Patent Application
20130280085
The present disclosure relates in general to wind turbine rotor blades, and more particularly to flow modification devices, such as noise reducers, configured on the rotor blades.
Wind power is considered one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources presently available, and wind turbines have gained increased attention in this regard. A modern wind turbine typically includes a tower, generator, gearbox, nacelle, and one or more rotor blades. The rotor blades capture kinetic energy of wind using known foil principles. The rotor blades transmit the kinetic energy in the form of rotational energy so as to turn a shaft coupling the rotor blades to a gearbox, or if a gearbox is not used, directly to the generator. The generator then converts the mechanical energy to electrical energy that may be deployed to a utility grid.
In many cases, various devices are attached to the rotor blades of wind turbines to perform various functions during operation of the wind turbines. These devices may frequently be attached adjacent to the trailing edges of the rotor blades, and may provide various flow modification functions. For example, noise reducers may be attached to the trailing edges of the rotor blades to reduce the noise and increase the efficiency associated with the rotor blade. However, typical prior art noise reducers have a variety of disadvantages, and may not adequately reduce the noise associated with typical rotor blades.
For example, currently known noise reducers may not account for various characteristics of the air flow past the rotor blades. This failure may impede the noise reduction characteristics of the noise reducers. In particular, currently known noise reducers are typically aligned with the trailing edge, such that the noise reduction features thereof, which may be for example, serrations or bristles, extend perpendicular to the trailing edge or parallel to a local chord line.
Further, as stated, many currently known noise reducers include a plurality of serrations or bristles. However, the serrations and/or bristles of many currently known noise reducers may have similar sizes and shapes throughout the length of the noise reducer. Thus, the noise reducer may fail to individually account for changes in the air flow characteristics throughout the length of the rotor blade.
These current configurations may impede currently known noise reducers from providing noise reduction benefits to rotor blades and wind turbines. For example, current testing of known noise reducer configurations has shown that serrations and bristles having these configurations provide noise reduction benefits that are well below the theoretical benefits.
Further, these current characteristics and the resulting lack of benefits may additionally apply to other various types of flow modification devices, such as vortex generators, riblet assemblies, active flow devices, circulation control devices, etc.
Thus, improved flow modification devices, and particularly noise reducers, for rotor blades are desired in the art. For example, noise reducers and other flow modification devices with improved noise reduction and flow modification features would be advantageous. Specifically, a noise reducer that accounts for various characteristics of the air flow past the rotor blade would be desired.
Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, or may be obvious from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.
In one embodiment, a rotor blade assembly for a wind turbine is disclosed. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade having exterior surfaces defining a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge extending between a tip and a root. The rotor blade further defines a span and a chord. The rotor blade assembly further includes a noise reducer configured on an exterior surface of the rotor blade. The noise reducer includes a plurality of noise reduction features. Each of the plurality of noise reduction features defines a centerline. In a planform view, the centerline of each of the plurality of noise reduction features is approximately parallel to a local flow streamline for that noise reduction feature at the trailing edge of the rotor blade.
In another embodiment, a rotor blade assembly for a wind turbine is disclosed. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade having exterior surfaces defining a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge extending between a tip and a root. The rotor blade further defines a span and a chord. The rotor blade assembly further includes a flow modification device configured on an exterior surface of the rotor blade. The flow modification device includes a flow modification feature. The flow modification feature defines a centerline. In a planform view, the centerline of the flow modification feature is aligned with respect to a local flow streamline for the flow modification feature at the trailing edge of the rotor blade.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures, in which:
Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
Referring to
In some embodiments, the rotor blade 16 may include a plurality of individual blade segments aligned in an end-to-end order from the blade tip 32 to the blade root 34. Each of the individual blade segments may be uniquely configured so that the plurality of blade segments define a complete rotor blade 16 having a designed aerodynamic profile, length, and other desired characteristics. For example, each of the blade segments may have an aerodynamic profile that corresponds to the aerodynamic profile of adjacent blade segments. Thus, the aerodynamic profiles of the blade segments may form a continuous aerodynamic profile of the rotor blade 16. Alternatively, the rotor blade 16 may be formed as a singular, unitary blade having the designed aerodynamic profile, length, and other desired characteristics.
