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LEADERSHIP:
Vote Online Now for 2014 Leadership in Engineering
Your vote will identify an engineering rm you think has provided leadership in the wind power industry. CATEGORIES: Bearings, Electrical & Electronic Equipment, Fastening & Joining, Fluid Power, Hardware & Components, Turbine OEMs, Sensors, Simulation Services, Support Services, Towers
WEBINAR:

Improving Efficiency Wind Forecasting and Assessment
Live webinar was Dec. 5, 2013. Watch the archived version by lling out the form on the website. As more wind energy is added to the grid, the inclusion of a weather measurement system to a wind farm is critical to ensure it meets nancial and performance expectations.
PODCAST:

Protecting windpower technicians in the bitter cold
Its been a cold winter so far, and while many people think walking across a parking lot to a car is unbearable, windpower technicians working at a rural turbine site or 300 ft. up can experience a more extreme chill, one that is potentially dangerous.
Page 63 8 8
February 2014
www.windpowerengineering.com
The technical resource for wind protability
INSIDE:
Heavy lifter exes its ight muscles PAGe 08
Tracking the source of

Turbine of the month, Vergnet 1 MW PAGe 40
Battle of the batteries? PAGe 56
gearbox bearing failures

PAGe 42
AeroTorque Corporation, a spin-off company of PT Tech, offers several valuable options for wind farm owners and wind turbine OEMs: Torsional Control Products to control shock loads to extend gearbox life in wind turbines. These products mitigate the damage from torsional reversals and impact loads caused by harsh winds and turbine e-stops and shutdowns Torque Monitoring Services to accurately monitor the actual torque in a wind turbines drive train. Custom Engineering Our experienced engineers will provide an effective solution whether you utilize one of our current products, or require a custom engineered solution. Well serve as an extension of your engineering team. Contact us today to help improve your wind turbine drive train application.
info@AeroTorque.com www.AeroTorque.com
1441 Wolf Creek Trail, PO Box 305, Sharon Center, OH 44274 0305 USA Phone: 330-590-8105 Fax: 330-239-2012
Certified to ISO 9001:2000
H ERES
W H AT
T H I N K
Learning from leaders

eve all enjoyed and suffered with a variety of leaders in our working careers. They have unwittingly imparted many leadership lessons just by their behavior and day-to-day activity of running their departments. So for this leadership issue, I thought it would be instructive to recall those people and the lessons they taught, both good and bad. Lets start with a recent experience. Dont underestimate the power of the simplest customer service. The old test here is to call into your company some time with a slightly unusual request, and see what treatment you receive. Then ask: how would a customer interpret a similar experience? A better example came on a recent trip to Europe when the airline lost my luggage. I politely complained while the handlergenuinely concernedled the paperwork to relocate it. After he told me when the bag would be delivered, I thanked him and left. But just a minute later, he came running after me with an emergency kit of toiletries and clean underwear. That was a nice touch. He did not have to nd me because I was out of sight and headed to a taxi. But he did and I appreciated the effort. Fortune favors the bold. In 1968, I had the privilege of serving with the Air Force attached to the U.S. Army in Vietnam. On one occasion, our division moved to a forward location and two separate camps, one with showers and ours without. As you can imagine, travel from one camp to the other after dark was discouraged. But at the end of several hot, humid, and shower-less days, something had to be done. An always entertaining and condent Spec 4 Benjamin Sargis hit on an idea. After dark that night, he procured a jeep and with four of us onboard, he ordered, You guys keep quiet. Ill do the talking. We agreed and drove to the camp gate. There, with his typical moxie, he told the MPs, We are the intelligence team from General Smith headed to the 2100 brieng. With only a little suspicion (we were all obviously enlisted men) the MP opened the gate and off we drove into the Vietnam night. Sargis repeated a similar performance at the entrance gate some distance away and in we drove. After showering, we returned refreshed, amused, and alive. So what did Benjamin teach us? There are times to act like you know what you doing, keep a straight face, and expect a solid performance from the one in charge. (From Nic Sharpley) For goodness sake, know your people. After receiving numerous accolades at an insurance company, I was up for a promotion which called for a meeting with a department manager. My supervisor, also in attendance, and I were condent the promotion was mine. But to our great surprise, the manager who had little interaction with me, began with a reprimand for tardiness and delayed assignments. So shocked at his words, I sat speechless. My supervisor, however, interrupted the harangue with, She has never done what that! Youve got the wrong person. Obviously, he mixed my record with anothers. But unbothered by the error, he denied the promotion. We left the meeting stunned. My supervisor vowed to clear up the confusion and with assistance from Human Resources, did so. Eventually, I received the now tainted promotion. Ask if you want something. Even the bible provides this lesson in leadership. I have come to the conclusion that people want to say yes to reasonable requests and that asking them to take on an additional task often elicits a positive response. The surprising discovery is that people are looking for more to challenge themselves and your request may well be divine intervention. Lastly, each anecdote here reminds me of a comment from business author Steven Covey (7 habits of highly effective people): Build your organization on the strength of your teammates, and their weaknesses become irrelevant. Amen. WPE
WHaT dO YOU THInK? Discuss this and other wind issues at www.engineering exchange.com
2013
2013
Editor | Windpower Engineering & Development pdvorak@wtwhmedia.com
FEBRUARY 2014
WiNDpower ENgiNeeriNg & DEVELOPMENT
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WindpoweR EnGineeRinG & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
F E AT U R E S
CONTENTS
FEBRUARY 2014 vol 6 no 1
16 FEA and optimizer nd a best seal design for wind turbine bearings
An engineering rm that designs seals for wind-turbine bearings used nite-element analysis software to simulate the performance of a seal and then an optimizing package to run through hundreds of design and material possibilities to nd a best t for a wind turbines wide operating range.
Improving the grid with lots of stored MWs
The wind industry can look forward to a sort of battle of the batteries thanks to competition, falling costs, and recent regulations.
>> 56
LEAD ERSHIP
pages 63 - 88
42 Understanding root causes of axial cracking in windturbine gearbox bearings

Axial cracks in bearing raceways are the major cause of premature gearbox failures. The aws can shorten gearbox life to as little as 1 to 2 years. The cracks root cause must be understood to nd a solution.
D E PA R T M E N T S
03 Editorial - Learning from leaders

08 Wind Watch -
Aeroscraft update, designing a wind turbine seal, 8 MW, 2 blade turbine, a test lab at Texas Tech, Lidar solves a pitch problem
22 Reliability - How wind farm monitoring leads to maximum

output
25 Bolting - A better way to tighten and check many bolts
50 Lessons from the enforcement of recent eagle takes

Duke Energy was recently prosecuted for the accidental death of 14 eagles and other migratory birds at several of its wind farms. The governments reaction provides lessons for the wind industry. The solar industry might also take note.
26 Insurance - Planning for the future with proactive and

preventative maintenance
30 Safety - Working when its bitter cold

34 Condition Monitoring - What a blade monitoring

system should look for
ON T HE COVER
Bearing failures in these gearboxes have retired them in a relatively short period. Recent research now points to root causes.
36 Software - Weibull plots and a wind-plant application 40 Turbine of the Month - Vergnets 2-blade, 1 MW design

89 Equipment World - Hazard lights, sensor display, lters,

site modeling software, and more
92 Downwind - Wind compliments solar at remote stations
FEBRUARY 2014
WINDPOWER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT
CONTRIBUTORS TO WINDPOWER ENGINEERING
AHRENS
MOSESON
HERR
HEIDENREICH
CLARK
MARTOS
MCKERIHEN
CIONI
CASS
MATTHEW AHRENS, of counsel in the New York office of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, is also a member of the rms Corporate Group and is in charge of the Environmental Practice Area. Mr. Ahrens advises clients on a wide range of environmental matters, with emphasis on identifying and resolving environmental issues and liability in nancing, project development, mergers, acquisitions, real estate development, securities offerings, and corporate restructuring. JUDAH MOSESON, Director of O&M Services for Ingen Energy, has over 25 years of experience in engineering, construction, operations and maintenance of electrical generation projects, including both fossil fueled and renewable projects. Mr. Moseson has earned a bachelor degree in mechanical engineering, holds an active professional engineer license in the State of Texas, and holds a certication in energy management from the Association of Energy Engineers. Prior to Ingen, Mr. Moseson held leadership positions at TXU Energy, and RES DOUG HERR, General Manager of AeroTorque Corp., joined parent company PT Tech in 2007 as a sales engineer focused on steel and international markets. He brought 16 years of industrial and manufacturing systems experience to the position. Mr. Herrs work includes signicant up-tower testing and monitoring of wind turbines drivetrains and developing the unique equipment AeroTorque uses for eld data. In 2013, PT Tech Wind Products was spun off into AeroTorque Corp. and Mr. Herr was named General Manager. He is a 1991 graduate of Juniata College in Huntington, Pennsylvania with a degree in management. DAVE HEIDENREICH, Chairman and Chief Technical Officer of EBO Group, is a founder of PT Tech and served as its president from 1978 to 1995. He has been involved in power and energy industries for 40 years and has more than 20 U.S. patents. Mr. Heidenreich consults with EBO Groups development efforts in areas of alternative energy. He is a 1965 BSME graduate of the Stevens Institute of Technology, and is a Professional Engineer in the state of Ohio.
DAVID CLARK, a condition monitoring specialist and consultant with Bachman Electronics, coauthored the condition monitoring specication for Clipper Windpowers 2.5 MW turbine, its generator, and gearbox test stand. He has experience monitoring and analyzing turbines as well as condition monitoring in nuclear power, steel mills, mining, and others. Mr. Clark is a frequent contributor to this magazine. JOS LUIS NUO MARTOS graduated from the IP Salesianos Atocha in Madrid, Spain with credentials equivalent to a Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering Technology. His employment experience includes the Schaltanlagen-Elektronik-Gerte, General Electric Wind Energy, and AES Wind Generation among others. His special elds of interest include wind turbine frequency converters, blade-pitch systems, resolution of technical cases of high level engineering complexity, and to collect and conduct statistical analysis of wind turbine performance data. CHRIS MCKERIHEN is an EIT with Rad Torque Systems. Chris graduated from the University of Victoria in Mechanical Engineering and has been with New World Technologies for almost four years. His main focus at NWT is design engineering and custom applications. CHRIS CIONI, Senior Vice President, Underwriting with GCube, and professional engineer, has more than twenty years experience in insurance and engineering roles. Mr. Cioni is responsible for underwriting operational and construction projects for renewable-energy projects including wind, solar, hydro, biomass, and geothermal projects in North America. He is a member of the IEC 61400-22 User Group and the AWEA O&M Working Group. Mr. Cioni also manages an engineering team charged with evaluating emerging technical risk and identifying ways to mitigate loss. DAN CASS, Vice President, Loss Control and Engineering Services with GCube, has more than two decades experience. Mr Cass has worked in the industrial electrical engineering eld providing solutions for power generation up to 138 kV and hybrid electric automotive companies. Mr. Cass is a member of Underwriters Laboratories standards technical panel for wind energy and energy storage and the AWEA O&M Working Group. Mr. Cass works with GCube clients to advise and assist in the event of an unexpected event or a claim as well as provide technical guidance for underwriting considerations. collection systems.
Windpower Engineering & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
PURE GOLD
for GEARBOX PERFORMANCE
CONDITION MONITORING SYSTEMS GEAR FLUSHING UNITS OFFLINE FILTERS ccjensen.com C.C. Jensen Fine Filters use an integrated pump to pull contaminated oil from the gearbox, purify it, and circulate it throughout the gearbox. Cleaner oil improves gearbox performance, prolongs oil, gear and bearing life 2-3 times, and lowers O&M costs. Call 1-800-221-1430 or e-mail ccjensen@ccjensen.com for your free copy of the Clean Oil Guide.
CLEAN OIL:
W IN D WATCH
8
WINDPOwER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT JUNE 2013 www.windpowerengineering.com
passes Pentagon and NASA tests
DRAGON DREAM
Heavy lifter
Wind developers will nd good news from Aeros, developer of the Aeroscraft, a heavy lift vehicle intended in part to carry large components such as towers, nacelles, and rotor blades to construction sites, especially those with difficult ground access. The company announced late last year that Government high delity testing and demonstrations have been completed successfully within budget and a month ahead of schedule. High delity refers to an expansion on prior testing in which data acquisition is part of the ight objectives. Tests were made on the Dragon Dream, a scaled-down non-deployable Aeroscraft built as a technology demonstration platform and engineering test bed.
Pilot Alfred Corky Belanger (left), and copilot and test pilot General Raymond Johns discuss the ight dynamics from the Dragon Dreams cockpit. Belanger, a Worldwide Aeros Corp.s veteran LTA test pilot, has been associated with Aeros for more than 13 years. General Johns is a command pilot and experimental test pilot with over 5,000 ying hours in more than 80 different aircraft.
JUNE 2013
WInDPOweR EnGIneeRInG & DEVELOPMENT
W I N D W A T C H
The company considers Aeroscraft a disruptive innovation to the current global transport logistics industry that will help balance economic development and environmental conservation. The Aeroscraft is revolutionary because, says the company, of its ability to take off with heavy loads and land vertically like a helicopter, hover, and reach locations that have no roads or places to land.
10
THESE HIGH FIDELItY tEStS AND DEMOS, REQUEStED BY tHE U.S. GOVERNMENt UNDER tHE PENtAGONS PROJECt PELICAN PROGRAM, DEMONStRAtED tHE READINESS OF tHE AEROSCRAFt.
WINDPOwER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT
Testing included taxi tests of the vehicles air bearing landing system and its clever internal ballasting system - Control-Of-Static-Heaviness as well as of the vehicles low speed controls. While conducting these tests, Aeros team members (www. aeroscraft.com) have also been nalizing pilot ergonomic optimization alongside ight crew training. These high delity tests and demos, requested by the U.S. government under the Pentagons Project Pelican Program, demonstrated the readiness of the Aeroscraft, a variable buoyancy air vehicle, to transition forward into
FEBRUARY 2014
initial serial production, says Aeros CEO Igor Pasternak. Additional out-of-hangar ight demonstrations are expected to nish on the scaled-down Aeroscraft vehicle, which will be conducted to further test sub-system integration and performance, and ultimately accelerate eet development. Aeros has announced initial eet development plans for 22 full-sized, globally-deployable Aeroscrafts in two congurations, one for airlifting 66 tons and one for 250-tons. The Aeroscraft features a proprietary internal buoyancy management that compresses inert helium within to overcome traditional requirements for external ballast exchange when unloading cargo from
W I N D W A T C H
Service is my top priority; you can depend on me to get you the right materials on time.
Tony Seger, Composites One Warehouse Team
Product | People | Process | Performance
lighter-than-air vehicles. This eliminates need for ground personnel and infrastructure, and allows VTOL ight at maximum payload. The company envisions solving shipping problems for major industries around the world including energy production, wind farm development, military, humanity, energy exploration, and mining among others. Aeros plans to have the rst if its initial eet of 22 vehicles ready for operation in FY 2016 following FAA type certication. This eet will generally operate on a lease model, providing client services including aircraft, crew, maintenance, and insurance. WPE
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W I N D W A T C H
Telescoping-tower idea could lower install and maintenance costs
Laser based wind sensor helps correct yaw error, boosts energy production
Wind Iris is manufactured by Advent Lidar Technology, a joint venture between U.S.-based NRG Systems and Francebased Leosphere. The unit measures horizontal wind speed and direction at 10 positions from 40 to 400 meters upwind of the turbine. The equipment is intended for reassignments, so it can be moved from turbine to turbine.
A U.S.-based renewable energy company has

