The effects of rotor scale and control system lag were examined for a variable-speed wind turbine. The scale study was performed on a teetered rotor with radii ranging between 22.5m and 33.75m. A 50% increase in radius more than doubled the rated power and annual energy capture. Using blade pitch to actively control fluctuating flatwise moments allowed for significant reductions in blade mass for a fixed fatigue life. A blade operated in closed-loop mode with a 33.75m radius weighed less than an open-loop blade with a 22.5m radius while maintaining the same fatigue life of rotations. Actuator lag reduced the effectiveness of the control system. However, 50% reductions in blade mass were possible even when implementing a relatively slow actuator with a 1 sec. time constant. Other practical limits on blade mass may include fatigue from start/stop cycles, non-uniform turbulence, tower wake effects, and wind shear. The more aggressive control systems were found to have high control accelerations near which may be excessive for realistic actuators. Two time lags were introduced into the control system when mean wind speed was estimated in a rapidly changing wind environment. The first lag was the length of time needed to determine mean wind speed, and therefore the mean control settings. The second was the frequency at which these mean control settings were changed. Preliminary results indicate that quickly changing the mean settings (every 10 seconds) and using a moderate length mean averaging time (60 seconds) resulted in the longest fatigue life. It was discovered that large power fluctuations occurred during open-loop operation which could cause sizeable damage to a realistic turbine generator. These fluctuations are reduced by one half or more when aerodynamic loads are actively controlled.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
November 2001
Technical Papers
Scale and Lag Effects on Control of Aerodynamic Power and Loads on a HAWT Rotor
P. J. Moriarty,
P. J. Moriarty
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Search for other works by this author on:
A. J. Eggers,, Jr.,
A. J. Eggers,, Jr.
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Search for other works by this author on:
K. Chaney,
K. Chaney
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Search for other works by this author on:
W. E. Holley
W. E. Holley
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Search for other works by this author on:
P. J. Moriarty
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
A. J. Eggers,, Jr.
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
K. Chaney
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
W. E. Holley
RANN Inc., 744 San Antonio Rd., Suite 26, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Contributed by the Solar Energy Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for publication in the ASME JOURNAL OF SOLAR ENERGY ENGINEERING. Manuscript received by the ASME Solar Energy Division, March 2001; final revision June 2001. Associate Editor: D. Berg.
J. Sol. Energy Eng. Nov 2001, 123(4): 339-345 (7 pages)
Published Online: June 1, 2001
Article history
Received:
March 1, 2001
Revised:
June 1, 2001
Citation
Moriarty , P. J., Eggers, , A. J., Jr. , Chaney , K., and Holley, W. E. (June 1, 2001). "Scale and Lag Effects on Control of Aerodynamic Power and Loads on a HAWT Rotor ." ASME. J. Sol. Energy Eng. November 2001; 123(4): 339–345. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.1408305
Download citation file:
Get Email Alerts
Cited By
Analysis of Erosion of Surfaces in Falling Particle Concentrating Solar Power
J. Sol. Energy Eng (April 2025)
Related Articles
Wind Shear and Turbulence Effects on Rotor Fatigue and Loads Control
J. Sol. Energy Eng (November,2003)
Relevant Criteria for Testing the Quality of Models for Turbulent Wind Speed Fluctuations
J. Sol. Energy Eng (August,2008)
Effects of Wind Turbine Starting Capability on Energy Yield
J. Eng. Gas Turbines Power (April,2012)
A Parallelized Coupled Navier-Stokes/Vortex-Panel Solver
J. Sol. Energy Eng (November,2005)
Related Proceedings Papers
Related Chapters
Wind Turbine Airfoils and Rotor Wakes
Wind Turbine Technology: Fundamental Concepts in Wind Turbine Engineering, Second Edition
Power Quality Improvement in Windmill System Using STATCOM
International Conference on Computer Technology and Development, 3rd (ICCTD 2011)
Wind Turbine Aerodynamics Part A: Basic Principles
Wind Turbine Technology: Fundamental Concepts in Wind Turbine Engineering, Second Edition