Here’s some good news for renewables (and something for the U.S. wind industry to aspire to): Renewable energy sources supplied nearly 65% of Germany’s electricity last week, with wind turbines responsible for a large portion of that generation and 48.4% of power production nationwide. In fact, according to research institute Fraunhofer ISE, a result of…
Interview with Head of Energy Informatics and Information Systems at Fraunhofer IEE
Reinhard Mackensen discusses the security of wind-farm information. Q. Data science has accelerated at an exponential pace during the relatively short life of the wind power industry. What are the major changes over the past 5 to 10 years? A. Dr. Mackensen: The first major change was the regulatory framework which forced operators to open…
Turbine blades that bend & twist can improve their power output
The 20-meter-long test blade can rotate slightly around its own axis should strong gusts occur in order to mitigate the wind pressure to a certain degree.
Fraunhofer researches how to prevent rain erosion on turbine blades
Smalls drops, big impact: Even just minor rain erosion damage on rotor blade surfaces can impair performance and shorten the service life of wind turbines. This is according to research and development institute, Fraunhofer Iwes, which has launched a three-year study into the effect of rain erosion on wind-turbine blades. Fraunhofer has been operating a…
Are machines that repair themselves a possibility for wind turbines?
Self-repairing dispenser for engine production was developed within the EU-funded SelSus research project with project partner Manufacturing Technology.
Improving tower designs for increased hub heights
There are many more nuances to be considered regarding tower design. For example, site conditions and wind speed, noise level, safety, and without a doubt the consistent issue of cost are issues.
Looking for flaws (dross) in turbine hub castings, and more
Foundries for castings make sure they liberally remove all the dross and release only dross-free products for use.
New radar scanner tests turbine blades for defects
To increase the efficiency and reliability of wind turbines, Fraunhofer IAF has developed a material scanner for checking the quality of rotor blades. Using radar-based technology, defects in the material composition of the wind turbine blades can be detected in even greater detail. Identifying defects in composite plastics The rotors, which are usually equipped with…
Arkona offshore wind project redesigned with help of advanced 3D seabed modeling
In May of this year, E.ON and Statoil gave the green light for construction of the 385-MW Arkona Becken Südost wind farm, 35 km northeast of the island of Rügen. The use of seismic surface surveys made it possible to stick to schedule on this € 1.2 billion project despite changes to the wind-farm design.…
A long-term strain sensor for offshore wind turbines
We have developed a sensor ring that simplifies these measurements and will allow them to be performed automatically in the future,
Generating eco-friendly power with metal rotor blades
Manufacturing steel blades offers numerous advantages. For one, it makes turbines significantly more ecological, because more than 90% of the steel can be recycled.
Adwen and IWES sign agreement for testing of Adwen’s 8MW turbine
Adwen and Fraunhofer IWES have signed an agreement to test the drivetrain for Adwen’s next generation turbine of 8MW rated power, the largest offshore turbine on the market. Under the terms of the agreement, the 8MW drive train will be tested in IWES´s new Dynalab (Dynamic Nacelle Testing Laboratory) site, a unique test stand located…
Generating eco-friendly power with metal rotor blades
Wind turbines deliver environmentally friendly electricity. Yet the fiber-reinforced plastics often used in very large rotor blades are almost impossible to recycle. Not so with steel blades: since these are composed of steel, their re-cyclability exceeds 90%. Plus they cost significantly less than comparable plastic blades. Wind turbines feed eco-friendly power into the grid. To…
Fraunhofer IWES verifies performance of ZephIR’s wind lidar buoy
Fraunhofer IWES has successfully finished the validation of their Wind Lidar Buoy which confirms the commercial acceptance of wind data from the on-board ZephIR lidar for use in floating offshore energy assessments. This according to the criteria within the Carbon Trust Offshore Wind Accelerator roadmap for the commercial acceptance of floating lidar technology. The Fraunhofer…