successfully completed eld trials that used data from a nacelle-mounted Lidar wind sensor to correct a yaw error and increase total energy production from an errant wind turbine. Eliminating the yaw error let the company improve annual energy production (AEP) from the turbine by 1.8%. We decided look closer at this particular turbine because it was not performing to its OEM supplied power curve, says FirstWind wind resource manager Cegeon Chan.We looked for a probably cause and found the yaw error. However, analysis of the SCADA dataincluding measurements from a nearby met mast and the vane measurement from the wind turbinewas insufficient to determine the correction needed. The conventional, turbine-based anemometer is best for measuring cut in and cut-out speed, says NRG Renewable spokesman Evan Osler. The met
FEBRUARY 2014
mast is good but few wind farms have upwind met masts and if so, they are often far upwind. So the company decided to test a Wind Iris on the turbine. The laser based wind sensor collected wind speed and direction data ahead of the turbine for 30 days. Analysis showed an average yaw error of seven degrees. A correction factor was then applied to the yaw measurement and 15 additional days of measurement using the Wind Iris revealed that the yaw error had been eliminated. The improvement, calculated with a powercurve estimation model using Wind Iris data, was independently veried by comparing the relative increase in turbine production with nearby turbines that had not been optimized. While project-specic revenue impacts for this case are not available, increasing the AEP of 2MW turbines by 1.8% while selling power for $60/MWh would earn $7,767 more, or from 20 turbines, a $155,340 benet. WPE
12
W I N D W A T C H
Quick testing for turbines of all sizes

est Texas A&M University and UL have opened a turbine testing facility on 480 acres in Canyon, Texas. The Advanced Outdoor Wind Test Facility will provide services for manufacturers of large, small, and micro-scale wind turbines, as well as research and design testing. The facility lies in the middle of the Great Plains Wind Corridor, where favorable wind blows all year. The good conditions will help companies receive quick turnaround on tests. The facility can accommodate temporary and long-term installations, a benet to manufacturers whether testing blades, generators, inverters, software, or some combination. The facility is staffed full-time by engineers, technicians, and a machinist, and has the equipment necessary to install small and medium-sized turbines, including foundations. The site features an indoor space for instrumentation and troubleshooting. A data acquisition system will provide customers realtime data for their turbine, accessible by a website. The facility is capable of testing for various standards, including UL 6141 and 6142, International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) certication, and Small Wind Certication Council (SWCC) certication. The facility will use an array of sensors to tell wind speed, wind direction, temperature, output voltage, current, and power, as well as acoustic measurements. UL commissioned the rst turbine for tests in December 2013, and more manufacturers are in the pipeline. UL and West Texas A&M University will partner at that facility with the DEWI Group. DEWI was acquired by UL in 2012. DEWI-OCC is a generally accepted certication body for land-based and offshore wind turbines and their components. The benets of the test site will extend to the university where its located. WTAMU will become a green campus as we produce power from the wind turbines we test, says laboratory director Adam J. Holman. WPE
Turbines will soon replace the crane along the skyline of Canyon, Texas.
Don Topliff, Dean of the College of Agriculture, Science and Engineering at West Texas A&M University, discusses the testing facility at a recent ribbon-cutting ceremony.
FEBRUARY 2014
WiNdpower ENgiNeeriNg & DEVELOPMENT
13

W I N D W A T C H
Two blade turbine developer rewrites the rules for its 8 MW model
SCD 8.0 MW by the numbers
General description 8 MW, TCIB+, offshore, downwind Power control Pitch control regulated Cut in and cut out speeds 3.5 to 25 m/s Nominal rotor speed 11.5 rpm Hub and tower 100m or site specic, conical steel tube Turbine head mass with rotor 395 tons Tilt angle 0 Rotor diameter 168m Rotor cone angle, blade to blade 7 Rotor locking mechanism Four hydraulic bolts Pitch actuating mechanism Two hydraulic cylinders/blade Gearbox Two-stage planetary Generator Electrical excited synchronous Generator speed 308 rpm Yaw drive 10 gear boxes with hydraulic motor Yaw brake 18 hydraulically applied active brakes Converter system Full converter Controller Siemens PLC
You cant accuse SCD Technology of thinking
small or conventionally. SCD, for Super Compact Drive, has introduced plans for an 8 MW, twoblade, downwind, turbine intended for offshore work. Developer aerodyn engineering (scdtechnology.com) says to forget next generation technology. Just use todays standards and whats available now. Old conventions should be seen as new challenges, not as restrictive factors, says founder Soenke Siegfriedsen. Aerodyn engineering says its knowledge and experience provide enough to develop ahead of the conventional thinking. Siegfriedsen, company founder and owner, says he wants to shape the future in the right direction. For him, that points to the SCD 8.0 MW turbine for offshore applications. The company has already built twoblade turbines of 3 and 6 MW. The 8 MW unit sports a number of features that break from conventional designs. For instance, independent hydraulic cylinders on each blade and pressure accumulators will ensure redundancy
14
FEBRUARY 2014

W I N D W A T C H
From left to right: The exploded computer model shows a few components of the 8 MW turbine. An artists rendition is of the 8 MW model with heli-pad. Technicians put the nishing touches on one of the blades that will provide a 168m rotor diameter.
and fault tolerance. The pitch system will provide main braking. And compared to a conventional large turbine, the company says the SCD 8 is easier to assemble and erect because the two-bladed rotor is smaller and weighs less than a conventional three-blade design. And forget the tower elevator. A helicopter will drop off service technicians on a helipad. Chinas Ming Yang Windpower is the customer of the rst set of SCD technology licenses. That means Ming Yang owns production and marketing rights for the SCD 3 and 6 MW turbines for the Chinese market. Two production factories have been built for the smaller units. One in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong and one southeast of Beijing. The two factories have already produced a rst batch of turbines. Aerodyne says it has worked close with Ming Yang engineers starting with supplier selection to optimizing the serial production. There is no word yet on a launch date. WPE
W I N D W A T C H
FEA and optimizer nd a best design for a turbine bearing seal

An engineering rm that designs
seals for wind turbine bearings used nite-element analysis software to simulate the performance of a seal or gasket and then an optimizing package to runs through hundreds of design and material possibilities to nd a best t for a wind turbines wide operating range. Reliable designs are what I call satiscing, says Frank Schoenberg, a seal engineer with Freudenberg. They satisfy operating requirements and suffice for quality. Every wind turbine contains at least four large diameter bearings, one to pitch each blade and the yaw bearing. Each needs two seals. In a 3-MW turbine there are about 75m of gasket, and every millimeter is critical to performance, he says. Seals malfunction for a reasons such as temperature, load variations, and small variations from manufacturing. Small imperfections created during manufacturing are inevitable, says Schoenberg, and even small changes during elastomer production can signicantly alter gasket-sealing characteristics, such as the materials Shore hardness. Variations in manufacturing tolerances and other loads can deform a bearing and change the width of the gap between the inner and outer bearing rings. An axial offset of the two rings creates other problems. Also, the gaskets coefficient of friction can have a large effect on the sealing function. The search for solutions involves tradeoffs. For instance, how rigid must the gasket be to maintain shape under load? Then maintenance and everyday 16
A 3MW turbine uses many meters of gasket such as the one in this study.
A gasket cross section
The cross section shows dozens of design details.
performance call for tradeoffs as well. The gasket should be easy to install and remain rmly in place during operation. Finally, there is the inevitable conict between controlling cost and maximumizing capability. The design goal has shifted from creating a best part for a limited set of conditions, to making one that works acceptably well under a wide range of circumstances. To nd answers, Schoenbergs team used Abaqus nite element analysis (FEA) software, and Isight optimization softwareboth from Dassault Systmes 3DEXPERIENCE SIMULIA application. These let analysts simulate hundreds
FEBRUARY 2014
of variations and establish which best meets design goals. The gasket in question is an extruded contact seal made of a proprietary elastomer. Its tasks are to protect large bearings from environmental hazards and seal the lubricating grease inside. Bearing diameters range from one meter on a pitch bearing to ve meters on a slewing bearing, and with a typical cross-section of only 25 x 25 mm. Furthermore, the gasket is expected to perform for 20 years even in highly demanding environments. Field requirements include a pressure load from the grease, friction torque, and de-mounting force, all while hitting production cost targets. Designs are
W I N D W A T C H
A gasket cross section
Because the gasket is symmetrical and homogeneous, it is feasible to run a small FEA meshed model of the cross section with uniform pressure loading (arrows).
evaluated using physical prototyping and simulations. The rst analysis task is to create a meshed model to run in Abaqus. Setting up its characteristics was straightforward: Bearing metal is dened as inexible compared to the elastomer gasket, which had nonlinear properties. Because the gasket is made from homogeneous material and symmetric, it is possible to model and mesh a 2D cross section, greatly reducing run times while still providing accurate results. The analysts selected 14 parameters, geometric dimensions and material properties, for optimization. Design of Experiment methods in an Isight workow identied the parameters with the greatest effects on performance. This initial screening cut the number to six crucial parameters. The next phase let the optimizing program run about 200 experiments that parametrically tailored geometrical dimensions and material properties (the six variables). By identifying main effects, we could eliminate unimportant factors, Schoenberg says, and concentrate our efforts where they would most affect the outcome. The design is frequently updated to reect changing customer specs and deployment locations so the resulting design is not a one-size-tsall seal, says Schoenberg. For instance, one design scenario dened a high priority on pressure resistance and low priority on cost, with friction and mounting force of medium priority. Whats more, the gaskets are
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W I N D W A T C H
Decision templates in Isight are adjustable computational objects. The software combines processes to support the design team, making the design process modular and recongurable, as would be necessary for the next gasket design.
made from only one elastomer, but it comes in different Shore hardnesses, resulting in about 20 distinct sub-materials. Freudenbergs systematic approach to exploring design concepts yielded good results. We nalized a gasket with characteristics superior to those achieved with more standard methods, says Schoenberg, and its less sensitive to processing and manufacturing imperfections, as well as to operating conditions for the wind turbine. The new part performs well under nominal conditions (veried by physical prototyping), and it performs well despite noise tolerances and other uncertainties that inevitably inuence the operations of slewing bearings. The analysis set-up took time, but Isight shortened the optimization considerably. Compared to Freudenbergs former method, running time for each iteration was reduced from 30 minutes to 0.1 seconds. Overall, computational times plummeted from an estimated 16,300 hours (about 678 days) to 100 hours. We got good results, made better-informed decisions, and increased our efficiency, Schoenberg says. We also established a meta-model that can be a starting point for costeffective customization when a customer comes in with new demands and priorities. WPE
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EXPERTISE | COMMITMENT | INNOVATION
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W I N D W A T C H
2013
LEADERSHIP in WIND ENERGY
2013 Leadership Winners

