Event Title

A Novel Solution for Preventing Leading Edge Erosion in Wind Turbine Blades

Presenter Information

William Finnegan, Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, National University of Ireland Galway, Ireland; MaREI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine, Ryan Institute, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
Michael Flanagan, Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, National University of Ireland Galway, Ireland; MaREI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine, Ryan Institute, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland; ÉireComposites Teo, An Choill Rua, Inverin, Co. Galway, Ireland
Róisín Ó Coistealbha, ÉireComposites Teo, An Choill Rua, Inverin, Co. Galway, Ireland
Priya Dasan Keeryadath, ÉireComposites Teo, An Choill Rua, Inverin, Co. Galway, Ireland
Tomas Flanagan, ÉireComposites Teo, An Choill Rua, Inverin, Co. Galway, Ireland
Jamie Goggins, School of Engineering, National University of Ireland, Galway;Ryan Institute, National University of Ireland, Galway; SFI MaREI Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine, Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

Location

Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, Ireland

Event Website

https://event.ceri2020.exordo.com/

Start Date

27-8-2020 4:15 PM

End Date

27-8-2020 5:30 PM

Description

As the world shifts to using renewable sources of energy, wind energy has been established as one of the leading forms of renewable energy. However, as wind turbines get increasingly larger, new challenges within the design, manufacture and operation of the turbine are presented. One such challenge is leading edge erosion on wind turbine blades. With larger wind turbine blades, tip speed begin to reach over 500 km per hour. As water droplets impact along the leading edge of the blade, rain erosion begins to occur, increasing maintenance costs and reducing the design life of the blade. In response to this, a novel solution for preventing leading edge erosion in wind turbine blades, “LEP”, which is a leading edge component of a wind blade, has been developed. This paper describes the development and testing of the new LEP component. The LEP is manufactured from thermoplastic polyurethane and has been proven through structural testing and operational trials.

Recommended Citation

Finnegan, William; Flanagan, Michael; Ó Coistealbha, Róisín; Dasan Keeryadath, Priya; Flanagan, Tomas; and Goggins, Jamie, "A Novel Solution for Preventing Leading Edge Erosion in Wind Turbine Blades" (2020). Civil Engineering Research in Ireland 2020. 2.
https://sword.cit.ie/ceri/2020/9/2