Structural damping sensitivity affecting the flutter performance of a 10-MW offshore wind turbine

Abstract

Classical flutter of wind turbine blades is one of the most destructive instability phenomena of wind turbines especially for several-MW-scale turbines. In the present work, flutter performance of the DTU 10-MW offshore wind turbine is investigated using a 907-degree-of-freedom aero-hydro-servo-elastic wind turbine model. This model involves the couplings between tower, blades and drivetrain vibrations. Furthermore, the three-dimensional aerodynamic effects on wind turbine blade tip have also been considered through the blade element momentum theory with Bak’s stall delay model and Shen’s tip loss correction model. Numerical simulations have been carried out using data calibrated to the referential DTU 10-MW offshore wind turbine. Comparison of the aeroelastic responses between the onshore and offshore wind turbines is made. Effect of structural damping on the flutter speed of this 10-MW offshore wind turbine is investigated. Results show that the damping in the torsional mode has predominant impact on the flutter limits in comparison with that in the bending mode. Furthermore, for shallow water offshore wind turbines, hydrodynamic loads have small effects on its aeroelastic response.