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.
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.
Green Dynamics intends to eliminate the transportation problem faced by large wind turbine blades for onshore wind farms and improve the state of composites construction in the wind turbine blade industry. Transporting blades by truck constrains their size to a limit that falls between 50m – 60m, due to roadway length, height, and weight limitations. If blades over this transportation limit were available for use at onshore wind farms, larger turbines could be used, lower class wind sites would be opened for development, and capacity factors could be increased by stretching existing turbines. Green Dynamics has developed a blade design, modular tools, and a manufacturing process that will allow continuous blades of 60 to 100 meters or more to be produced onsite at wind farms thus eliminating the current onshore transportation limit. This process and technologies also add significant value to the traditional onshore and offshore blade manufacturing process. During this Phase I project Green Dynamics produced comprehensive analyses of manufacturing methodology, structural and dynamic performance, and logistics and cost modeling behind their blade and manufacturing approach. This work included detailed 3D CAD models, a laminate model, RTM models, cross sectional models, thorough logistics modeling, and a detailed cost model. The company was also able to perform a small-scale hardware validation of the infusion process that directly addressed key viability questions. Green Dynamics is advancing the state of the art in composite construction in the wind industry. The company is pushing the limits of blade design and introducing novel manufacturing methods. Their blade and manufacturing process will lower the cost of wind power and therefore increase the deployment of its cost competitive low-carbon power. In the long term the company will create many highly skilled domestic manufacturing jobs.
