The Fraunhofer IWES together with the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and Knowledge Centre WMC have successfully trialed a new format for testing fatigue in sub-components in the trailing edge of wind turbine blades.
The IRPWind project examined a three-metre long segment of a trailing edge taken from a 34-metre rotor blade.
DTU carried static testing, while the other project partners looked at crack formations at the bond line resulting from cyclic loading.
Fraunhofer IWES said it used a specially-designed frame on a moving adaptor, which was installed on ball joints on both sides of the segment, to carry out the tests.
Fraunhofer IWES project managers Malo Rosemeier and Alexandros Antoniou said: “All in all, we are very pleased with the significant results and believe that this test method will offer the industry added value. The validity of our results was impressive in all respects.”
It will now develop a new test bench in Bremehaven to allow similar tests on a larger scale.
The partners added that the trailing edge test has the potential to become an established addition to the certification process for full-scale blades.
Image: Fraunhofer IWES
Blade fatigue under new spotlight
By EBS