Yes / Reliability is critical to the design, operation, maintenance, and performance assessment and improvement of wind turbines (WTs). This paper systematically reviews publicly available reliability data for both onshore and offshore WTs and investigates the impacts of reliability on the cost of energy. WT failure rates and downtimes, broken down by subassembly, are collated from 18 publicly available databases including over 18 000 WTs, corresponding to over 90 000 turbine‐years. The data are classified based on the types of data collected (failure rate and stop rate) and by onshore and offshore populations. A comprehensive analysis is performed to investigate WT subassembly reliability data variations, identify critical subassemblies, compare onshore and offshore WT reliability, and understand possible sources of uncertainty. Large variations in both failure rates and downtimes are observed, and the skew in failure rate distribution implies that large databases with low failure rates, despite their diverse populations, are less uncertain than more targeted surveys, which are easily skewed by WT type failures. A model is presented to evaluate the levelised cost of energy as a function of WT failure rates and downtimes. A numerical study proves a strong and nonlinear relationship between WT reliability and operation and maintenance expenditure as well as annual energy production. Together with the cost analysis model, the findings can help WT operators identify the optimal degree of reliability improvement to minimise the levelised cost of energy. / UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). Grant Number: EP/P009743/1

Wind turbine blades experience tremendous stresses while in operation. Failure of a blade can damage other components or other wind turbines. This research focuses on developing an electromagnetic energy harvester for powering structural health monitoring (SHM) equipment inside a turbine blade. The harvester consists of a magnet inside a tube with coils outside the tube. The changing orientation of the blade causes the magnet to slide along the tube, inducing a voltage in the coils which in turn powers the SHM system. This thesis begins with a brief history of electromagnetic energy harvesting and energy harvesters in rotating environments. Next a model of the harvester is developed encompassing the motion of the magnet, the current in the electrical circuit, and the coupling between the mechanical and electrical domains. The nonlinear coupling factor is derived from Faraday's law of induction and from modeling the magnet as a magnetic dipole moment. Three experiments are performed to validate the model: a free fall test to verify the coupling factor expression, a rotating test to study the model with a load resistor circuit, and a capacitor charging test to examine the model with an energy storage circuit. The validated model is then examined under varying tube lengths and positions, varying coil sizes and positions, and variations in other parameters. Finally a sample harvester is presented that can power an SHM system inside a large scale wind turbine blade spinning up to 20 RPM and can produce up to 14.1 mW at 19 RPM. / Master of Science

Wind energy is the world´s fastest-growing renewable energy source. Thus, the amount of people exposed to wind farm noise is increasing. Due to its broadband amplitude modulated characteristic, wind turbine noise (WTN) is more annoying than noise produced by other common community/industrial sources. Aerodynamic noise along the blade span is the dominant noise source of modern large wind turbines. This type of noise propagates through the atmosphere in the proximity of wind farms. However, modelling and simulating WTN propagation over large distances is challenging due to the complexity of atmospheric conditions. Real temperature, wind velocity and relative humidity measurements typically show a characteristic nonlinear behavior. A comprehensive propagation model that addresses this problem while maintaining high accuracy and computational efficiency is necessary. A Hamiltonian Ray tracing (HRT) technique coupled to aerodynamically induced WTN is presented in this work. It incorporates acoustic wave refraction due to spatial speed of sound gradients, a full Doppler Effect formulation resulting from wind velocities in any arbitrary direction, proper acoustic energy dissipation during propagation, and ground reflection. The HRT method averts many of the setbacks presented by other common numerical approaches such as fast field program (FFP), parabolic equation methods (PE), and the standard Eikonal ray tracing (ERT) technique. In addition, it is not bounded to the linearity assumptions made for analytic propagation solutions. A wave phase tracking analysis through inhomogeneous and moving media is performed. Curved ray-paths are numerically computed by solving a non-linear system of coupled first order differential equations. Sound pressure levels through the propagation media are then calculated by using standard ray tubes and performing energy analysis along them. The ray model is validated by comparing a monopole’s ray path results against analytically obtained ones. Sound pressure level predictions are also validated against both FFP and ERT methods. Finally, results for a 5MW modern wind turbine over a flat acoustically soft terrain are provided. / Master of Science / Modelling propagation of noise produced by wind turbines over large distances is a challenging task. Real temperature distributions, flow characteristics around wind turbines, and relative humidity are some of the parameters that affect the behavior of the produced sound in the atmosphere. To this end, a Hamiltonian ray tracing tool that models the propagation of wind turbine noise has been developed and is the main focus of this thesis. This method avoids many of the limitations and inaccurate assumptions presented by other common numerical and analytical approaches. In addition, current commercial noise propagation codes are incapable of fully capturing the physical complexity of the problem. Finally, validation and simulation results for a wind turbine over flat terrain are presented in order to demonstrate the superior accuracy and computational efficiency of the Hamiltonian approach.