Congratulations to the 2013 wind-industry leaders
Bearings
Honorable mention
2013
Electrical Hardware Bolting Fluid Power Hardware & Components
Engineering &
Over the course of the past year, visitors to Windpowerengineering. com were asked to vote for the companies they considered leaders in their respective elds of expertise. Those votes have been tallied and results are here. The staff at Windpower
Torque Control
Design Services
Development magazine congratulates these wind industry leaders on recognition well deserved.
Operations & Maintenance
Training
Date Networks
FEBRUARY 2014
WINDPower ENGINeerING & DEVELOPMENT
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W I N D W A T C H
Wind work around North America

More than 12,000 MW of windpower generating capacity was under construction in the fourth quarter of 2013, according to the latest AWEA market report. At least 60 PPAs for nearly 8,000 MW were signed by utilities and corporate purchasers, of which 5,200 MW have not yet started construction. The U.S. wind industry installed 1,084 MW during 2013, with 1,012 MW installed during the fourth quarter. Heres what else is happening:
Contract signals commitment Ralls, Texas

Alstom Power will supply four ECO110 and 25 ECO122 wind turbines for the 80-MW Fiber Winds Energy project. Construction is expected to begin in mid-2014, with commercial operations scheduled for 2015. The contract is a sign of our commitment to the U.S. market, says Andy Geissbuehler, who leads Alstom in North America.
6 3 6 7 5 7 1 9 2 8 4
Company seeks to test bird-friendly turbine Livermore, Calif.

Alameda County officials and environmental groups are hoping a new shrouded wind turbine design will prove safer to birds and bats. Wind energy company Ogin Inc. is seeking the countys approval to test a design by installing 40 turbines at Altamont Pass one of the largest concentrations of wind farms in the country.
Saving energy for later Santa Ana, Calif.

GE Energy Storage will participate in a load-shifting project at the Discovery Science Center. The 500-kWh GE storage and Princeton Power Systems inverter control system will shift up to 20% of the science centers daily electrical load from peak hours to less expensive off-peak time periods and provide backup power.
Growing bigger in Texas San Antonio, Texas

Mortenson Construction, a company that has built nearly 80 windpower projects in Texas, is opening a new office.Up to 40 team members will support hundreds of eld positions throughout the state, and future employment needs are anticipated to be much higher.
Windpower prevails Prattsburgh, N.Y.

Ecogen has won in court twice and can proceed with construction of a 34-turbine wind farm. Prattsburgh had no rules on the books regarding wind project. In a 2009 court appearance, the town settled with Ecogen, allowing construction. A new town board, however, disapproved of the plan and attempted to void it. They lost.
Gamesa reinforces its U.S. presence Trevose, Pa.

Gamesa, a global wind energy developer, will supply EDP Renovaveis (EDPR) with up to 225 of the companys new G114-2.0 MW wind turbines. With a rotor spanning 114 m, the new turbines sweep area is 38% greater than that of the G97-2.0 MW, while it produces 20% more energy a year.
Honda powered by wind Russells Point, Ohio

Two turbines, installed by ConEdison Solutions, will supply 10% of the power at a Honda car plant. The GE 1.6-100 turbines make the plant the rst major automaking facility in the U.S. to get a big portion of its energy from turbines.
No impact on home values Hancock, Mass.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of Connecticut analyzed more than 122,000 home sales near 26 wind facilities including the Berkshire Wind project with 10 GE 1.5-MW turbines and found no impact on property values. Land owners near turbines are concerned by the so-called nuisance stigma.
Meeting demand Windsor, Colo.

Vestas has received a 220-MW order for its V100-2.0 MW turbines from EDF Renewable Energy. The turbines are for two projects, Hereford 1 and Longhorn North, in the Texas Panhandle. To meet demand, Vestas is adding more workers at three of its Colorado factories.
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FEBRUARY 2014
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RELIABILITY
How wind farm monitoring leads to maximum output

At Ingen Energys 24/7 Control Center, personnel proactively monitor more than 1,200 turbines. All Operators are NERC and Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland-certied, and undergo more than 100 hours of continued education each year to maintain their certications.
Turbine technology improvements have signicantly increased the production of wind energy over the past 10 years. Even with these improvements, turbines must be properly maintained to meet optimal production and revenue targets. Todays turbines rely on complex electronic control systems such as Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems. These controls, when coupled with 24/7 monitoring and performance data analytics, provide critical tools that let wind farms meet their estimated Annual Energy Production (AEP).
24/7 monitoring and control center
Real-time monitoring and control are common in most electric power-generation companies and utilities. However, the use of such control centers, staffed by certied operators was not common among early windgeneration facilities. As the number of wind farms increased, the industry addressed the challenge of integrating wind into the larger power grids and recognized the value of optimizing production around the clock. Yet, people are often surprised to learn that many wind farms in the U.S. are still not monitored 24/7 by a North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC)-certied control 22
center. These wind farms miss the simple and most effective way to maximize production. Operators at a 24/7 control center can remotely reset most turbines as soon as a fault occurs, which reduces downtime and increases revenue. The downtime from faults that are reset at a turbine contribute greatly to the industrys lower availability ratings and AEP results. On the other hand, remotely resetting a turbine after a fault can make a measurable difference to an owner s bottom line. Turbines will fault as a safety mechanism and remove themselves from service for a number of reasons many are pre-programmed into the SCADA system to protect the equipment. A typical fault for most turbines occurs, for example, when the wind resource shifts directions quickly and the turbines yaw system cannot keep up. To protect the equipment, it recognizes that the wind direction is outside a predetermined yaw operating angle, and so controls fault the turbine. Another typical fault of a turbine occurs when the wind resource is such, possibly gusting, that the pitch system cant perform within the pre-programmed parameters. These yaw and pitch faults are common across a broad sampling of turbines installed in the U.S. These are only two examples of the many that occur on a regular basis during the normal wind-farm operations.
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Now the question arises, what happens when a turbine faults and it cannot be reset remotely? This is another reason 24/7 monitoring and control is necessary from a qualied, NERC-certied control center because operational protocols are in place to respond to such an event. If the turbine will not reset as expected, depending on the time of day, a crew is dispatched to investigate and in most cases, performs same-day repairs. If it is an after-hours event, the problem is reported to an on-call resource. When the crews arrive in the morning, it receives top priority over scheduled-routine maintenance.
information. The SCADA data is one of the most overlooked resources available to the wind farm. The data is time stamped and records important information such as wind speed, generator output, and pitch and yaw angles. The key is to know how to harness the data, nd the underperforming turbines, resolve all issues, and restore energy production. An example of routine analysis is represented by a process at Ingen Energy called, Relative Performance Assessment (RPA). This method compares the power curve of a single turbine with the sites average power curve, and the
power curves of its neighboring turbines. An RPA nds the underperforming turbines. When a turbine is not performing to the site average, it may or may not be a problem because wind farms are large and the turbines do not receive the same wind resource. Comparisons with neighboring turbines, however, determines if further investigation is necessary. When a turbine is not meeting the site average, but performs as well as its neighbors, then a problem may not be present. When it is not performing to the site average and not performing well in comparison with its neighboring turbines, then it is
24/7 control center payback

A simple analysis of the downtime occurring on the back shift and the available wind speeds, will show that the cost of the 24/7 control center services will pay for itself by keeping the turbines in service 24-hours a day. One benet, for example, is if a 2MW turbine is not remotely reset and left offline for 10 hours in windy conditions, the loss of energy production could be as high as 20MWh. The loss of revenue at an energy price of $50/MWhr would equal $1,000. If PTCs are involved, this could add another $500 to that loss. This potential loss of $1,500 for leaving just one turbine offline for just one night more than justies the cost of 24/7 control center services that costs as little as $1,500 per turbine per year. One remote reset pays for an entire year of monitoring services for the turbine.
2012M05 Power Curve
A Power Curve Comparison for a turbine and its neighbors shows performance levels and compares it to site averages.
2012M05 Blade Response

In this Pitch Angle Comparison, turbines B17 and B18 show a signicant gap in performance. This identies the underperforming turbine for next level of investigation.
Performance data analytics

Routinely performing data analyses using the turbines SCADA data provides an additional opportunity to discover losses in production and ensure the wind farm is meeting its AEP. More than 200 data points are collected continuously for each turbine on a typical wind farm. The data, collected on a near real-time basis, annually creates many terabytes of
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identied as a low-performing turbine. So what can be done about it? Additional graphs are made using the data to compare the pitch system performance and yaw system performance with the turbines neighbors. Usually, one of those comparisons will show a shortcoming in the yaw or pitch systems of the underperforming turbine. This gives technicians an educated path to resolving the issue.
Performance data analytics payback

A simple analysis comparing the underperforming turbine to its neighbor reveals a loss of energy production. If the problem continues, the difference in production and revenue can easily exceeds the cost of the analysis. When such a program is initiated at a site, many problems with under performance are identied and resolved within the rst six months. Following that initial clean-up of legacy problems, the service continues to monitor the performance and allows for immediate action when new underperforming problems begin.
Safety
Finally, a critical benet is increased safety for the wind technicians who have 24/7 monitor and control centers, and performance engineering teams. When a control center is in use, each technician is required to check in with the center prior to performing turbine maintenance. When the climb is needed, the center safely stops the turbine, and documents the personnel and activities. When the work completes, the technician contacts the center and gives the all clear signal. Lastly, the center documents task completion, the safe exit of the technicians, and then restarts the turbine. The process creates a protocol for verication prior to action. Also, access to performance engineering has potential to eliminate unnecessary turbine climbs in an attempt to diagnose the problem. WPE 24
WiNDPOwER ENGiNEERiNG & DEVELOPMENt
Chris McKerihen EIT Design Engineer R a d To r q u e S y s t e m s www.radtorque.com
BOLTING
A better way to tighten and check many bolts

It's necessary to re-torque a wind turbines bolts at OEM
prescribed intervals because bolts occasionally work themselves loose. Several hundred of them may need checking on a typical utility-scale turbine. Recent electric wrenches provide a more efficient tool for that task. One version from our company comes with several advantages over other torquing techniques. The E-RAD series of wrenches provides a fast, reliable, and safe way for installing and removing heavy duty fasteners. The company adds that the tools are lighter, faster, stronger, and more accurate than conventional bolting tools. For instance, compared to hydraulic wrenches, the electric tool signicantly decreases tightening times through the delivery of smooth and continuous torque. The relatively low weight of the tool comes in part from its patented planetary gearbox combined with an ergonomic design. The two features provide the highest power-to-weight ratio, controlled bolting system on the market. Tests show that the servo control shuts off at required torque with an accuracy of 3% and a repeatability of 2%. Conventional methods often determine bolt torque by monitoring a pressure gauge, which makes accuracy unreliable. Tool operation has been simplied in the E-RAD. A user would digitally enter a required torque and angle (rotation the socket head must turn after reaching a particular torque value) and press the trigger. The tool runs and shuts off at the required setting. An LED light on the wrench provides an indicator telling users the tool has met the required torque. How does it work? The electric wrench uses an ac servo, brushless motor while an internal CPU stores a torque-versescurrent calibration curve. When the motor reaches a required torque identied by electrical current controls shut the motor off. To control the application of the additional angle, the wrenchs ac servo motor drives an encoder which tracks and records 4,096 points on a 360 degree rotation of the motor drive. Each electric wrench from the company is equipped with a controller case to provide the user-machine interface. A touch screen allows for adjustments to torque and angle. Digital-data collection allows for full traceability of each torque sequence which also creates computer reports. The E-RAD series comes in eight models with torque ratings from 100 to 7,500 ft-lb. WPE
A few specs for three wrenches

