Consortium:
The Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture in Zagreb (FSB)
KONČAR – Electrical Engineering Institute Inc. (KONČAR – Institute)
Abstract
Wind turbines are fatigue critical machines used for power generation from wind energy. Due to stochastic wind nature, during their nominal 20-year lifetime wind turbine components are subjected to a great number of fatigue load cycles. Consequently, a fatigue analysis has to be carried out during the design phase in order to ensure adequate fatigue lifetime of wind turbine components, which comprises crack initiation and propagation period.
The research will be conducted on 1 MW KONČAR – Wind Turbine prototype which has been installed on Pometeno Brdo near Split. The main objective of the proposed project is to develop an efficient method for fatigue process analysis of the critical wind turbine components. It is expected to reach a solution to problems related to loading spectrum definition and to numerical simulation of crack initiation and propagation.
The obtained experimental and numerical results, as well as developed analytical methods and models, will result in numerous conclusions that are relevant for future design, material choice, control check planning, and safe wind turbine exploitation.