Tunable Mass Damper for Locked Wind Turbine Blade Vibrations
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wind turbines experience aero-elastic instabilities and vibrations, such as vortex-induced and stall-induced vibrations, when the rotor is locked or idling, leading to potential blade damage, and existing solutions like aerodynamic devices increase costs and installation time.
Innovation Solution
An electronically tunable mass damper is attached to the rotor blades, which senses vibrations and automatically adjusts its mass component along a stroke path to counteract oscillations, using a flywheel and electrical generator to exert a counter-torque, allowing for remote tuning and operation without external intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If aerodynamic devices are attached to the blades to reduce vortices and increase damping, then blade vibrations are reduced, but installation costs and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces aerodynamic devices with a mechanical vibration damping system consisting of a mass damper assembly that uses inertial forces to counteract blade vibrations. The mass damper includes a movable mass connected to the blade via springs and dampers, creating a mechanical system that actively counteracts vibrations without requiring aerodynamic modifications or additional installation time for complex aerodynamic components.
2Ease of manufacture
If the rotor is locked against rotation, then the wind turbine can be maintained or installed, but the blades become susceptible to aero-elastic instabilities
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by installing the mass damper system before the rotor is locked, so that the vibration damping mechanism is already in place and active when the rotor is in the locked position. The mass damper is pre-configured to counteract vibrations that will occur during maintenance or installation operations, providing protective action before the harmful condition (locked rotor vulnerability) occurs.
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 effectively reduces and prevents blade vibrations and loads during non-operational modes, enhancing safety and reducing installation costs and time, while being insensitive to temperature changes and adaptable to changing operating conditions.
Implementation Method 1
sensing movement of the mass component resulting from vibrations or oscillations induced in the rotor blade
Implementation Method 2
using a flywheel and electrical generator to exert a counter-torque
Implementation Method 3
the mass damper having a mass component that moves along a stroke path
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method are provided for reducing vibrations and loads in one or more rotor blades on a rotor hub of a wind turbine when the rotor hub is in a locked or idling condition. An electronically tunable mass damper is attached to a fixed location on one or more of the rotor blades. The mass damper is maintained on the rotor blades during the locked or idling condition of the rotor hub. The method includes sensing movement of a mass component of the mass damper from vibrations or oscillations induced in the rotor blade. The mass damper is automatically tuned based on the sensed movements of the mass component by automatically varying an electrical characteristic of the mass damper.