Model E-RAD 700 E-RAD 2500 COMP E-RAD 7500 Torque range (ft-lb) 100 to 700 250 to 2,500 1,000 to 7,500 Weight Drive size Accuracy (lb) (in.) (%) 12 0.75 3 18 1 3 33 1.5 3
The E-RADs yellow control case lets users control torque and rotation angles, and it records the days activity for later download. Operating at only 75 db, the torque wrench is said to be the quietest available, making it well suited for sensitive environments. The company also manufactures a Smart Socket which uses strain gauges to measure the torque applied directly to each bolt or nut.
FEBRUARY 2014
WINdpower ENGINeerING & DEVELopmeNt
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INSURANCE
Dan Cass Chris Cioni
Planning for the future with proactive and preventative wind maintenance
Dan Cass / Vice President Loss Control and Engineering Services Chris Cioni / Senior Vice President Underwriting GCube Insurance Services www.gcube-insurance.com
he North American wind market continues to experience short-term bursts of fastpaced growth. This activity is coupled with a wider, long-term impetus to extend turbines operating lifecycles and increase the availability of existing wind farms and eets. This effort has shifted focus toward more lucrative longterm independent service schedules, along with operations and maintenance (O&M) contracts that often come into effect once traditional manufacturer warranties end. This model of industry growth, while nancially motivated, has major implications on resources. The race to meet last years commissioning for the production tax credit (PTC) led to competition for the resources necessary to complete a construction project. This can include the turbine manufacturers supply chain, competency of its development team, and even crane availability.
From an insurance perspective, this competition for resources, under tight time constraints, may lead developers to take shortcuts and make errors that increase the risk of worker accidents or poor workmanship. The scope and effects of which may not be revealed for years to come. Although the PTC is a welcome force for industry growth, GCube shares the concern that, until the wind industry is able to build in a more consistent manner, the probability of unnecessary claims is higher than it need be. Whats more, this inconsistent growth pattern and subsequent strain on resources hinders proper planning and maintenance work at existing wind farms. As construction on a large number of new projects gets underway, operators may nd it difficult to procure the required equipment and labor to repair a turbine at an existing site. With a growing focus on getting new projects up and running, amplied demand for parts may
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lead operators to move their inventories between wind farms, meaning, in the event of unexpected damage, the necessary spares are not available. When a repair takes an extended period of time to complete, it increases the number of days the insurer will be paying for business interruption. This articially inates insurance costs that might not have existed otherwise in a more consistent development environment. The unstable market has also contributed to a broader, more concerning, shift in the way maintenance is conducted in the industry. Many companies have come and gone amidst these volatile conditions. During extended quiet periods, some component manufacturers have gone out of business, leaving operators with the challenge of nding obsolete stock. When the market picks up again, nding experienced labor and manufacturing plant capacity has become an increasing concern. To reduce downtime as much as possible, in this business climate, a primary focus should be to ensure a thorough understanding of equipment and a supply of components. Insurance underwriters always favor a preventative and proactive approach to maintenance, as well as an effective loss-control program. To an increasing extent, a number of plants do not follow proper maintenance practices and have adopted long-term O&M contracts that come into effect once manufacturer warranties end. However, these programs often fail to look beyond the turbines and gearboxes to ensure that proper maintenance and contingency plans are in place. Should a substation transformer fail, for example, an entire project will come to a standstill. For many years, operators within
WiNdPowER ENGiNEERiNG & DEVELOPMENT
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I N S U R A N C E
the industry have favored a reactive maintenance approach. However, with renewable insurance claims on the rise, this approach is of signicant concern to underwriters and capital providers. Wind turbines are exposed to a range of adverse weather and complex-site conditions that create mechanical stress. Although a turbine may have a 20-year life expectancy, premature component failures still occur. Numerous studies have proven the benet of extending the life of turbines through proper maintenance. For equipment to meet expectations, the industry must adopt a proactive, preventative approach to deal with potential problems prior to occurrence. By acting in advance, overall downtime can be reduced, along with maintenance and labor costs, and can increase the availability of spare parts. Simultaneously, operators will see a boost to turbine life and the cost effectiveness of the entire project. Insurance is intended for catastrophic failure, and yet claims based on mechanical consequential breakdown are steadily increasing. As the number of industry suppliers falls and available manufacturing capacity shrinks, lead times increase for repairs. In this environment, insurance providers may look to reward those operators with proactive, preventative-maintenance programs with lower deductibles, while raising rates for insureds with predominately reactive plans. From an underwriting perspective, the markets instability has necessitated a reevaluation of acceptable industry risk. Just as PTC uncertainty brings volatility to developers and manufacturers, the availability and quality of risk transfer can also negatively affect the industrys longterm performance. In the last two years, there has been an unprecedented rise in the magnitude of insured loss events. To retain the wind industrys health, traditional measures such as price and breadth of coverage will no longer suffice risk quality must evolve within the windenergy insurance market. Greater scrutiny will be placed on the quality and track record of EPC contractors, the design of critical infrastructure to limit single-point catastrophic failure, and the quality of O&M services throughout project lifetimes. Underwriters could begin to face pressure from capital providers to reduce exposure to wind-energy risks. Also, insurers could decline
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risks because of stringent lender requirements at odds with prudent underwriting practices. When all is said and done, many underwriters would prefer a market where risk mitigation is a primary concern, shared by all parties the insured, insurer, and lender. Volatile price movements do little to improve the long-term prospects of the windenergy market. With so many concerns, a new focus has been placed on keeping insurance claims and premium costs to a minimum. The most effective means of risk mitigation is to reduce the number of instances of premature component failure. The North American wind market would do well to follow the example of the traditional power generation market in which annual insurance inspections have become the norm. These proactive inspections let the operator and insurer determine where and when an issue might arise prior to occurrence. For insurance to maintain its role in the nancing and capitalization of projects, costs must stay within a certain percentage of overall expenditures. Failures engendered as a direct result of poor maintenance programs have a detrimental effect upon the nancing model. More importantly, they are avoidable. Short-term bursts of industry growth have shaped the North American wind market in a pattern thats set to continue. Consequently, great pressure has been placed on developers and operators to cut corners, rush new projects to completion, and compete for resources. However, to keep insurers and underwriters on board, it is necessary to demonstrate a long-term commitment to proactive, preventative maintenance. WPE
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Condition Monitoring
More Profit, Greater Production
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FEBRUARY 2014
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SAFETY
Facing the freeze

How windpower technicians decide when to work in bitter cold.
Steven Bushong
Windpower technicians across the United

States were forced to cancel maintenance runs in early January when the polar vortex a mass of low-pressure and extremely cold air, usually found swirling above Siberia and Northern Canada moved south into American airspace. The air mass brought sub-zero temperatures to places unacquainted with extreme chill. Temperatures dipped well below normal at the end of January, too. For a wind-farm owner, the gusty winds of winter provide the years best energy production. But cold temperatures also wreak havoc on a turbines rotating parts. Lubricating oil and grease at temperatures near 0F dont ow well. When turbines ramp up in the cold, they experience more friction and loading than at more moderate temperatures. In the middle of this seasonal give
and take, windpower technicians keep the turbines turning. But chilly weather can be dangerous for technicians just as dangerous as heat in the summer. Dening what temperature is too cold for work, however, is not as easy as simply picking a number, according to windpower companies. Our technicians have to make the call depending on the combination of temperature and wind, says Chris Bley, CEO at Rope Partner, a wind turbine maintenance, repair, and inspection service. Also up for consideration is the task at hand. Its a tough decision, and often we spend a lot of time and money just to get out to the turbine and stand by. In Maine, recent freezing rain led to icy glazes on some blades leading edges. Elsewhere, they were coated with ice inches thick. Most wind companies forbid technicians from entering a work area when ice is present on a blade. Sometimes, workers are only made aware of ice when they hear the thumping sound of it falling to the ground. One the job, Rope Partner technicians dangle
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FEBRUARY 2014
SAFETY
from ropes to access trouble spots on a turbine blade. To help make informed decisions about weather conditions, including ice, Rope Partner managers always pair experienced climbers with newer ones. One thing we can mitigate is the potential for falling, but the temperature and wind speed are out of our control, says Bley. Our technicians must make the decision on whether to make a repair in bad weather. In the High Plains, Broadwind Energy recently chose to keep its workers in warm offices. Because roads were in subpar shape a problem solved by some blizzardready companies with track vehicles cold-weather safety considerations led managers to wait for warmer days. A lot of attention is paid to hot
weather, but fatigue happens in the extreme cold, too, says Jason Eddy, VP of Operations at Broadwind Energy. The symptoms are just different. Prolonged exposure to cold can lead to problems such as trench foot, frostbite, and hypothermia, according to OSHA. Danger signs include shivering, slurred speech, clumsy movements, fatigue, and confused behavior. Andy Doak is the operations
2
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S A F E T Y
3 4
manager for First Wind at Bull Hill Wind Farm near Eastbrook, Maine. The farm comprises 19 Vestas V100 1.8-MW machines in a region that typically experiences weather between 0F and freezing throughout the winter. One of the things people often forget about in cold weather is that you still sweat, Doak says. When you stop working, that sweat is still taking heat off of your body. You get cold, and it can really jump on you if youre not wearing clothing that siphons away moisture. In Maine, First Wind usually hires locals who are accustomed to the chill. They have a common sense approach to the cold, Doak says, which usually means donning extreme weather clothing and layers of it. When he goes on site during the winter months, Doak wears boots rated at -40 or below. They have a honeycomb insulation in the sole, which insulates the foot from the ground or, as is often the case with turbine technicians, a freezing-cold steel platform uptower. Steel can suck warmth from a pair of booths with little trouble, Doak says. A thick base layer of long underwear is essential, he says, followed by an insulation layer covering the legs and torso. The outermost layer is complimented with coldweather gloves and headware. Even with appropriate clothing, technicians are known to bring a space heater along with them for nacelle work. While its important to be safe and wear the appropriate amount of clothing, companies acknowledge that taking precautions come with a notable cost: time. Duties take longer in the winter because of added layers of clothing, Eddy says. Also, technicians may need extra tethering for
Q:
1. Are the roads safe?
Questions to ask before Winter windpower work:
2. Am I wearing moisture-control underwear? 3. Am I wearing layers? 4. Is there ice on the turbine? 5. Am I well hydrated? 6. Do I have warming gels for my hands? 7. Can I bring a space heater? 8. Does my cold-weather gear interfere with my PPE? 9. Do I have enough time to complete the task?
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Fightthe
their devices because their gloves are thicker making drops more likely. Often, personal protective equipment will only allow so many layers. If arc-ash protection is required, the work may need a postponement until the weather allows it. Overall, though, windpower companies recognize the need for safety. Companies know that putting someone out there is a risk, says Chris Bley of Rope Partner. Were just really conscious that were not going to put ourselves in any bad situations. The companies we work for know that, ultimately, its our decision whether to work. WPE
frost
These products will help keep winter windpower workers warm.
The N-FERNO 6892 three-layer liner protects from cold-related injuries and arc ash.It uses modacrylic blend fabrics with 3Ms FR Thinsulate to provide warmth and protection.The inner layer is modacrylic and cotton, providing arc-ash protection and softness. www.ergodyne.com
Headgear
2 Space heater
While some nacelles come with a built-in heater, many do not. This 1,500-Watt Lasko ceramic space heater features rugged construction and a pivoting axis that directs warmth to where its needed. www.laskoproducts.com
Visit WindpowerEngineering.com to hear the full interview with Jason Eddy from Broadwind Energy. He discusses coldweather safety for turbine technicians.
3 Gloves
The 921 DIR is a nitrile-dipped glove that protects ngers from impacts and cold. To improve warmth, the glove uses thermal acrylic eece with seamless knitting. www.egodyne.com
4 Thermal jacket
A rugged 300D polyester shell on this jacket helps keep out winter weather. The eece-lined jacket comes with Armortex-protected wear areas on the elbows and shoulder, heavy duty zippers, and a cell-phone pocket. www.egodyne.com
5 Base-layer pants

