SBIR-STTR Award

The wind turbine industry will need advanced materials and designs to achieve the DOE goal of 3.0¢/kWh cost of energy at Class 4 sites. Aeroelastically tailored blades constructed of braided carbon and hybrid carbon/glass composite materials offer the potential for significant savings in blade weight and possibly cost while using passive twist-bend coupling to ameliorate peak extreme loads and fatigue. This project will develop and demonstrate the production of a utility-scale twist-bend coupled blade (with the desired fatigue characteristics) that can be cost-effectively manufactured using recently developed manufacturing methods (e.g., resin infusion molding) with braided carbon materials. Phase I will include (1) material design and fatigue testing to identify structurally sound laminate constructions for effecting aeroelastic coupling using carbon and hybrid fiber reinforcements; (2) the identification of technologies for fabricating carbon and hybrid carbon/glass composite structures to effect aeroelastic coupling; and (3) the optimization of the carbon composite rotor blade design to 37-m wind turbine rotor blade (optimizing among the variables aeroelastic tailoring, stiffness, weight and cost reduction, load reduction, and aerodynamic performance) that provides the greatest reduction in cost of energy from wind power.

Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee:
A family of designs for carbon composite aeroelastically tailored wind turbine blades, with lengths from 37 m to 60 m, should allow turbines to continue expanding in size while reducing the cost of energy by 8-10%. This should enable a substantial expansion of wind energy markets in both the U.S. and Europe

The wind turbine industry will require advanced blade materials and designs to achieve the DOE goal of 3.0¢/kWh cost of energy at Class 4 sites.  The use of hybrid carbon/glass composite materials offers the potential for significant savings in blade weight.  In addition, twist-bend coupling can ameliorate peak extreme loads and fatigue, allowing an increase in rotor diameter and, hence, energy capture.  This project will develop and demonstrate the production of a utility-scale, twist-bend-coupled wind turbine rotor blade that can be cost-effectively manufactured using resin infusion processes with hybrid carbonand glass composite materials.  Phase I: (1) conducted static and fatigue tests of coupons of unbalanced carbon-glass hybrid composite structures; (2) investigated blade manufacturing processes; (3) completed parametric studies of the dynamics of a 1.5-MW wind turbine using twist-bend coupled rotor blades; and (4) designed 37-m and 39-m twist-bend-coupled carbon-glass hybrid blades.  Phase II will:  (1) determine the properties of carbon/glass hybrid materials to be used in the design of twist-bend-coupled blades; (2) complete the design and analysis of the 37-m twist-bend coupled hybrid carbon/glass blade; (3) fabricate a prototype 37-m blade and subject it to static and fatigue testing; and (4) complete the design, development, and analysis of a 60-m carbon/glass hybrid twist-bend coupled wind turbine rotor blade. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by awardee: Over the course of the first decade after the adoption of this technology, the increase in revenue or savings in cost to the wind turbine industry or consumers would add up to at least $500 million.