La thèse résume la recherche sur le fonctionnement et l’écoulement autour d’une éolienne caréné à deux rotors. Le placement d’une turbine à l’entrée d’un canal divergent permet d’augmenter le débit massique à travers le rotor. Afin de mieux tirer parti de l’augmentation de la vitesse du vent à l’entrée du diffuseur, il a été décidé d’examiner la possibilité de placer un deuxième rotor, tournant dans le sens opposé, dans cette zone.L'étude menée combinait plusieurs voies de recherche différentes, y compris les méthodes de la mécanique des fluides numérique (CFD) et des études expérimentales. Cela a permis de mieux comprendre la nature de l'écoulement et du fonctionnement d'une éolienne à deux rotors. Des recherches expérimentales ont été menées dans la soufflerie de l’Institut de Turbomachinerie de l’Ecole Polytechnique de Lodz (Pologne). Une série de mesures de systèmes d'éoliennes divers, avec et sans carénage, à un et deux rotors, a été réalisée. Les résultats recueillis ont permis de confirmer que le carénage pouvait augmenter considérablement (même deux fois) l'efficacité du rotor. Cependant, les forces aérodynamiques et la vitesse de rotation augmentent également. Cet inconvénient peut être partiellement résolu en utilisant un deuxième rotor et en répartissant les charges aérodynamiques sur deux étages de turbine.Une partie importante de l'étude était les simulations numériques. Ils ont permis de préciser la nature et les paramètres de l'écoulement et d'estimer leur impact sur les performances de l'éolienne. Deux modèles numériques différents ont été développés:• Modèle rotor complet (anglais : Fully-resolved Rotor Model, FRM): modèle URANS dans ANSYS CFX, basé sur la discrétisation de la géométrie complète du rotor; ce modèle a été utilisé pour l'analyse de l’écoulement,• Modèle hybride CFD-BET (théorie de l’élément de pâle): modèle RANS dans ANSYS Fluent, dans lequel le rotor est représenté par les termes source dans les équations de Navier-Stokes, déterminés par un code interne; ce modèle a été utilisé pour évaluer les performances de différentes configurations d'éoliennes.Au cours de la recherche, une correction empirique interne de la perte d’extrémité de la pâle (anglais : tip loss correction) a été proposée, en tenant compte de l’influence du diffuseur. L’étude réalisée a permis d’observer, entre autres, que le déplacement du rotor en aval vers la sortie du diffuseur pouvait entraîner une réduction de la vitesse du vent à travers le rotor en amont, placé à l’entrée du diffuseur, et une diminution de la puissance globale du système. / Doctoral dissertation summarizes the research on the functioning and flow around a two-stage, shrouded wind turbine. Placing the turbine at the inlet of a diverging channel allows to increase the mass flow rate of the flow through the rotor. To better take advantage of the increase in wind speed at the diffuser inlet, it was decided to examine the possibility of placing a second rotor in this area, with the opposite direction of rotation.The conducted study combined several different research paths, including Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methods and experimental studies. This allowed for a more refined understanding of the nature of the flow and operation of a wind turbine with two rotors. Experimental research was carried out in the IMP TUL wind tunnel. A series of measurements of various turbine systems with and without shroud, with single- and double-rotor wind turbine were made. The collected results allowed to confirm that the shrouding can significantly (even twice) increase the efficiency of the rotor. However, aerodynamic forces and rotational speed also increase. This disadvantage can be partially addressed by using a second rotor and distributing aerodynamic loads to two turbine stages.An important part of the study were numerical simulations. They allowed to specify in more detail the nature and parameters of the flow and to estimate their impact on the performance of the wind turbine. Two different numerical models were developed:• Fully-resolved Rotor Model: URANS model in ANSYS CFX, based on discretising the entire geometry of the rotor, used for the flow analysis,• Hybrid model CFD-BET (Blade-Element Theory): RANS model in ANSYS Fluent, in which the rotor is represented by source terms in the Navier-Stokes equations, determined by an in-house code; the model was used to evaluate the performance of different wind turbine configurations.In the course of the research an in-house, empirical tip loss correction was proposed, taking into account the influence of the diffuser. The performed study permitted to observe, among others, that moving the rear rotor towards the outlet of the diffuser may result in a reduction of the wind speed through the front rotor, placed at the inlet to the diffuser, and a decrease in the overall system power.