Polarmax is made from a single layer, lightweight, breathable fabric that wicks moisture away from your body and into the VTREX liner. polarmax.com
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The Grabber hand warmer packs are good for a quick warmup when ngers get chilly. The heat lasts about seven hours. Each warmer measures about 4 x 2 in. www.grabberworld.com
6 Warmers 7 Boots
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Full-length lacing supports maneuverability inside this boot with a -40F rating. The Baffin Crossre features waterproof Timberwolf nubuck leather and an eight-layer foam liner to keep moisture out and warmth in. www.baffin.com
WiNDpowEr ENGiNEEriNG & DEVELOPMENT
D a vid C l a r k C o nd i t i o n M o ni t o r i n g e x p e r t w w w. b a c h m a n n .i nf o
C O N DI TI ON
MONITORING
A brief specication for a complete blade monitoring system
loading creates uneven stress on blades which can be measured under specic frequencies. Imbalance either aerodynamic or static While blades are balanced from the factory within a tight tolerance, several factors including leading edge erosion, contribute to a difference in static balance. A more frequent aerodynamic imbalance is caused by variations in pitching. Loading issues come from wind shear, pitch deviation, tip in and out, and yaw deviation. Ideally, all these conditions should be monitored with a BCMS. This would not contribute to condition monitoring as much as performance monitoring for improved reliability and performance production output. When not monitored correctly, these operational conditions may appear as imbalance. A blade CMS should be able to discern between these differences. A blade CMS system should also detect lightning strikes, a common condition which contributes to a failure mode.
A speaker at a recent AWEA conference remarked that the wind industry

was getting a handle on the gearbox problem and its next big challenge would be blades. The speaker is right. What the industry needs is a condition monitoring system capable of detecting and predicting failures and conditions related to the blades on megawatt-class wind turbines. Several technologies have been tried or adapted from other markets with limited ability to cost effectively detect all major failure modes. One system judged most appropriate is currently not commercially available to the market and will be described later. A blade condition-monitoring system will likely be a requirement as wind turbines and blades increase in size, insurance requirements dictate reliability, and offshore wind turbines increase in number.
to this application have met with limited success. At least three issues have hobbled current blade-sensing technology. The rst issue is whether or not the technology or product can detect the likely encountered failure modes. The second issue: Can the system retrot to existing towers. The third issue: Is the system cost effective?
A few attempts Failure modes

An effective BCMS must detect several conditions. Crack detection will be critical for the system. Cracks typically occur at four major locations: the root, leading edge, trailing edge, and tip. While there is some variance in the locations due to the variety of blade manufacturers, generally speaking these four locations are consistent. Delamination predominately occurs at trailing edges and is caused by separating layers of composites and laminations. The accumulation of ice on blades should be detectable. An ice accumulation is obviously not conducive to safety or operation. The extra
FEBRUARY 2014
Historically, the different technologies applied with limited success include: Fiber optic devices, which have been difficult to install, retrot, expensive, and do not detect all failure modes. This is likely why it has had limited adoption and success by the wind industry. Installing a ber optic-based sensor usually involves cutting a shallow slot into the perimeter of the blade into which the ber optic strand is laid and epoxied in place. Strain gauges are easy to install, but when retrot to existing turbines, they do not detect all failure modes. Although costs are relatively low, the sensors are not robust in the eld. Some tests and trials have shown sensor life as short as 6 to 9 months.
How blades fail

Six major failure modes and other conditions must be monitored by a blade condition monitoring system or BCMS. Although several approaches have been tested in the recent decade, no commercially available system is capable of detecting major failure modes. Many attempts to adapt other technologies 34
C O N D I T I O N
Acoustics, used by one wind-turbine manufacturer to detect cracks, has worked on a small number of units. It mounts a microphone atop the nacelle and focuses it towards the hub to detect high frequency acoustics common in surface cracks. While easy to install and relatively cost effective, acoustic detection and ber optics never caught on. The technology has a limited detection ability because it depends on a crack as the failure mode, which is not always the case. Vibration sensors have been used mounted near the hub, but not on the blades. There is good measurement ability on some failure modes such as icing, imbalance, but have a less than optimal operational condition. As with the others here, vibration sensing has limited detection of the common failure modes. However, ease of installation or retrot, and cost are good. As a secondary benet, these sensors are usually mounted on main bearings which are also monitored. Although main bearings have the least frequent failures, the capability is an added benet. Laser reference uses a laser and prism system to compare differences and changes between known reference points inside a blade. This is done by aiming the laser at the prism and then redirecting the laser to internal locations. This would be an excellent system for quality control of blades measuring manufacturing deviations in substrates and composites. Once again, the ability to detect all common failure modes, ease of retrot, and cost, all factor in to a lack of widespread acceptance. Secondly, the blades expand and contract during operation, so temperature changes make valid reference measurements extremely difficult.
M O N I T O R I N G
Detect all six major or common failure modes Use robust sensors Identify blade position Identify the blade Identify the sensor Provide a cost-effective fit into blades in the eld and those on the manufacturing oor Install easily Use technology that is wireless, self powered, and self-contained At this writing, a recent patent shows promise for combining all the features mentioned here. It is under development at California-based Bajou Engineering. Company president Dr. Shaw Makerami says the system should be commercially available in about 18 months. This should be good news to those developing offshore turbines or those facing blade issues. WPE
Summary for an ideal system

So what would work? An ideal blade sensing systems should
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Driveline and Chassis Technology
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WINDPOwer ENGINeerING & DeVeLOPMeNT 2/13/14 3 5 4:27 PM
J os Lu is N u o M a r t os P e r fo r m anc e & R e l i ab i l i t y E ng i n e e r Abilene, TX
SOFTWARE
Weibull analysis applied to wind projects

Two signicant features make Weibull Analysis a powerful tool. For one, a small number of samples can provide a failure analysis and failure forecast with a prescribed condence interval. And the simple graphical way it typically presents failure data is extremely instructive. Waloddi Weibull invented the Weibull distribution in 1937 and delivered a seminal paper on the topic in 1951[1]. In it, he claimed the distribution could be applied to a wide range of problems. Since then, it has been recognized as a leading method for tting and analyzing life data. A case history will show that even in its simplest form, Weibull Analysis can add signicant value to an engineering problem.
The basics
The simplest form of Weibull Analysis consists of plotting ranked time-to-failure or cycles-to-failure data on special Weibull paper and then interpreting the plot. Good quality data allows tting a straight line to the data and extracting the slope or Shape Factor . The other readily available key parameter is the Characteristic Life or Scale Factor . It is the time or number of cycles at the 63.2 percentile of the distribution. The Probability plot example leverages the power of Minitab statistical software[2] (minitab.com) to t a line to a data set and generate key statistics. In this case, a Shape Factor of about 2.5 and a Scale Factor of about 4,181 days. A shape factor greater than 1, suggests wear out. The expected life is 20 years and yet the Characteristic Life is less than 12 years, so the wear out is deemed premature. A typical bathtub curve for a device tracks that shape[3]. The gure highlights the relationship between the Weibull Shape Parameter, , and the Hazard Function. The Hazard Function, h(t), represents the probability of an event failure in an interval of time, given that the component or device has survived up to that time. Physically, it is an indication of the risk to a part at any time t. For example, an increasing failure rate means that as the part ages or survives longer, it has a higher chance of failing in the next time step. This is similar to the process of human aging, where a persons chances of dying in the next year increase with age[4]. A <1 implies infant mortality, =1 implies a random failure, consistent with a normal design life, and >1
Probability plot example

Weibull
An example of a Weibull plot shows that even a few data points of failures are enough for meaningful results.
Time to failure (days)
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FEBRUARY 2014
Typical bathtub curve for a device
S O F T W A R E
The bathtub curve shows a failure plot typical for most products.
implies the device will wear out, or reach an expected end of life.
A case history from a wind park

In this wind park, the electrical collection system was originally built with 18 underground splice pits where lengths of power cables were spliced together to connect turbines to the substation. Between May 2011 and June 2012 ve underground splice pits were excavated to repair cable splice failures. The total energy loss from these incidents was 5,700 MWh, plus the expense of repair, about $23,000 each. The Plan-Do-Check Act (PDCA) method was used to tackle the issue. A common understanding of the facts was developed with a problem statement including the most important affected Key Performance Indicators: this problem contributed to 15% of the stations Equipment Equivalent Forced Outage Factor for 2012. The Team recognized that, due to the nature and complexity of the cable failure, external consulting assistance was needed to complete a Root Cause Analysis. Cable Technology Laboratories in New Brunswick, NJ was commissioned to provide its expert opinion. The lab concluded that the failure was due to improper joint assembly.
With another 13 splice pits containing similarly spliced cables, the question arose: What can we expect in the near future? To address this question Weibull Analysis was used to predict the expected life of the remaining splice pits by tting a statistical distribution to the failure data. Key parameters derived from this curve t were used to project the number of failures that could be expected in the future, assuming the splices would be replaced or renewed
with identical splices. The Probability plot of days-to-failure shows the ve failures (red dots) on a probability plot. The slope was severe enough to suggest that three cycles of failure could be expected within the next 15 years, as highlighted in Estimate of annual replacements with renewals if replacement in kind continued. The combined use of the PDCA method and Weibull tool, along with a nancial analysis, established a clear
Probability plot for days to failure

Weibull - 95% CI Censoring Column in Censored - ML Estimates
Days to failure
The ve splice failures provided data to generate this Weibull plot and with 95% condence interval for further splice pit failures.
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WINDPOwer ENGINeerING & DEVELOPMENT
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S O F T W A R E
justication for the project and the impact over time. The total cost over the project life, if nothing new was done and splices were simply repaired with an identical splice, was projected up to $4,800,000. This prompted the site to accept the consultants recommendation to eliminate the underground splices by proactively replacing them with above ground junction boxes which are expected to remove the path to failure experienced by the underground cables and allow for periodic inspection. Due to the magnitude of the project (investment and downtime) a three-year implementation plan was developed to eliminate all underground splices at the site. With the high total cost of replacing the splices using the same type of connection, mentioned above, and implementation cost of about $400,000 for the junction box solution a pre-tax NPV of $1,700,000 was calculated with an associated pre-tax IRR of 190%. The Weibull Analysis predicted additional failures were imminent and the prediction appears to have been validated because, during the replacement process ve of the 10 splice pits replaced in 2012 showed clear evidence of imminent failures, as evidenced by degraded cables, such as the one in the photo. No further in-service failures have occurred.
Estimate of annual replacements with renewals

using mean max likelihood estimate based on 5 prior failures
Number of events
Years since commercial operating date

If splices are repaired as they fail, the Weibull analysis says expect this rate of failures.
For further reading [1] R. B. Abernethy, The New Weibull Handbook, Fifth Edition. Published by the Author, 2004. Can be obtained at http://www.barringer1.com [2] Minitab Statistical Software http://www.minitab.com [3] IEC 61649, International Standard, Weibull Analysis, Edition 2.0, 2008-08. [4] Sameer Vittal, Introduction to Weibull Analysis, GE In-house overview, Oct. 15, 2005.
Final thoughts
Weibull analysis is a powerful technique easily leveraged across the wind sector to develop a better understanding of the life-cycle costs of failures and thus motivate a change in response from replacing A proactively removed collector cable with the same, in an effort to seek shows evidence of severe degradation. out a better long-term solution. These analyses have been used for years in cutting-edge industries, such as aerospace and automotive. There are also many examples in the literature related to thermal plants and more sophisticated calculations are possible addressing optimal replacement times. WPE 38
WindpOwEr EnGinEErinG & DEVELOPMENT FEBRUARY 2014
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T U RB INE
OF THE MONTH
Two-bladed turbine stands up against hurricane-force winds

