Unveiling Inertia Constants by Exploring Mass Distribution in Wind Turbine Blades and Review of the Drive Train Parameters

Abstract

In studies of dynamic stability and power quality, it is necessary to know the values of the mechanical parameters determining the transient response of wind turbines. Their exact values are not as decisive as the power curve, but an inaccurate estimate can distort or even invalidate the simulation results. From a review of the literature, it has been found that, despite their importance, the values of inertia, stiffness and damping are hardly available for any turbine model. Another detected problem is the lack of confidence in the data origin. This article aims to solve the issue of the scarcity and unreliability of data on inertia, and gathers the information found on the remaining mechanical parameters. Available blade inertia values in kg · m2 are presented. Special treatment has been given to those providing the mass distribution along the blade span, for which the provided values of inertia have been compared with those obtained numerically, showing good matching. With this, different reliable relations are obtained that allow for the calculation of the turbine rotor inertia, based on the mass and length of the blade. When the center of gravity is also available, a very correlated expression (r2=0.975) is provided to obtain the inertia. The references to the stiffness and damping constant of the drive train, which are even more rare, will also be presented. In addition, the study includes a revision of gearboxes, generators and blade weight, according to their IEC-class and material.