ECONOMIC USE OF CARBON FIBRES IN LARGE WIND TURBINE BLADES?

摘要

The increasing size of wind turbine rotors and the shift to offshore wind turbines lead to changing design requirements. The use of carbon fibres can result in increasing power performance of the rotor and decreasing costs of the rest of the turbine. Present applications of carbon fibres for wind turbine rotor blades have been limited to specialities, due to the low design strains and relatively high price. Recent developments in carbon fibre production however have resulted in a considerably lower material price, while maintaining the stiffness. In a European project, partially supported by the Non-Nuclear Energy R&D Programme, the possibilities for economic use of carbon fibres will be determined. This will be done by establishment of CFRP material design data, development of a cost-effective blade root joint and production method and an assessment of blade and turbine costs. The R&D project has started on September 1998 and will be running for 3 years. Up to now promising material combinations have been tested and ranked in a pre-selection testing program (compression and shear testing). The two most-promising material combinations are now being tested to establish the material design data.