Its no secret that many windturbine models cant handle the stress of extreme weather. There have even been instances in which wind turbines have exploded or crumbled in harsh storms. With this in mind, one OEM set out to create a hurricane-proof wind turbine. Vergnet SA (www.vergnet.com) says its GEV HP two-bladed turbine can withstand hurricane winds up to category 5. With the onset of harsh weather, the company says the 1MW turbines upwind nacelle and rotor blades can be lowered to a ground-level platform. The lowering system ensures all components are secured in a brief period and allows for ground-level maintenance. Vergnet says the systems convenience reduces operating costs and maintenance downtimes, adding to the turbines availability and protability. By letting six guy wires balance the 70-m turbine tower, designers were able to trim 33% off its weight. The steel and polyethylene wires are anchored into a relatively small amount of concrete two-thirds less than most conventional 1MW turbines. The turbine is equipped with a fastening system, similar to one found in suspension bridges to ensure safety in harsh weather. A heavy-duty nacelle cover protects the inner components. The company says a proprietary teetering hub helps reduce load uctuations and stress from wind turbulence by 35%. The nacelle also houses an all-weather generator for extreme weather conditions and a cooled three-stage gearbox. An additional varnish coat is applied on electronic components to combat condensation. Whats more, the two-bladed, 62m rotor is easier to lower and secure than if it were a three-bladed rotor for a similar rating, says the company. The blades are manufactured through vacuum infusion. In this process, composite ber mats are placed in a mold and are vacuuminfused with composite through a pump and hose system. The infusion produces a wider, thicker blade that increases bending resistance by removing air pockets in the laminate. Vergnets light structure extends
Vergnet says its two-bladed turbine works with good efficiency while the lowering system provides protection from hurricanes.
4 0 WINDPOwER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
T U R B I N E
The GEV HP easily lowers the blades and nacelle onto a landing platform allowing for ground-level maintenance and repairs, says the company.
OF THE MONTH
Innovative Technologies and Superior Client Support
Ulteig will help drive the power of energy for generations to come. Our electrical, civil, and structural engineers have decades of experience in the energy industry. We are recognized leaders, providing services and expertise on energy projects worldwide. Ulteig provides complete wind farm design services from the development stage to a complete design package. For more information about the many services Ulteig has to offer, visit our website at www.ulteig.com.
climate protection and offers new possibilities for locations not previously known as wind-turbine friendly. It is considered a cost-effective installation because it ships in 40-ft. standard containers and is self-erecting using an integrated erection tool. The company adds that its turbine complies with many international grid codes, such as EON, REE, AEMCO, and easily integrates into any grid. WPE
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M A I N T E N A N C E
Understanding the root causes of in wind turbine gearbox bearings
axial cracking
Axial cracking in bearing races has become all too common in large megawatt turbines. This damage can shorten bearing life to as little as one to two years. Recent research suggests a root cause of axial cracking, making prevention and early detection possible.
Doug Herr General Manager AeroTorque Corporation David Heidenreich Chief Engineer AeroTorque Corporation www.aerotorque.com
A single axial crack has propagated completely through the inner ring.
odern wind turbines are an important piece of our energy mix. Unfortunately, gearbox life issues have impacted their nancial payback. Axial cracks in bearing raceways have become a major cause of premature gearbox failures in the latest generation of wind turbines. However, its rare to nd axial crack failures in gearbox bearings in other industries. Why damage is so common in wind turbines has been a mystery and the subject of intense research. The root cause must be understood before nding a solution. The rst part of this article reviews the latest research on axial cracking and provides a discussion on how axial cracks grow from smaller cracks that have a white color when sectioned and etched. White Etch Cracks (WEC) originate from microscopic super-hard areas that also show up white when sectioned and etched. These areas in which cracks start are called White Etch Area (WEA) damage. A few recent papers suggest that a threshold of rapid and severe plastic deformation must be exceeded to create these hard
FEBRUARY 2014
Rapidly reversing bearing load zones
microscopic WEAs. But what event in a wind turbine could cause such rapid and severe bearing loads? The second part focuses on this subject and is based on recent research and eld monitoring by the authors that was presented at NREL Gearbox Reliability Collaborative in February, 2013, along with additional research and eld data collected since that presentation. Axial cracking Axial cracks on inner rings of high speed and intermediate speed bearings have become a leading cause of wind turbine gearbox life issues. Many technical papers on axial cracking in the past couple of years have focused on why this unusual bearing phenomenon is so prevalent in wind turbine gearboxes. Wind-turbine bearings are selected to meet a 20-year design life, with a low likelihood of failure. Most manufacturers follow Germanischer Lloyd guidelines for gearbox bearings. GL requires analyzing gearbox bearings for Rolling Contact Fatigue (RCF) resulting in a calculated life of at least 130,000 hours with a likelihood of failure at less than 10%. If a gearbox meets these design criteria, how can axial cracking failure rates be so high and often occur within the rst or second year of operation? How can it be that a bearing that has been analyzed using well-understood and validated methods likely fail much sooner than predicted? The answer lies in the fact that the axial cracking failure mode differs from the classic RCF failure mode. RCF failures are caused by damage to the bearing material that accumulates over time at well-understood rates. Axial cracking failures are relatively recent phenomena and their failure modes are much less understood. Axial cracking failure mode of a bearing mainly occur on the inner ring typically mounted to a shaft with an interference t. The ring is heated during assembly onto the shaft. When the ring cools, it shrinks holding the ring in place, but also creating tensile stress in the ring that increases the possibilities for axial cracking. An axial crack failure of the
Aligned (green) rollers are in a load zone. Misaligned rollers (red) are 180 to the loaded ones. In a transient torque reversal, unaligned rollers are suddenly loaded, then unloaded, and repeatedly in a short period.
The early stages of multiple axial cracks appear on the inner ring.
White Etch Cracks and White Surface Flaking appear on the inner ring of a tapered roller bearing. Evidence suggests that both were initiated by WEA microstructural alterations in the steel subsurface. Courtesy A. Greco et al 1
FEBRUARY 2014
43
The red trace plots a high wind TTR event on a 2 MW wind turbine. At about the 17 sec mark the torque rapidly transitions from positive to negative. This torque transfers right through the gearbox bearings.
Driveshaft torque during an e-stop: 2 MW turbine
inner ring can be caused by excessive hoop stresses during installation but this does not appear to be the general case in the wind industry. Microscopic, white-colored areas at the edge of the cracks when the bearings are sectioned and etched are a key indicator that this is not merely standard hoop-stress failures. These cracks are termed WEC and are commonly found in through-hardened bearing races. When WEA damage causes aking or spalling, it may be termed White Structure Flaking (WSF). This generally occurs in carborized raceways. Either way, the damage starts with the creation of WEAs. WEA a subsurface microscopic material alteration Detailed failure analysis of axially cracked bearings reveals that the WEAs not only appear in surface cracks but also in subsurface cracks and even areas where cracks have not yet started. WEA damage is actually a microstructural alteration of the inner ring material, creating tiny super-hard areas (30 to
50% harder than the surrounding area) just below the raceway surface. These areas act like inclusions in the steel. Once an event initiates subsurface WEA formations, normal rolling action of the bearing can initiate cracks at the junction of these inclusion-like areas. The crack inevitably propagates to the surface and becomes a WEC, which grows axially across the raceway and causes premature bearing failures. Many research papers recognize two primary mechanisms for WEA damage: hydrogen-induced WEA and stress-induced WEA. Hydrogen WEA is believed to be driven by corrosion, water contamination, electrical currents or aggressive oil additives that can worsen cracks once they appear on the surface. But what events initiate these surface cracks?
This article focuses on understanding the events that can initiate subsurface stress-induced WEA damage but it will also show how these same events could cause the cracks where hydrogeninduced WEA can happen too. Stress-induced WEA damage in the bearing inner ring comes from an event that causes the roller to exert high subsurface stresses simultaneously with rapid strain rates. Possible WEA mechanisms mentioned in recent research includes:
Impact loading sudden loads that can

between the rollers and races that produce high surface and subsurface stresses Severe plastic deformation (SPD) subsurface stress high enough to cause microscopic deformation Rapid plastic deformation (Adiabatic Shear Bands - ASB) subsurface plastic deformation so rapid that the heat generated cannot dissipate and thus directly alters the material to create ferrite microstructures. These four mechanisms are related and can occur at the same time. For instance, WEA damage can be created in the lab with ballistic impacts, where all four of these WEA mechanisms have been shown to act simultaneously. Impact loads, and rapid and severe plastic deformation An Adiabetic Shear Band, or ASB, is an area within a base material transformed by microscopic, localized heating during rapid and
Surface traction frictional contact
cause high stress and strain
A microscopic WEA formation with nano hardness measurements showing a 44% increase in hardness.
Courtesy A. Greco et al 1
FEBRUARY 5 4 WINDPOwER 2014 ENGINEERING www.windpowerengineering.com & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2013
Driveshaft torque during an e-stop: 1 MW turbine

The red trace plots a high wind TTR event on a 1 MW wind turbine during an emergency stop. At about the 15 sec mark the torque oscillates from positive to negative.
severe plastic deformation. Since the 1960s, ASBs have been studied extensively because of their importance as a failure mode in areas such as high-speed metal forming and cutting, various types of ballistic impact, as well as vehicle crashes. Adiabatic, a thermodynamic term, simply means an absence of heat transfer heat produced is retained in the zone where it is created. These shear bands are usually narrow, about 0.0002 to 0.020 inches. In steel, these bands are in fact WEA damage initiated by fatigue cracks. There is a threshold of instantaneous high stress and strain rate where microscopic plastic deformation creates heat so fast that it cannot escape. The subsurface metal momentarily softens and transforms the material as it cools into an altered microstructure. Severe deformation that occurs slowly lets heat escape and does not produce ASBs or WEA damage. Thus, a stamped metal part may show a similar degree of plastic deformation as a bullet hole, but if the strain rate is slow enough the stamped part avoids ASBs and WEA damage. In bearing material, the heat from the rapid plastic deformation can cause a microstructural transformation of the hardened bearing steel into a sliver of super-hard ferrite that appears white when sectioned and etched WEA damage. A band of WEA damage, however, is not required to fail the bearing. A single sliver of this WEA damage can act as an inclusion to initiate WEC that eventually propagates to the surface and across the bearing raceway surface. Bearing manufacturers have continuously improved the life of roller bearings by improving the purity and quality of the steel used in their products. By minimizing hard inclusions and stringers (elongated carbide or sulde inclusions), manufacturers minimize the potential places where cracks initiate and propagate. These efforts have gained an impressive 10-fold increase in bearing life as
predicted by the standard RCF method used by bearing manufacturers to calculate L10 life. Unfortunately, all the efforts to make super-clean steel are wasted by events in a wind turbines operation that initiates WEA damage, mimicking inclusions less than 0.04 inches (1 mm) below the raceway surface. This depth coincides with the depth of maximum shear stresses under the bearing raceway during normal Hertzian loading of the rollers. This is also the worst possible location for an inclusion-like impurity leading to shortened bearing surface fatigue life and axial cracks. Once started, WEA damage can reduce bearing life to just 1 to 10% of predicted life as calculated with standard rolling-contact-fatigue formulas. This explanation shows how WEA induced axial cracks can cause bearing failures within a few years of operation. What events in a wind turbine could create impact loads and rapid plastic deformation signicant enough to initiate the WEA
damage? A recent NREL paper concluded, A wind turbine exposed to an extreme event, such as a power loss or emergency stop, could produce the localized deformation energy needed for ASB formation. Emergency stops and other transient turbine events Recent research on bearing axial cracking suggests that impact loading, and emergency stops as likely contributors to WEA damage. Wind professionals have long recognized a connection between sudden stops, and extreme loading into all turbine-drive components. Many have also noted a relationship between emergency stops and gearbox life. Furthermore, there is a growing awareness that it is the Transient Torque Reversals (TTRs) during severe stopping events which may be the source of damaging impact loads in gearbox bearings. Some drive systems in other types of equipment see severe transient loading and torque reversals without experiencing WEA
The yellow and red areas identify highest stress locations in a bearing during transient torque reversals.
FEBRUARY 2014
45
In gearboxes with helicalgearing, simultaneous radial impact and axial loading of a misaligned roller is known to decrease bearing life.
damage to their bearings. Severe torque loads without reversals, and torque reversals that happen slowly in a controlled manner, would not create rapid plastic deformation in the bearing raceway. Wind turbines, however, are different. Why? Their drive systems are unique in the severity of torque reversals and most importantly, the rapidity at which they happen. Rapid torque reversals What is it about a turbine drivetrain that causes it to be so susceptible to the rapid and severe torque reversals? This has to do with the relative rotating masses (inertias) of the blades and the generator rotor, and how they can react against each other within the torsional natural frequency of the drive system. A typical turbine has 80 to 90% of its relative inertia in the blades, with most of the rest of the inertia in the generator rotor. In normal operation, the blades are driving the generator in the positive direction. A grid disconnect, emergency stop, or high-wind shutdown triggers rapid aero braking of the blades that attempts to decelerate the drive system. Most of the aero braking effort goes into decelerating the massive blade inertia, but some of it goes through the drive system to decelerate the generator. This typically causes
a torque reversal in the drive system that can result in the inertias of the system winding up and unwinding against each other several times at the torsional natural frequency of the system as it decelerates. Note: The 1 and 2 MW turbines have similar natural frequencies despite the signicant size difference in the turbines. How do these reversals cause impact loading in the bearings? Rapidly reversing bearing load zones and impact loads on misaligned rollers, damaging to bearings in other types of equipment, can cause WEA damage. Rapidly reversing bearing load zones are also known to decrease bearing life. During TTRs, every bearing in the gearbox sees a rapid load zone reversal of almost 180 that can cause severe impact loads between rollers and raceways. All the cited research recognizes that impact loading could be the source of the stress-induced subsurface WEA damage, and most of the ndings name it as a suggested leading candidate. During normal operation, rollers in the
High-resolution torque reversal recordings of wind turbines reect the rate of change in torque. The steeper slope indicates signicantly higher strain rates.
Reducing transient torque reversals
Field testing demonstrates the ability to reduce the maximum reverse torque and rate of torque increase. This method can also dampen torsional vibrations to reduce the number of reversals to 40% of nominal torque.
bearings are aligned and rolling at the expected or design speed while they are in the load zone. As they leave the load zone, the rollers slow down and can misalign within the tolerance of the cages. As they approach the load zone again, they are gradually brought back into alignment and smoothly accelerate to support the load. In a rapid load zone reversal, the unloaded rollers opposite the normal load zone are suddenly loaded while in this misaligned state. This rapid loading increases the load concentration of the rollers in the middle of the inner race. Although load reversals are common to many types of equipment, torque reversals of the magnitude and rapidity common in wind turbines is rare in other equipment. And helical gearing commonly used in windturbine gearboxes adds additional subsurface stress and strain. With helical gearing, every cylindrical bearing will see high axial loads simultaneous with the radial loads impacting misaligned rollers. Cylindrical rollers may slip axially and damage the raceway surface, further
FEBRUARY 2014
Blade dynamics Not all e-stops are the same

