Planetary Gear for Counter-Rotating Wind Turbines

Abstract

A specific problem of the wind turbines refers to the difference between the low rotation speed of the wind turbine rotor and the high rotation speed needed for the electrical generator. Usually, the adaptation between the speed of the turbine rotor and the electrical generator speed is achieved by means of a speed increaser. A recent alternative relates to the use of coaxial counter-rotating wind turbines, which can achieve higher power and improve the conversion efficiency of the wind energy into electrical energy (up to 25%) with a reduced cost of approx. 20-30% compared to similar single rotor turbines. Conceptually, the counter-rotating wind turbine systems can integrate a particular generator wherein the rotor is coupled to a row of blades and the stator with another row of blades, or a commonly generator, coupled to a differential planetary gear, that allows the summation of the blades motions.The paper describes and analyzes kinematic and dynamic aspects of a system consisting of two coaxial counter-rotating turbines and a generator, interconnected by a planetary gear with two inputs (the two turbines) and an output (the generator). The algorithm is based on the property of the differential planetary gear of adding two input motions into one output motion. The kinematic and dynamic parameters of the planetary gear are established in the paper, and a case study is further presented: a small wind turbine equipped with a transmission enabling input speed multiplication.