Presentations
Holi-DOCTOR: Holistic framework for DiagnOstiCs and moniTORing of wind turbine blades
Simon Watson, Professor of Wind Energy Systems and Director of DUWIND, TU Delft
Session
Abstract
Wind turbine blades represent around 30% of the cost of a wind turbine and significant failure rate when compared with other components. Blade monitoring is often carried out by visual inspection either from the ground, using drones or by climbing along the blade itself. Such methods can detect external problems, but internal problems are more difficult to detect. The Holi-DOCTOR combines the use of drive train vibration monitoring, noise measurement, infrared (IR) and vibration monitoring in a holistic framework to improve blade maintenance by reducing costs and increasing confidence in detecting blade faults. Numerical modelling of the drive train structural response is used to assess how to monitor the data from the vibration-based condition monitoring system (CMS) for early warning of possible blade problems. This paper describes the work to couple a drive train model to an aeroelastic model of a wind turbine rotor and shows some first results demonstrating that blade damage can potentially be detected in the vibration signal from the turbine's low speed shaft and bearing.