How emergency stops with high winds, turbulence, or gusts can magnify torque reversals and bearing impact loads Pitchable blades let modern wind-turbine models perform close to an ideal power curve. Blade pitch control is Typical power curve and blade pitch angles important to maximizing the energy capture from the wind. Additionally, it is critically important as the primary safety braking system for protecting the turbine from high-wind speeds damaging wind loads and overspeed in the event of turbine subsystem failures. The graph Typical power curve and blade pitch angles also shows the pitch angles of a typical modern turbine. At low-wind speeds, the blades are in a fully feathered position about 90 to the plane of rotor sweep. In region II, the blades rotate to about 0 pitch angle to extract the maximum power, capturing close to 50% of the winds available power. In region III, the blades are pitched back to protect the turbine from high stresses as it strives to control and maintain full-rated power. At cut-out speed, the blades are quickly pitched to provide braking to safely decelerate and shutdown the turbine drive system. The graph Power vs. wind speed of the power curve masks Power vs. wind speed the challenge of protecting the turbine from damage during high and turbulent winds. The Strain rate analysis graph shows the turbine power curve compared to the winds available power. As the winds approach the typical cut-out speed of 25 mps (55 mph), the turbine may use less than 10% of the winds available power. The blades must be pitched to a precise angle to effectively spill wind power equal to 10 times the turbines rated power and protect the drive from excessive loads. With longer blades, the cut-in speed and the rated power speed is obtained at even lower wind speeds, signicantly improving annual energy output and nancial performance projections while also increasing the challenge of controlling excess wind loads. At high winds, the blades are already pitched back 20 to 30 to spill most of the wind power. During a grid loss or e-stop, the blades rapidly pitch further to decelerate the turbine. This is when the potential for torque reversals and bearing impact For protection during loads is at its worst pontential. The highest winds tend to occur during high winds, a turbine stormy weather when wind gusts and turbulence are high and the poswill use less than 10% of the available power sibilities for grid loss and e-stops are greatest. High-wind shutdowns and as winds approach the e-stops during gusty winds create a perfect storm for drive system torque typical cut-out speed of reversals and damaging impact loads to bearings. The worst torque reversals 25 mps. The turbines AeroTorque has recorded occurred during high wind shut downs in stormy blades will pitch to a conditions. precise angle to effecPower (MW)
In a typical power curve, pitchable blades let modern wind turbines perform close to an ideal power curve. Blade orientation and control lets turbines maximize the energy generation.
decreasing bearing life through pitting and spalling. Sliding can also result in scuffing the raceway, causing microscopic cracks that let subsurface entry of water or aggressive oil additives to initiate hydrogen induced WEA. If the radial impact load is so high that the roller breaks through the oil lm, it can create mixed friction sufficient to prevent slipping axially. Axial subsurface stresses will be added to the Hertzian stresses from the radial impact, magnifying the peak stresses. The strain rate would be magnied as well. The potential to exceed a threshold where WEA microstructural alterations could form, explains why WEA damage is common in wind-turbine gearboxes and rare in most other bearing applications. Tapered-roller bearings can also be damaged by the affects of load reversals. Those used on high and intermediate-speed shafts typically are not preloaded due to thermal constraints, and can see damaging axial movement and impact loads. Axial cracking issues in bearings were not a prominent failure mode until larger megawatt and multimegawatt class wind turbines were put in service. It was not a common failure mode of earlier, smaller turbine models where the failure mode was more commonly bearing
tively spill wind power to avoid excessive loads.
FEBRUARY 2014
WiNdpOwer ENGiNeeriNG & DEVELOPMENT
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Strain rate analysis Rate of change with and without an Asymmetric TC
surface deterioration from pitting and scuffing. The issue of axial cracking grew along with turbine size. To understand why, it is important to zoom in on the eld data to look at the rst quarter of a second of the worst torque reversals that were recorded on three different size wind turbines. The graph Comparison of torque reversals recorded on three different sizes of wind turbines compares the relative torque magnitude and the rate of torque change during rapid reversals. High-resolution torque monitoring equipment recorded torque reversals that approximated the turbine rated torque at the high-speed shaft on 0.75, 1, and 2 MW turbines. The torsional natural frequencies of the turbines during aero braking were all similar with oscillation periods about 0.75 second-per-cycle. Higher torque loads of the larger turbines can be accommodated in the sizing of the bearings but the oil lm thickness will not increase. Any roller misalignment easily causes higher local-contact stress during
The red dotted trace plots the torque reversal magnitude and rate of change for a 750 kW turbine without asymmetrical torque control. The blue trace plots the same with an asymmetrical torque control in place and shows its effectiveness in reducing maximum reverse torque, and rate of the reverse torque increase.
a torque reversal. The difference in the rate of increase of the reverse torque during the torque reversal may be an even bigger factor, as it directly relates to the strain rate in the raceway as the rollers impact. Both the higher stress and the faster strain rate increase the instantaneous plastic deformation energy. There is a threshold in plastic deformation energy where the instantaneous heat created
causes the microstructural alteration of the base material. Could the increasing strain rate of larger turbines be exceeding that threshold? During rapid load zone reversals, could the rapidly increasing load on the rollers create plastic deformation fast enough to transform a microscopic sliver of the bearing steel to a superhard ferrite WEA inclusion? Certainly all the elements for WEA microstructural alterations
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are simultaneously present for an instant. The torque reversal takes up the gear backlash and rapidly impacts the idling rollers on the unloaded side of the bearing. The misaligned rollers can make the stress concentration and the plastic deformation under the rollers worse and initiate mixed friction contact. Simultaneous reversal of the axial load due to the helical gearing causes surface traction and additional stress at the inner-raceway subsurface. The resulting high-strain rates and plastic deformation can explain the creation of the WEA microstructural transformation. Because the WEA sliver is perfectly placed under the raceway surface, one microscopic sliver would be enough to initiate the WEA damage that would result in an axially cracked, failed bearing. All it takes is one moment to exceed the combination of high load and strain-rate threshold. That event could come from one severe e-stop, a combination of an e-stop with a wind gust, high-wind shutdown, control malfunction, or sensor failure. Some researchers say torque reversals create loads up to 2 to 4 times nominal torque. That would be 2 to 4 times the torque loads shown in Comparison of torque reversals recorded on three different sizes of wind turbines. Furthermore, if the natural frequency is unchanged, the strain rate would be 2 to 4 times higher, as well. Every doubling of the torque magnitude, with the same natural frequency, may effectively quadruple the instantaneous deformation energy that causes WEA damage. Rapid and severe impact loading of the rollers on the bearing raceway can cause stressinduced WEA damage, signicantly shortening the life of bearings and gearboxes. There are three ways to address the problem: 1. Strengthen the system or components to reduce the degree of damage by: a. Changes in raceway material, processing and coatings b. Changes in bearing type c. Improved lubrication and oil additives 2. Try to detect the damage and replace the bearings before catastrophic failure by: a. More frequent borescoping b. Better conditioning monitoring
3. Solve the root cause by preventing the excess stress and strain rate from happening by: a. Adding an asymmetric torque limiter Ongoing research should prove the relative value of these solutions in extending bearing life. Some proposed solutions may incrementally extend life or prevent catastrophic failures with early axial crack detection. The asymmetric torque limiter addresses the root cause the rapid and severe loading that can initiate the stressinduced WEA damage. Simple frictional slip torque limiters are commonly used to protect wind turbine drive systems from severe torque overloads, such as generator short circuits. No evidence, however, has been found that such a basic torque limiter can provide protection against axial cracking. An asymmetric torque limiter has a much lower slip setting in reverse. Field testing of wind turbines with and without the asymmetric torque limiter has demonstrated its ability to signicantly reduce the maximum reverse torque and rate of torque increase, thus maximum stress and strain rate caused by the rollers impacting the bearing raceway during the torque reversal. This approach also dampens torsional vibrations to reduce the number of reversals. Field data from a 750 kW turbine shows the effectiveness of the asymmetrical torque control in reducing the maximum reverse torque and the maximum rate of reverse torque increase. The magnitude of the stress and maximum strain rate of the rollers impacting the raceway are reduced by over 50%. That translates to a 75% reduction of the instantaneous impact and deformation energy. On larger turbines, this deformationenergy reduction comes in a similar manner with the likely outcome of signicantly reducing axial cracking. If asymmetric torque control keeps impact loads below the threshold where WEA microstructural alterations are initiated, super-hard WEA slivers could never form under the raceway, and axial cracks in gearbox bearings would cease to be a prominent mode of failure affecting the cost of wind-turbine energy. WPE
FOR FURTHER READING

[1] A Greco, PhD, et al., Bearing Reliability White Etching Cracks (WEC), Argonne National Laboratory, Energy Systems Division, NREL Gearbox Reliability Collaborative, Feb 4 (2013) [2] M.-H. Evans, White Structure Flaking (WSF) in Wind Turbine Gearbox Bearings: Effects of Butteries and White Etching Cracks (WECs), Material Science and Technology 28 (2012) 322. [3] A. Greco, et al., Material Wear and Fatigue in Wind Turbine Systems, Wear (2013), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ j.wear.2013.01.060i [4] Kenred Stadler, Arno Stubenrauch, Premature Bearing Failures in Industrial Gearboxes, SKF GmbH, Gunnar-Wester-Str. 12, 97421 Schweinfurt, Germany [5] J. Rosinski, D. Smurthwaite, Troubleshooting Wind Gearbox Problems, Gear Solutions 8 (2010) 2233 [6] Rob Budny & Robert Errichello, How To Minimize Axial Cracking Failures, North American Windpower, June 2013 [7] Jean Van Rensselar, Extending Wind Turbine Gearbox Life, Tribology and Lubrication Technology, May 2013
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FEBRUARY 2014
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E N V I R O N M E N T
f r o m
Lessons enforcement of recent eagle takes

