Background
We can make several observations at stake in this project:
- Wind turbine life time and production is reduced due to the highly unsteady environment in which it operates (atmospheric turbulence, gust, hurricane …) and due to its operating (misalignments, tilts, mast passage …).
- The sensors: measurements at the wind turbine blade do not sufficiently take into account the state of the flow on the aerodynamic surfaces (attached, separated, laminar, turbulent …) which is critical to decide a control action.
- The actuators: passive add-on exists (vortex generators) but act continuously and equally whatever the wind unsteadiness upstream of the wind turbine.
- Aerodynamic wind tunnels: aerodynamic wind tunnels that take into account aeraulic perturbations do not have generally an affordable price for starts-up or small companies willing to develop actuators/sensors systems for wind turbine blades.
Scientific advances and innovation
- Wireless pressure sensors
- E-penon sensors for the detection of flow separation
- Actif actuators instead of passives
- Innovative actif sensor/actuator add-on system
- Post-testing of the add-on on the wind tunnel with aeraulic perturbations (low cost)
Expected technical and economic impact
- Improve the existing blade aerodynamic with the help of an active add-on (envelop that includes a sensor/actuator dynamic couple adjusted on the surface of the blade).
- First validation of the add-on which includes a dynamic fluidic actuator developed in the LHEEA laboratory and an Epenon sensor developed by MerAgitée, in the LHEEA wind tunnel (intermediate scale)
- First validation of wireless unsteady pressure measurements that can be integrated in a full scale add-on in degraded weather conditions at the climatic CSTB wind tunnel.
- Development of a dynamic perturbation system at the inlet of the LHEEA laboratory wind tunnel for realistic atmospheric conditions.
- Parts of the equipment can have a short-term exploitation for EMR operators (flow separation E-penon type sensors, wireless wall pressure sensors, wind tunnel facility with aeraulic perturbations for sensors and actuators tests).
- The complete add-on system will have a short-term exploitation mainly in research activities. Then, this system will be integrated in a research/innovation project for attaining a new level of technology readiness level (TRL).
Key project milestones
- January 2018 - Start of the project
- January 2019 - Tests of the add-on in the LHEEA wind tunnel without perturbations
- First semester 2019 - Tests of the wireless unsteady pressure sensors and the transmission system in the climatic wind tunnel of CSTB
- January 2020 - Tests of the add-on in the LHEEA wind tunnel with perturbations
Demonstrator
- add-on system used in closed-loop at the intermediate scale (LHEEA aerodynamic wind tunnel)
- Full scale wireless unsteady pressure sensors system (CSTB climatic wind tunnel)
Results
NEW PERTURBATION SYSTEM – « CHOPPER »
CAMPAIGN OF MEASUREMENTS HIGH SPEED PIV
LHEEA wind tunnel |
Vector field from High Speed PIV |
CAPTEUR E-PENON :
Static sensor response |
Evaluation e-TellTale dynamic response |
JETS PULSES :
Aero load oscillation control |
Add-ons from MerAgitée |
Publications and papers published
Oral communications
- Aerodynamics optimization study on a rigid 2D wing sail in a wind tunnel. Danbon F., Voisin, D. Desjoyeaux, M. , The 5 rd High Performance Yacht Design Conference, March 9 th -11 th , Auckland, New-Zeland, 2015
- Dynamics of lift controlled wind turbine blade. Jaunet V. , Braud C., Guilmineau E. and D. Paucelle. Wind Energy Science Conference, June, DTU (Danemark), 2017
- Dynamics of a pre-stalled windturbine blade using control of circulation at the trailing-edge. Jaunet V. and Braud C. CFM, Lille, France, 2017
- Electronic TellTale (E – penon) sensor to detect flow separation on wind-turbine’s blades. Soulier A., D. Voisin, F. Danbon, C. Braud, Wind Energy Science Conference, June , DTU (Danemark), 2017
- Examples of wind-turbineoriented aerodynamic challenges, Sandrine AUBRUN, Caroline BRAUD, Boris CONAN, Benyamin SCHLIFFKE (Centrale Nantes), French American Innovation Day 2019, March 18-19, Boston – Download the presentation
Prospects
- Equipment prior to a future Weamec project → towards TRL 4-5.
- Wind turbine prototypes with add-on tests on the Bouin field test site.
- First full scale tests on an onshore wind turbine of VALOREM, instrumented by the group of scientific interest LiRGeC (IFSTTAR, CSTB, GEM).
- In dedicated programs (Europe, CPER …) full scale off-shore tests on the floating wind turbine from SEMREV (European project FLOATGEN).
- First market : off-shore wind parks in the Pays-de-Loire/Bretagne region at he time horizon 2021 (off-shore park of Saint-Nazaire, two islands or the floating experimental park of Groix island…).