In the present study, a numerical simulation tool has been developed for the rotor-floater-tether coupled dynamic analysis of Multiple Unit Floating Offshore Wind Turbine (MUFOWT) in the time domain including aero-blade-tower dynamics and control, mooring dynamics and platform motion. In particular, the numerical tool developed in this study is based on the single turbine analysis tool FAST, which was developed by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). For linear or nonlinear hydrodynamics of floating platform and generalized-coordinate-based FEM mooring line dynamics, CHARM3D program, hull-riser-mooring coupled dynamics program developed by Prof. M.H. Kim’s research group during the past two decades, is incorporated. So, the entire dynamic behavior of floating offshore wind turbine can be obtained by coupled FAST-CHARM3D in the time domain. During the coupling procedure, FAST calculates all the dynamics and control of tower and wind turbine including the platform itself, and CHARM3D feeds all the relevant forces on the platform into FAST. Then FAST computes the whole dynamics of wind turbine using the forces from CHARM3D and return the updated displacements and velocities of the platform to CHARM3D. To analyze the dynamics of MUFOWT, the coupled FAST-CHARM3D is expanded more and re-designed. The global matrix that includes one floating platform and a number of turbines is built at each time step of the simulation, and solved to obtain the entire degrees of freedom of the system. The developed MUFOWT analysis tool is able to compute any type of floating platform with various kinds of horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWT). Individual control of each turbine is also available and the different structural properties of tower and blades can be applied. The coupled dynamic analysis for the three-turbine MUFOWT and five-turbine MUFOWT are carried out and the performances of each turbine and floating platform in normal operational condition are assessed. To investigate the coupling effect between platform and each turbine, one turbine failure event is simulated and checked. The analysis shows that some of the mal-function of one turbine in MUFOWT may induce significant changes in the performance of other turbines or floating platform. The present approach can directly be applied to the development of the remote structural health monitoring system of MUFOWT in detecting partial turbine failure by measuring tower or platform responses in the future.

This master thesis deals with study of properties pick-up generators for wind power. First part of thesis studies wind turbines, its structure, generators and describes advantages and disadvantages of ashore and offshore location. The next part presents description of parts of sliding contact. The main part assesses the impact of sea environment on sliding contact in generators at offshore wind turbines.

The goal of the European Union is to make strides towards a circular economy. This means recycling or re-using as much of the material in the economic system as possible. The wind industry faces a great challenge in the years to come as huge quantities of increasingly larger wind turbines reach the end of their service-life. When old wind turbines have been decommissioned, most parts are scrapped and recycled into other applications. The turbineblades however are made from glass- and carbon fibre polymers and are not as easily recycled. Recent bans of putting the blades into landfills steer the industry toward finding new applicationfor the old wind turbine blades. Re-purposing the blades as bridges, shelters, houses and towers has been suggested, as well as re-cycle the material or recover the blades as energy. Regardless of what method is preferred, the wind turbine blades need to be transported to a re-purpose or recycling facility. Because of the distribution of wind turbines within countries, the optimal location of such facilities can be hard to evaluate. The centre-of-gravity method (evaluating the centre-of-mass) has been suggested as a way of evaluating the optimal location of such facilities. The method is built upon the assumption that the wind turbine blade can be easily downsized, transported and accommodated in a single transport. In order to achieve this, the present thesis has compared and evaluated different methods of segmenting the wind turbine blade (mechanical, thermal and chemical) as well as different loading and compressing methods. The mechanical separation methods tend to be more suitable than the thermal and chemical counterparts. The choice of loading methods is dictated by the resulting fraction size of the wind turbine blade after separation. The mass density of the resulting blade could be increased with a suitable way of compression (hydraulic or gravity).

