Wind Turbine Blade Mold Barriers for Uniform Resin Infusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manufacturing large wind turbine blades is challenging due to difficulties in uniformly infusing resin across the blade, particularly at the top, caused by gravitational forces, leading to issues such as air pockets and insufficient resin flow.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a mold arrangement with distinct middle portions where resin infusion and curing are localized to form barriers against gravitational flow, ensuring uniform wetting and curing of the fiber lay-up, using electrical heating elements to accelerate curing in these middle portions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If vacuum-assisted resin infusion is used for large blades, then glue joints are avoided, but resin cannot uniformly wet the fiber lay-up at the top due to gravity
Solution Approach 1:
The mold is divided into distinct zones (upper, middle, lower portions) with different functional requirements. The middle portions are equipped with heating elements to create localized barriers that prevent resin drainage, while other zones maintain different temperature conditions to facilitate resin flow and wetting.
Solution Approach 2:
Temperature parameters are varied across different zones of the mold. The middle portions are heated to cure resin and form barriers, while other zones maintain lower temperatures to allow resin to flow and wet the fiber lay-up uniformly before the barrier forms.
2Reliability
If heating is applied to cure resin in middle portions, then barriers are formed to prevent resin drainage, but this creates a contradiction between preventing resin flow and ensuring uniform wetting
Solution Approach 1:
Resin infusion is performed first to ensure complete and uniform wetting of the fiber lay-up across all zones including the upper portions. Only after the fiber lay-up is fully wetted does the heating process begin to cure the resin and form barriers in the middle portions, preventing subsequent drainage.
Solution Approach 2:
The mold is segmented into functionally distinct zones with independent temperature control. The middle portions are separated and equipped with heating elements to create localized curing zones that form barriers, while upper and lower portions remain at different temperatures to facilitate resin distribution.
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
Prevents resin from drifting due to gravity, ensuring uniform resin infusion and improved quality of the wind turbine blade by preventing air pockets and dry regions, facilitating the production of larger blades.
Implementation Method 1
infusing the fiber lay-up with resin, and curing, by applying heat, the resin locally in the at least two middle portions
Implementation Method 2
a barrier, with respect to a gravity force, is formed between the resin in the at least one upper portion and the lower portion
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A method for manufacturing a wind turbine blade (3), comprising: a) arranging (S1) a fiber lay-up (37) in a mold (9), the mold (9) having, as seen in cross-section, at least one upper portion (18), at least two middle portions (19) and a lower portion (20), b) infusing (S2) the fiber lay-up (37) with resin (39), and c) curing (S3), by applying heat, the resin (39) locally in the at least two middle portions (19) such that in each middle portion (19) a barrier (42), with respect to a gravity force (FG), is formed between the resin (39) in the at least one upper portion (18) and the lower portion (20). By generating the barrier in each of the two middle portions, it can be prevented that resin in the at least one upper portion of the mold is moving due to gravity into the lower portion of the mold.