 strake effectively reduces vortex-induced vibrations during transportation and installation, while its inflatable and deflatable design enhances handling and storage efficiency by reducing volume and weight, making it easier to manage and transport.
Implementation Method 1
The strake comprises at least one element that comprises a contiguous cavity that is filled with a fluid. When the strake is stored on board of the ship, the fluid is evacuated from the cavity and the strake can be reduced in its volume.
Data Source
AI summary
A strake for a wind turbine tower is provided A strake for a wind turbine tower is disclosed, whereby the strake is realized as a detachable strake to be mounted to a wind turbine tower to reduce vortex induced vibrations. The strake includes an outer structure and the outer structure defines three sides that are interconnected by three angles, so that the strake includes a mainly triangular shape in its cross-cut perpendicular to its longitudinal direction. The strake includes at least one element that includes a contiguous cavity that is filled with a fluid.