WIND TURBINE LUBRICATION OIL CONDITION MONITORING, THE IMPACT OF WATER CONTAMINATION AND OXIDATION

摘要

The safety and reliability of a functioning wind turbine depend largely on the protective properties of the lubrication oil for its drive train subassemblies such as the gearbox and thus highlights the important role of lubrication oil condition monitoring and degradation detection on a wind turbine. The purpose of lubrication oil condition monitoring and degradation detection is to determine whether the oil has deteriorated to such a degree that it no longer fulfills its function. Lubrication oil degradation is classified into three categories: particle contamination, water contamination and oxidation which are defined as three basic degradation features. In this paper, the impact of water contamination and oxidation on the health condition of turbine gearbox oil are investigated. Water contamination can cause oxidation to increase tenfold, which leads to premature aging of the lubricant. Therefore, these two basic degradation features play a significant role in turbine failure prevention. In this research, gear oil oxidation and water contamination were simulated in a controlled laboratory environment. Lubrication oil performance parameters including dynamic/kinematic viscosity, density, dielectric constant and water content were closely monitored and trended against increasing water contamination and oxidation level. The effectiveness and sensitivity of each performance parameter against water contamination and oxidation level will be discussed.