The rotor blade 16 may, in exemplary embodiments, be curved. Curving of the rotor blade 16 may entail bending the rotor blade 16 in a generally flapwise direction and/or in a generally edgewise direction. The flapwise direction may generally be construed as the direction (or the opposite direction) in which the aerodynamic lift acts on the rotor blade 16. The edgewise direction is generally perpendicular to the flapwise direction. Flapwise curvature of the rotor blade 16 is also known as pre-bend, while edgewise curvature is also known as sweep. Thus, a curved rotor blade 16 may be pre-bent and/or swept. Curving may enable the rotor blade 16 to better withstand flapwise and edgewise loads during operation of the wind turbine 10, and may further provide clearance for the rotor blade 16 from the tower 12 during operation of the wind turbine 10.
The rotor blade 16 may further define chord 42 and a span 44. As shown in
Additionally, the rotor blade 16 may define an inboard area 52 and an outboard area 54. The inboard area 52 may be a span-wise portion of the rotor blade 16 extending from the root 34. For example, the inboard area 52 may, in some embodiments, include approximately 33%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 67%, or any percentage or range of percentages therebetween, or any other suitable percentage or range of percentages, of the span 44 from the root 34. The outboard area 54 may be a span-wise portion of the rotor blade 16 extending from the tip 32, and may in some embodiments include the remaining portion of the rotor blade 16 between the inboard area 52 and the tip 32. Additionally or alternatively, the outboard area 54 may, in some embodiments, include approximately 33%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 67%, or any percentage or range of percentages therebetween, or any other suitable percentage or range of percentages, of the span 44 from the tip 32.
As illustrated in
In general, a flow modification device, such as a noise reducer 110, etc., may be configured on a surface of the rotor blade 16. Noise reducers 110 may reduce the aerodynamic noise being emitted from the rotor blade 16 during operation of the wind turbine 10 and/or increase the efficiency of the rotor blade 16. In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a flow modification device may be configured on a surface of the rotor blade 16 adjacent the trailing edge 28 of the rotor blade 16. Alternatively, a flow modification device may be configured on a surface of the rotor blade 16 adjacent the leading edge 26 of the rotor blade 16, or adjacent the tip 32 or the root 34 of the rotor blade 16, or at any other suitable position on the rotor blade 16.
In exemplary embodiments, as shown in
For example, as shown in
A flow modification device according to the present disclosure includes one or more flow modification features. Each flow modification feature is a component of the flow modification device that performs a desired flow modification function. For example, as discussed, in exemplary embodiments, a flow modification device according to the present disclosure is a noise reducer 110. The noise reducer 110 includes a plurality of noise reduction features. In exemplary embodiments, the noise reduction features are serrations 112. In alternative embodiments, however, the noise reduction features may be bristles, brushes, rods, tufts, or other suitable features adapted to provide noise reduction characteristics.
In some embodiments when the flow modification device is a noise reducer 110, and as shown in
The noise reducer 110 may, in some embodiments, be formed from a plurality of noise reducer sections. Each section may include one or more the noise reduction features, and each section may further include a base plate portion. Alternatively, the noise reducer 110 may be a singular, unitary component.
As shown, in embodiments wherein the noise reduction features are serrations 112, adjacent serrations 112 may generally define indentations 116 therebetween. While in exemplary embodiments the serrations 112 are generally V-shaped, defining generally V-shaped indentations 116, in alternative embodiments the serrations 112 and indentations 116 may be U-shaped, or may have any other shape or configuration suitable for reducing the noise being emitted from and/or increasing the efficiency of the rotor blade 16 during operation of the wind turbine 10. For example, in some embodiments, the serrations 112 and indentations 116 may be generally sinusoidal or squared-sinusoidal.
