Wind Turbine Rotor Blade Angle Control During Storms
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wind turbines face high mechanical stresses during storms, especially when wind directions are unfavorable, leading to oblique currents and increased loads, which existing solutions fail to adequately mitigate.
Innovation Solution
A method for controlling wind turbines that adjusts the blade angle of rotor blades based on detected gust loads, allowing for angles beyond the traditional 90-degree flag position, using load sensors and control systems like PI and PD controllers to minimize loads, and aligning the turbine in a low-stress orientation during storms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the rotor blades are adjusted to a feathered position (90 degrees) to minimize surface area during storms, then the wind turbine is protected from wind loads, but significant stress still occurs due to oblique currents and unfavorable wind directions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic blade angle adjustment that allows rotor blades to deviate from the traditional fixed 90-degree feathered position. The control system continuously monitors wind conditions and adjusts blade angles individually to optimize protection against varying wind directions and gusts, transforming the static feathering concept into a dynamic load mitigation strategy
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the operational parameters of blade angle adjustment by removing the conventional 90-degree constraint. The control system permits blade angles to exceed 90 degrees and varies angles individually for each blade based on real-time wind conditions, transforming a fixed parameter approach into a flexible, condition-based parameter optimization
2Ease of operation
If the azimuth position is adjusted to align with the wind during storms, then the wind turbine orientation is optimized, but significant stress still occurs due to varying wind directions within storms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the wind turbine control into independent blade-level adjustments rather than treating the rotor as a single unit. Each blade can be angled differently to counteract gusts from specific directions, allowing the system to handle complex, multi-directional wind patterns that affect different parts of the rotor differently
3Device complexity
If traditional feathering control with fixed 90-degree blade angles is used during storms, then the control system is simple, but it fails to account for varying wind directions and gusts
Solution Approach 1:
The invention incorporates feedback mechanisms where sensors detect wind conditions including gusts from different directions, and the control system uses this information to dynamically adjust blade angles. This closed-loop control provides adaptability to varying storm conditions while maintaining manageable system complexity through sensor-based decision making
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for operating a wind turbine (100), and the wind turbine (100) has an aerodynamic rotor (106) with a rotor hub and with rotor blades (202) whose blade angle can be adjusted, and the azimuth direction of the aerodynamic rotor (106) can be adjusted, and the method comprises the steps of sensing a storm situation in which the prevailing wind is so strong that for the sake of self-protection the wind turbine (100) is placed in a rotor idling mode, orienting the rotor (106) in its azimuth position into a low-load orientation with respect to the wind, in which orientation the wind turbine (100) experiences as little loading as possible by the wind from a main wind direction, sensing at least one load (LM) which is caused by a gust of wind and acts on the rotor, and adjusting the blade angle of at least one of the rotor blades (202) in such a way that the at least one rotor blade (202) experiences the lowest possible loading by the gust of wind causing the loading.