Posters

Abstract

This presentation will discuss the use of continuous, remote blade condition monitoring as an alternative to traditional methods of determining blade integrity, and how it enables wind turbine operators to make more informed and timely blade maintenance decisions. For both onshore and offshore wind turbine blades, the standard industry practice to determine blade integrity involves conducting manned or drone-based visual inspections in pre-determined time intervals, usually ranging from a few months to up to three years. This enables damages to form and worsen in between scheduled inspections, often resulting in higher maintenance costs, longer downtime, poor blade performance, and in extreme cases, complete blade failure. Advanced technology has been developed to remotely detect blade damages including lighting strikes, skin ruptures and perforations, high-energy impacts, cracking, and delaminations. Through the use of permanently-installed acoustic emission (AE) sensors that detect damages and report it back to a Data-Driven Web Application (DDWA) for access and analysis, wind turbine operators significantly enhance their ability to effectively maintain their blades, while fleet engineers gain the ability to identify, track, and mitigate emerging blade integrity trends across an organization’s turbine fleet. Case studies of AE’s efficacy in detecting blade damages will be presented, along with examples of the way wind energy companies can use this data to inform wind blade integrity management decision-making throughout their organizations, such as the way continuous blade monitoring optimizes inventory planning and spare parts management.