Some aspects on wind turbines monitoring. General considerations and loads on horizontal wind turbines

摘要

The concept Monitoring applied to the Wind Energy technology is similar to the definition used in other branches of Science or Engineering, this is knowing values of variables which have to do with a mechanic system, in our case a wind turbine. These mentioned parameters may have different relationships to our wind turbine; some of them come from the environment the machine is operating in, others, are a measure of how properly the machine is working, and finally, the rest are an assessment of the ''system's health'' during its ''life''. In this chapter we will answer questions such as: What do we need to measure. Why is Monitoring mandatory (from the different points of view of people involved in this world). How can we measure a wind turbine depending on our objectives (Technic, tools, guidance, recommendations, etc). And finally What can we expect in the near future.. The author wants the reader to keep the idea in mind that Monitoring means the richest and most accurate knowledge on wind turbine's operation (Its environment, performances of health). This is the first step that allows us to optimize the operation mode of the machine and improve it (design, manufacturing, even the used modeling tools). When there is so much money involved, this fact becomes a must. (Author)