Design of the OffWindChina 5 MW Wind Turbine Rotor

Abstract

The current article describes the conceptual design of a rotor for a 5 MW machine situated at an offshore site in China (OffWindChina). The OffWindChina 5 MW rotor design work was divided into two parts between the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and the Chong Qing University (CQU). The two parts consist of the aeroelastic and structural design phases. The aeroelastic part determines the optimal outer blade shape in terms of cost of energy (COE), while the structural part determines the internal laminate layup to achieve a minimum blade mass. Each part is performed sequentially using in-house optimization tools developed at DTU and CQU. The designed blade yields a high energy output while maintaining the structural feasibility with respect to international standards.

Keywords

• wind energy
• wind turbine blade design
• aeroelastic blade design
• finite-element analysis
• site-specific design