Αντικείμενο της εργασίας είναι η αεροδυναμική και αεροακουστική ανάλυση στροφείων ανεμοκινητήρων οριζοντίου άξονα (α-ο-α). Ο υπολογισμός του πεδίου ροής και των αεροδυναμικών συντελεστών του στροφείου ενός ανεμοκινητήρα επιτυγχάνεται κατά δύο τρόπους, με σκοπό την άμεση σύγκριση των αποτελεσμάτων με κριτήρια αφενός την ακρίβεια και αφετέρου την ευκολία ή πρακτικότητα που προσδιορίζεται κύρια σε όρους χρόνου υπολογισμού και διαθεσιμότητας υπολογιστικών πόρων. Οι δύο επιλεγμένοι τρόποι που διαφοροποιούνται στην φυσικο-μαθηματική μοντελοποίηση του προβλήματος ροής γύρω από το στροφείο του ανεμοκινητήρα, αποτελούν δύο δοκιμασμένες μεθοδολογίες ή τεχνικές ανάλυσης και σχεδιασμού περιστρεφόμενων στροφείων, τα οποία μπορούν να λειτουργούν ως κινητήριες μηχανές ή ως εργομηχανές, είναι η μέθοδος των επιφανειακών στοιχείων και η αριθμητική επίλυση των εξισώσεων Navier-Stokes. Για την αξιολόγηση των υπολογιστικών αποτελεσμάτων επιλέχθηκε ως στροφείο αναφοράς, ο πειραματικός ανεμοκινητήρας NREL phase II. Ο αλγόριθμος των επιφανειακών στοιχείων συμπλέχτηκε με ολοκληρωτικά σχήματα πρόλεξης και υπολογισμού του οριακού στρώματος με σκοπό να συμπεριληφθούν τα φαινόμενα συνεκτικότητας της ροής. Πραγματοποιήθηκε παραμετρική ανάλυση του δρομέα του ανεμοκινητήρα για διαφορετικές συνθήκες λειτουργίας του. Η σύγκριση των αποτελεσμάτων των συντελεστών πίεσης των περιστρεφόμενων πτερυγίων για τέσσερις θέσεις κατά το εκπέτασμα του πτερυγίου με τα πειραματικά δεδομένα δείχνει ικανοποιητική συμφωνία. Για την ανάλυση του πεδίου ροής που παράγεται γύρω από περιστρεφόμενους δρομείς α-ο-α χρησιμοποιήθηκε η μέθοδος της υπολογιστικής ρευστοδυναμικής (CFD). Πραγματοποιήθηκαν RANS προσομοιώσεις για διαφορετικές συνθήκες λειτουργίας του ανεμοκινητήρα και για τέσσερα διαφορετικά μοντέλα τύρβης. Το k-ω SST μοντέλο τύρβης έχει τις μικρότερες αποκλίσεις με τα πειραματικά αποτελέσματα. Η αεροακουστική ανάλυση του στροφείου ενός ανεμοκινητήρα επιτυγχάνεται με την επίλυση της ακουστικής εξίσωσης Ffowcs-Williams Hawkings, μέσω ενός υπολογιστικού κώδικα που αναπτύχθηκε γι’ αυτό το σκοπό. Από τα αποτελέσματα των προσομοιώσεων, φάνηκε στα ροδογράμματα κατευθυντικότητας του ήχου, τα επίπεδα της ακουστικής πίεσης να είναι υψηλότερα για θέσεις παρατηρητή ανάντη και κατάντη του ανεμοκινητήρα. / The aim of this study is to represent the aerodynamic and aeroacoustic analysis of horizontal axis wind turbine (ΗAWT) rotors. The calculation of the flow field and the aerodynamic coefficients over the wind turbine rotor are performed using two methodologies, the panel method and the numerical solution of Navier-Stokes equations. These two methodologies are differentiated in the mathematical modeling approach of the flow around the rotor and are utilized in the design and manufacturing phases of horizontal axis wind turbine rotors. Moreover, the results of these two methodologies are compared in terms of the accuracy and the computational time required. For the evaluation of the computational results the experimental wind turbine NREL phase II is chosen as the reference rotor. An invicid/viscous interaction algorithm is developed using integral boundary layer equations coupled with the low order panel method solution in order to account the viscous effects. A parametric analysis of the wind turbine rotor is conducted for different operating conditions. The comparison of the results of the pressure coefficients of the rotating blades for four spanwise positions along the blade with the experimental data shows satisfactory agreement. The analysis of the near and far flow field of HAWT is obtained via CFD by RANS simulations of four different turbulence models (Spalart-Allmaras, k-ε, k-ε RNG and k-ω SST). From the conducted study, it is confirmed the ability of analysis of a HAWT rotor flow field with the RANS equations and the good agreement of the computations with experimental data, when the k-ω SST turbulence model is used. The aeroacoustic analysis of the HAWT is based on the solution of the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) equation via a computer code developed for this purpose. The radiation patterns of the calculated aeroacoustic noise show that high level amplitudes are calculated for upwind and downwind positions.

