EDF power solutions was interested in advancing its wind blade monitoring capabilities for potential blade damage in its fleet of Senvion MM92 turbines in California.
Scheduling crane usage can be costly and disruptive to operations, so having a more proactive and discrete blade monitoring solution would allow EDF to identify potential cracks. Most importantly, EDF would be able to monitor the progression and rate of crack propagation and severity so that maintenance and crane servicing could be scheduled at the appropriate time for maximum implementation and savings.
Solution/Trial Overview
BLADEcontrol is a condition monitoring system using dual-axis accelerometers in the turbine blades to detect changes in vibrational response correlated with common damages and structural health issues. BLADEcontrol was installed, beginning in April 2024, to provide high-resolution vibration data throughout a trial that described the structural health of MM92 turbine blades. The BLADEcontrol system was installed by EDF.
Figure 1: Image of H-Crack near CoG.
A specific H-Crack (see Figure 1) damage near center of gravity (CoG), previously identified with aerial imagery, was able to be confirmed at the onset of the trial by using BLADEcontrol’s advanced condition monitoring system. At the onset, a negligible crack growth was detected, and the BLADEcontrol system was used over the ensuing months to detect any progression of the crack and accurately measure the natural frequencies associated with this damage type. The data is processed in both the time and frequency domains to discover eigenfrequency trends and perform signal energy analyses.
With ongoing monitoring and reporting over a one-year period from April 2024 to April 2025, BLADEcontrol was able to keep the EDF team informed so it could continuously assess the state of the crack and then carefully plan maintenance at a time that fit its optimal schedule.
Once the repair was scheduled and completed, the signal energy returned to normal levels and the natural frequencies aligned with the expected peaks associated with an undamaged LM45.3m blade (see Figure 2).
Figure 2: The normalized signal energy displayed on Weidmuller’s WebVis Dashboard returned to typical levels after the H-Crack was repaired in March 2025.
Benefits
The ability of BLADEcontrol to detect damage at the onset while simultaneously tracking the rate of crack progression allowed EDF to reduce unplanned downtime, maximize uptime and streamline operations to enhance profitability. Additionally, post-repair data clearly shows a four-times reduction in signal energy on the affected blade, confirming the repair was done properly and resulted in the expected outcome.
“Weidmuller’s BLADEcontrol is a robust system design with solid enclosures, high quality components with built-in protection systems, and comprehensive documentation,” commented Phil Gauthier, senior manager of wind technology strategy for EDF power solutions. “Though the wired sensors required specialized in-blade labor during installation, the outcome was a system that produced high fidelity data coupled with high data availability throughout the trial period. The mature data visualization platform for data monitoring and alerting allowed EDF power solutions to follow the damage evolution throughout the blade repair campaign.”
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