SBIR Phase I: Novel Technique to Manufacture Large Turbine Blades

Information

  • NSF Award
  • 1315359
Owner
  • Award Id
    1315359
  • Award Effective Date
    7/1/2013 - 11 years ago
  • Award Expiration Date
    12/31/2013 - 11 years ago
  • Award Amount
    $ 149,800.00
  • Award Instrument
    Standard Grant

SBIR Phase I: Novel Technique to Manufacture Large Turbine Blades

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project intends to eliminate the transportation problem faced by large wind turbine blades for land-based wind farms. Transporting blades by truck constrains their size to a limit that falls somewhere between standard dash 50m-60m, due to roadway length, height and weight limitations. If blades over this transportation limit were available for use at land-based wind farms, larger turbines could be used, lower class wind sites would be opened for development, and capacity factors could be increased using existing turbines. This SBIR Phase I project will further develop a modular blade tooling concept that will allow continuous blade spars of 100m or more to be produced on-site at wind farms thus eliminating road transportation issues. This tooling concept encompasses an array of logistical improvements that optimize the effectiveness of this on-site approach. The unique manufacturing method allows superior integration of the structural components of the blade, producing a more robust product that is not susceptible to typical blade failure modes. During this Phase I feasibility will be evaluated "across three major areas: Manufacturing Methodology,Structural and Dynamic Performance, and Logistics and Cost Modeling.<br/><br/>The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to reduce the cost and therefore increase the penetration of wind power. Wind turbine power output increases with the square of the blade radius. Offshore turbines (in the 5MW to 7MW range) use blades that are 60m to 80m in length. If transportation was not an issue for land-based turbines, these turbines would continue to scale in capacity with their offshore counterparts. Longer blades would also allow for the development of lower class wind sites with currently available turbines increasing the penetration of domestic renewable energy. Additionally longer blades would allow an increase in capacity factors for currently available turbines lowering their cost of energy, a topic of critical importance to wind project developers. Blade manufacturing at the wind farm will create local jobs. Although a 100m blade tool may be transportable, its logistics pipeline is large and will still require local transport and all the supply chain logistics of large scale production. However, instead of all this being done out of state or out of the country and then transported to a US farm, a large portion of the blade manufacturing work will occur at the turbine site.

  • Program Officer
    Rajesh Mehta
  • Min Amd Letter Date
    6/17/2013 - 11 years ago
  • Max Amd Letter Date
    6/17/2013 - 11 years ago
  • ARRA Amount

Institutions

  • Name
    Green Dynamics Inc.
  • City
    Cotuit
  • State
    MA
  • Country
    United States
  • Address
    29 Cedarwood Rd.
  • Postal Code
    026351655
  • Phone Number
    7742740087

Investigators

  • First Name
    Neil
  • Last Name
    Gupta
  • Email Address
    neil.gupta@green-dyn.com
  • Start Date
    6/17/2013 12:00:00 AM

Program Element

  • Text
    SMALL BUSINESS PHASE I
  • Code
    5371

Program Reference

  • Text
    CENTERS: ADVANCED MATERIALS
  • Text
    Wind&Misc. sustainable energy
  • Text
    SMALL BUSINESS PHASE I
  • Code
    5371
  • Text
    Advanced Materials Processing
  • Code
    8025
  • Text
    Manufacturing
  • Code
    8029