Analysis of Optimized Wind Turbine Failure Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

Abstract

The main objective of this work is to analyze the causes of failure in wind turbine and eliminate the highest contributing root cause problem, thereby reducing the failure rate of wind turbine. As we know, Wind Energy is a renewable source of energy, so there will be a constant generation of wind energy throughout the year. In the next 50 to 100 years the fossil fuels may get exhausted. So, we may not get coal continuously for thermal power generation. Hence it is essential to cease the dependence on conventional energy sources and switch over to non-conventional energy sources like wind energy. Wind possesses energy by virtue of its motion. Any device that is capable of slowing down the mass of moving air, like a sail or propeller, can extract a part of the energy and convert it into useful work. The factors which determine the output, getting from a wind energy converter includes; wind speed, cross section of the windswept by the rotor, overall conversion efficiency of the rotor, transmission system and generator or pump. In this paper, complete analysis is performed on the existing wind turbine blade for better performance. A Reference blade of 10m length approximately with a rated output of 100KW was taken for study.