La technique d'intégration des systèmes éoliens verticaux (VAWT) au service des logements individuels, collectifs et tertiaires est une approche intéressante pour les acteurs de la maitrise d'énergie pour promouvoir une utilisation rationnelle de l'énergie. Le choix de l'implantation d'une éolienne en milieu urbain est déterminé par la hauteur des bâtiments, la vitesse du vent et l'intensité de turbulence du site. Les conditions de vents sévères à faible altitude sont favorables à une implantation de VAWT. Dans certaines villes, la hauteur moyenne des bâtiments est relativement faible et ceci fait qu'en ces lieux, les VAWTs sont appréciables par rapport aux HAWTs. La mécanique des fluides numériques (CFD) est mise en œuvre pour modéliser les écoulements d'air au travers d'éoliennes et des bâtiments. Un problème CFD modélisé avec un modèle de turbulence approprié donneront des résultats de simulations qui s'approcheront des réalités physiques et des résultats de l'expérimentation. Dans cette étude, les modèles standard k-" et SST k-! ont été utilisés. Après analyse des possibilités d'intégration d'une VAWT, la toiture reste la zone d'intégration la plus intéressante. En plus de l'étude aérodynamique, nous avons entamé une modélisation électrique de la chaîne de conversion de l'éolienne en utilisant le logiciel Matlab/Simulink. Le travail a été effectué dans le but de déterminer la puissance électrique susceptible d'être produite par l'éolienne. Pour finaliser cette étude, un modèle de couplage électrique de VAWTs avec un bâtiment considéré comme un modèle de charge est présenté. / The building integration of the vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) to supply the individual, collective and tertiary residences consumption is an interesting approach that can help architects and the actors of the energy control to promote a rational use of renewable energy in the in homes. The choice of the location of the urban wind turbine type is determined by building height, wind speed and turbulence intensity of the site. The severe conditions of wind at low altitude are favorable for a VAWT installation. In some cities, the average buildings height is low, in these places, the VAWTs must be appreciable compared to the HAWTs. The modelling of the air flow through the wind turbine and the couple building-wind turbine involves the computation fluid dynamics (CFD). A problem modeled with a suitable turbulence model will give results that approach the physical reality and the experiment results. In this study, the standard k-" and SST k-! models were used. After analyzing the possibilities of VAWT integration, the roof is the most interesting integration area. In addition to CFD method, we have started to study the electrical model of the VAWT. The work was conducted to determine the electrical power generated by the wind turbine using Matlab/Simulink software. To complete the study, a VAWT model coupled with a building where the building is considered as a consumption model is presented.

Efficient temporal resolution and spatial grids are important in simulation of the inflow turbulence for wind turbine loads analyses. There have not been many published studies that address optimal space-time resolution of generated inflow velocity fields in order to estimate accurate load statistics. This study investigates turbine extreme and fatigue load statistics for a utility-scale 5MW wind turbine with a hub-height of 90 m and a rotor diameter of 126 m. Load statistics, spectra, and time-frequency analysis representations are compared for various alternative space and time resolutions employed in inflow turbulence field simulation. Conclusions are drawn regarding adequate resolution in space of the inflow turbulence simulated on the rotor plane prior to extracting turbine load statistics. Similarly, conclusions are drawn with regard to what constitutes adequate temporal filtering to preserve turbine load statistics. This first study employs conventional Fourier-based spectral methods for stochastic simulation of velocity fields for a neutral atmospheric boundary layer. In the second part of this study, large-eddy simulation (LES) is employed with similar resolutions in space and time as in the earlier Fourier-based simulations to again establish turbine load statistics. A comparison of extreme and fatigue load statistics is presented for the two approaches used for inflow field generation. The use of LES-generated flows (enhanced in deficient high-frequency energy by the use of fractal interpolation) to establish turbine load statistics in this manner is computationally very expensive but the study is justified in order to evaluate the ability of LES to be used as an alternative to more common approaches. LES with fractal interpolation is shown to lead to accurate load statistics when compared with stochastic simulation. A more compelling reason for using LES in turbine load studies is the following: for stable boundary layers, it is not possible to generate realistic inflow velocity fields using stochastic simulation. The present study presents a demonstration that, despite the computational costs involved, LES-generated inflows can be used for loads analyses for utility-scale turbines. The study sets the stage for future computations in the stable boundary layer where low-level jets, large speed and direction shears across the rotor, etc. can possibly cause large turbine loads; then, LES will likely be the inflow turbulence generator of choice. / text