As shown in
It should be understood that, while exemplary embodiments of the noise reduction features, such as serrations 112, etc., are discussed below, a noise reduction feature according to the present disclosure may have any suitable characteristics, such as width 120, length 124, shape, or orientation, depending on the desired noise reduction characteristics for the noise reducer 110. Further, in exemplary embodiments, each individual noise reduction feature may have individual characteristics as required to achieve optimum noise reduction characteristics. In alternative embodiments, however, various groups of noise reduction features may have similar characteristics, or all noise reduction features may have similar characteristics, depending on the desired noise reduction characteristics for the noise reducer 110.
It should further be understood that the above discussion of noise reduction features further applies in general to flow modification features of any suitable flow modification devices.
As mentioned above, a local chord 46 may be defined for the rotor blade 16 at any point on the rotor blade 16 with respect to the span 44. Thus, for example, a local chord 46 may be defined for each of the flow modification features. For example, the local chord 46 may be measured along the span 44 at any point along the width 120 of a flow modification feature, or may be calculated as an average of the chord lengths throughout the width 120 of the flow modification feature.
As shown for example in
As illustrated in
Further, as shown in
The flow modification features may, in exemplary embodiments, be oriented with respect to a local flow streamline for each serration 112 to optimize the noise reduction characteristics of the noise reducer 110. As shown in
Each flow modification feature that is aligned such that the centerline 128 thereof is approximately parallel to a local flow streamline at the trailing edge 28 may define an angle 150 with respect to the local chord line 48 for that flow modification feature. Thus, a reference line 152 that is tangent to the local flow streamline at the trailing edge 28 (and which is parallel to the centerline 128) may be at an angle 150 to the local chord line 48 for that flow modification feature. In some embodiments, each of the plurality of flow modification features may define an angle 150 that is between approximately 5 degrees and approximately 40 degrees. Thus, the flow modification device may be positioned on the rotor blade 16 such that all flow modification features are oriented within this range. In exemplary embodiments, this positioning is within the outboard area 54.
In other embodiments, the centerline 128 of a flow modification feature may define any suitable angle 150. Thus, a flow modification feature may be positioned at any suitable location, whether entirely within the outboard area 54, entirely within the inboard area 52, or within both the inboard and outboard areas.
In other embodiments wherein a flow modification feature is aligned with respect to a local flow streamline, the centerline 128 may be offset from the local flow streamline at the trailing edge 28. For example, in some embodiments, the centerline may be offset at a 45 degree or 90 degree angle when viewed from a planform view. Such alignment with respect to a local flow streamline may allow the flow modification features to better interact with the air flow, thus improving the flow modification characteristics of the flow modification device.
As discussed above, in exemplary embodiments, each individual flow modification feature, such as a noise reduction feature, such as in exemplary embodiments serration 112, may have individual characteristics, such as width 120, length 124, shape, or orientation, as required to achieve optimum noise reduction characteristics. Further, in some embodiments, each individual flow modification feature is individually tailored dependent upon a variety of factors. Tailoring in some embodiments may be with respect to the local flow streamlines, as discussed above, as well as other such factors including but not limited to location along the span 44, local chord 46, width 120, length 124, bend angle (discussed below), and/or thickness (discussed below). It should be understood that the factors for tailoring the individual flow modification features are not limited to those disclosed above. Rather, any suitable factor discussed herein or otherwise is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
In some embodiments, flow modification features, such as noise reduction features, and particularly serrations 112 may, in exemplary embodiments, be optimized with respect to the local chords 46 for each flow modification feature to optimize the flow modification characteristics of the flow modification device. For example, in some embodiments, the length 124 of a flow modification feature may be in the range between approximately 5% and approximately 15% of the local chord 46 for the flow modification feature. In other embodiments, the length 124 of a flow modification feature may be approximately 10% of the local chord 46 for the flow modification feature. It should be understood, however, that the present disclosure is not limited to flow modification features having certain lengths 124 as discussed above, but rather that any suitable flow modification feature with any suitable length 124 is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
As illustrated in
Additionally or alternatively, as shown in
In some embodiments, as shown in
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.
