Influence of structure coupling effect on damping coefficient of offshore wind turbine blades

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the influence of structure coupling effect on structural damping of blade based on the blade vibration characteristic. For this purpose, the scaled blade model of NREL 5 MW offshore wind turbine was processed and employed in the wind tunnel test to validate the reliability of theoretical and numerical models. The attenuation curves of maximum displacement and the varying curves of equivalent damping coefficient of the blade under the rated condition were respectively compared and analyzed by constructing single blade model and whole machine model. The attenuation law of blade dynamic response was obtained and the structure coupling effect was proved to exert a significant influence on the equivalent damping coefficient. The results indicate that the attenuation trend of the maximum displacement response curve of the single blade varies more obviously with the increase of elastic modulus as compared to that under the structure coupling effect. In contrast to the single blade model, the varying curve of equivalent damping coefficient with the period is relatively steep for the whole machine model. The findings are of great significance to guide the structure design and material selection for wind turbine blades.