t h e
Duke Energy was recently prosecuted for the accidental death of 14 eagles and other migratory birds at several of its wind farms. The governments reaction provides lessons for the wind industry. The solar industry should also take note.
Federal oversight of wind energys adverse impacts to birds, bats, and other wildlife will increase because of two recent developments: the rst programmatic take permit under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA) and the rst criminal enforcement action for avian fatalities under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). Debate over the correct level of governmental enforcement and regulation will continue, but impacts to bald and golden eagles, migratory birds, and other federally protected species play a signicant role in the siting, construction, and operation of wind projects. Going forward, wind projects will encounter an increased need for comprehensive due diligence and a critical assessment of a projects impact to birds so as to ward off potential future criminal enforcement. This article highlights challenges that may arise and help place lenders in a better position to assess the risks related to wind
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WINDPOwER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT FEBRUARY 2014 www.windpowerengineering.com
Matthew Ahrens Of Council, Environmental Practice Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy www.milbank.com
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Two federal laws regulate the take of birds: the BGEPA, which regulates bald and golden eagles, and the MBTA, which regulates about 1,000 species of migratory birds.
projects, and provide developers an overview of actions and measures to minimize or avoid potential criminal enforcement. Because wind is a relatively new source of energy in the U.S., the regulation of wildlife fatalities and injuries due to collisions with wind turbines and met towers is somewhat uncertain. Considerable effort has been made by government, private industry, and environmental groups to reduce adverse avian impacts. New voluntary federal guidelines have been issued, comprehensive preconstruction and post-operation studies have become more common, and wind projects typically implement mitigation measures. Such measure include siting turbines away from known nests and other high risk areas, creating habitat buffers, along with radar, underground transmission lines, and other methods to reduce the risk of collision. However, until the legal requirements become clear, developers bear a burden to determine what must be done to comply with the law even when a high priority is placed on minimizing any adverse wildlife impact. Federal bird protection laws Two federal laws regulate the take of birds: the BGEPA, which regulates bald and golden eagles, and the MBTA, which regulates about 1,000 species of migratory birds. Violations can lead to civil and criminal penalties and potential imprisonment for six months to two years per violation. Although felony prosecutions under the MBTA only apply to the actual or intended sale, or barter of migratory birds and migratory bird parts, misdemeanor charges may be levied against those that take a migratory bird for any other reason. The BGEPA does not contain a distinction between felony and misdemeanor charges for rst time offenders. Although the Endangered Species Act has an established enforcement history, it also regulates the take of endangered or threatened species including certain avian species. However, this article focuses only on
the BGEPA and the MBTA. BGEPA denes take to include pursue, shoot, shoot at, poison, wound, kill, capture, trap, collect, molest, or disturb. However, the denition of take under the MBTA is ambiguous, leading courts to disagree over whether the MBTA is limited to intentional takes or if it also includes incidental takes, which means a take that occurs as a result of, but is not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity. For instance, the Eighth and Ninth Circuits have limited take under the MBTA to hunting and related conduct, which would thereby exclude the wind industry from liability for avian fatalities. However, the Second and Tenth Circuits have adopted strict liability interpretations of the MBTA holding various defendants accountable for avian fatalities, even if the takes were indirect and not willful.The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) adopted the Land Based Wind Energy Guidelines (FWS Guidelines) in March, 2012 to lower the risk of takes from construction and operating wind energy projects. The voluntary FWS Guidelines (not regulations) set forth ve tiers of pre and post-construction studies that evaluate and address potential negative impacts of wind-energy projects on species of concern. Additionally, on May 2, 2013, the FWS released the Eagle Conservation Plan Guidance Module 1 Land-based Wind Energy, Version 2 (FWS Eagle Guidance) which supplements FWS Guidelines. Like the Guidelines, the voluntary FWS Eagle Guidance lays out a staged approach to siting new wind projects. It also contains in-depth guidance relating to the protection of bald and golden eagles and compliance with the BGEPA. First BGEPA eagle take permit Unlike the BGEPA, the MBTA does not provide a permit allowing for the unintentional take of a migratory bird during otherwise lawful activities. In 2009, the FWS established new rules (50 CFR 22.26
FEBRUARY 2013
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FEBRUARY 5 4 WINDPOwER 2014 ENGINEERING www.windpowerengineering.com & DEVELOPMENT
and 22.27) which provide for the issuance of two types of ve-year incidental take permits under the BGEPA: individual and programmatic. Both permits authorize a take of bald and golden eagles when the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity. Individual take permits are issued for an isolated take that cannot be practicably avoided. Programmatic take permits are issued for instances of an unavoidable take that may recur due to the nature of the take, such as the operation of a wind facility, even after the implementation of advanced conservation practices. This article focuses on the Eagle Take Permit. To obtain such a permit, the project developer must avoid and minimize takes to the maximum extent achievable, conduct adequate monitoring, offset any remaining take through compensatory mitigation, and ensure that direct and indirect effects of the takes are compatible with the preservation of bald and golden eagles. An Eagle Take Permit qualies as a federal action and triggers need for an environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act. On December 9, 2013, the FWS published a nal rule in the Federal Register to extend the maximum term of the Eagle Take Permit to 30 years because the average life of a wind project extends beyond the existing ve year term limit. The nal rule went into effect January 8, 2014. The FWS has granted no Eagle Take Permits, even though about 15 applications have been submitted since the FWS authorized issuance in 2009. However, the rst Eagle Take Permit may be issued soon. In September 2013, the FWS released a draft environmental assessment for a ve year Eagle Take Permit for the Shiloh IV Wind Project in California. The Eagle Take Permit would allow taking up to three eagles over the permits ve-year term. The public-comment period ended November 29, 2013 and the FWS will render its decision in 2014. Additionally, on December 4, 2013, the FWS published a notice of intent for a NEPA
review for another Eagle Take Permit. The FWSs recent actions are a sign that Eagle Take Permits may become necessary for wind projects with a potential adverse impact bald or golden eagles. First criminal enforcement On November 22, 2013, Duke Energy Renewables entered into a plea agreement with the U.S. DOJ after being charged with two class B misdemeanors under the MBTA for the death of 149 migratory birds and 14 golden eagles at two wind facilities in Wyoming. Under terms of the Duke Settlement, Duke will be placed on a ve-year probation and required to pay $1 million dollars in nes, obtain an Eagle Take Permit, and implement a ve year, environmental-compliance plan. The plan must include comprehensive mitigation measures to minimize further avian impacts at four of Dukes wind facilities, and could cost up to $600,000 per year. The Settlement did not contain a requirement to enjoin current or future operations of either project. Even if future takes during the probationary period occur, as long as Duke remains in compliance with the terms of the settlement. It is important to note that, as avian fatalities were discovered, Duke promptly reported them to the FWS, worked with the Service to reduce future fatalities, and implemented numerous mitigation measures including monitoring, radar, and curtailment. The settlement acknowledged this effort and made clear the ne was reduced and potential additional charges were dropped as a result. Nonetheless, such actions did not absolve Duke from liability because mitigation measures voluntarily put in place prior to the MBTA conviction were insufficient to overcome the fact that the projects were constructed in a high-risk area despite preliminary studies showing that avian fatalities would likely occur. Lessons from the Duke Settlement The settlement offers several important lessons for the development of new projects. First, it is important to conduct extensive due
FEBRUARY 2014
diligence throughout the life of a project and consult with the FWS starting at the earliest development stages and continuing through operation as appropriate. However, simply conducting all recommended surveys and studies, and consulting with the FWS is not sufficient. If adverse impacts to avian species are identied, it is the developers responsibility to move the project to a new location or implement extensive mitigation measures to reduce the risk of avian fatalities. The Settlement demonstrated that the FWS recommendations must be given high priority, especially with respect to siting in highrisk areas. The DOJs announcement of the settlement said, carefully siting turbines so as to avoid and minimize the risk as much as possible, is critically important because, unlike electric distribution equipment and guyed towers, at the present time, no postconstruction remedies, except curtailment (i.e., shut-down), have been developed that can render safe a wind turbine placed in a location of high avian collision risk. Second, following the FWS Guidelines and its Eagle Guidance, implementing mitigation measures is by no means a get out of jail free card. Documented efforts to comply with the guidelines and communicate with the FWS will likely be taken into consideration by the FWS and DOJ when determining whether and to what extent it should bring an enforcement action should a violation of the BGEPA or the MBTA occur. Dukes good-faith effort to reduce fatalities and documented coordination with the FWS did lead to reduced penalties and a decision by the FWS to limit enforcement to MBTA violations. Third, the Settlement demonstrates a strong likelihood of future enforcement against the wind industry which, until now, has not encountered enforcement under the BGEPA or the MBTA. Prior to the Settlement, there were no criminal convictions of a wind developer for the unintentional take
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of a bird protected under BGEPA or MBTA. The Associated Press says the FWS is investigating bird deaths at over 18 wind projects about six of which have already been referred to the DOJ for potential enforcement. The the specic projects were not publicly identied. Fourth, adopting accepted industry specic mitigation measures may reduce the risk of enforcement. In a letter sent to U.S. Senators David Vitter and Lamar Alexander on the same day as the Settlement, Elliot Williams, Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the DOJ, indicated that in determining whether to prosecute a {wind energy} company for its violations of the MBTA, both the {DOJ} and the FWS consider whether the company has knowingly failed to adopt industry specic practices to improve their
compliance with the law. Such industryspecic practices may include, among other things, compliance with the FWS Guidelines and Eagle Guidance. In addition, while a limited number of cases have been brought against other energy companies from 2009 to 2013, to our knowledge, none have been brought against building developers, airlines, automobiles or cat owners, all of which have a much larger impact on avian species. Recent studies, for example, estimate over 900 million annual bird fatalities due to collisions with buildings, and over six million annual bird fatalities due to collisions with communication towers. In contrast, even the FWSs estimates only 440,000 annual bird fatalities due to collisions with wind turbines and met towers. Consequently, the
Settlement is not necessarily an indication of widespread enforcement against any and all violations of the BGEPA or the MBTA, but it is an important reminder to wind developers and lenders that a high level of attention must be placed on due diligence, the careful siting of turbines, and the implementation of mitigation measures would reduce the risk of a take under the BGEPA and the MBTA. Actions to reduce the risk of enforcement Because the law surrounding violations of the BGEPA and MBTA against wind projects is still evolving, it is advisable for developers and lenders to err on the side of caution by preparing to avoid or minimize the risk of adversely impacting protected avian species. For developers, it
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is of crucial importance to conduct extensive surveys to identify the presence and potential impact to avian species and to communicate with the FWS and local wildlife agencies prior to the construction of wind projects. For lenders, it is advisable to contact legal counsel at the start of the financing process to determine the current status of the law, the level of risk for a particular project, and the measures that the lender should request from the developer to minimize liability to the greatest extent possible. Each project is unique. There is no single approach to mitigation and avoidance of a violation of the BGEPA or the MBTA. The use of mitigation measures will vary depending on project location, design, risk of avian impact, and other factors, so it is advisable for developers to create a plan with input from the FWS to consider the requirements specic to each project. However, a few recommendations for developers and lenders include: Prior to site selection and pre-construction Initiate consultation with the FWS, state, and local wildlife agencies. Gather information from publicly available sources to assess the likelihood of avian impacts at potential sites. Site the project in previously developed areas, when possible, such as agricultural lands, to minimize impact to previously undisturbed habitat. Conduct avian, bat, and wildlife studies for one to two years. Site turbines away from areas with identied high bird and bat concentrations and create buffer zones around sensitive habitat in the project area. Provide training for construction and project personnel on how to avoid impacts to protected species during construction and operation. Discuss results from pre-construction studies with the FWS and develop a strategy to mitigate any unavoidable adverse impacts.
Looking ahead The effect of the Settlement on enforcement against wind developers going forward is still unclear, although future enforcement against other wind developers appears increasingly likely and more action will be necessary to mitigate adverse impacts to avian wildlife. Whether this reects the start of a long line of charges and what would trigger enforcement remains to be seen. It is certain, however, that the public and regulatory attention placed on wind energys impacts to birds, bats, and other wildlife is rapidly increasing. Enforcement may extend to solar developers as well. Recently, certain solar farms have also come under scrutiny for potential impacts to birds caused by solar ux, a high concentration of solar energy that results in intense heat. To date, no formal enforcement proceedings have been taken against any solar project, but solar developers should also consider conducting avian studies, adopting mitigation measures, and applying for an Eagle Take Permit to reduce the potential for take of protected species. Furthermore, developers should consider the impacts of a project to avian and wildlife species protected under the Endangered Species Act. WPE
Aurora-Where_the_Action_Is:Aurora 11/5/10 1:10 PM Page 1
During construction
Continue studies and monitor impacts to protected species and maintain an ongoing dialogue with the FWS. Implement recommended or voluntary mitigation measures. Develop a Bird and Bat Conservation Strategy as outlined in FWS Guidelines. Prepare an Eagle Conservation Plan and apply for an Eagle Take
Permit if bald or golden eagles are identied in the project area.
Post-construction and operation
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Conduct several years of post-construction surveys and continue consultation with the FWS. Monitor the site periodically for avian or bat fatalities. Immediately report avian fatalities. Work with the FWS and state and local wildlife agencies to
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implement additional mitigation measures to reduce the risk of future takes.
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P O W E R
S T O R A G E
Improving the grid

with lots
of stored MWs
Paul Dvorak Editor
ne knock against renewable energy is that its variable delivery makes it more difficult for those responsible for transmission to keep the grid stable. The conventional and costly solution has always been to bring spinning reserves online to handle increasing demand. A better solution would be a large battery that would let wind farms maintain steady power levels for longer and more predictable periods, which then keep Independent Power Producers (IPP) out of the volatile spot market. Such a market is necessary because when an IPP cannot deliver the power for which it is contracted, it must purchase power on the spot market and often at a steep premium. Large batteries, however, never seemed to pencil out, as one AWEA presenter put it a couple years ago, meaning they add too much cost for their capability. That calculation may be changing according to an IMS Research Report that estimatesthe global energy storage industry will increase from about $200 million in 2012 to $19 billion by 2017. One new battery company, EOS, is reported to have said it will sell batteries in 2014 at $200 to $250/kWh and that gure could drop to $160/kWh. The storage methods of pumped hydro and compressed air are reasonably well covered along with lithium-based batteries. So this examination will include only a few batteries of other designs.
The wind industry can look forward to a sort of battle of the batteries thanks to competition, falling costs, and recent regulations.
O
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FEBRUARY 2014

Heavy lifting with convention chemistries
A demo facility in Vermont boasts a 1 MWh (or 250 kW for 4 hours) battery that can output up to 1.5 MW for short periods. Many possibilities come from many chemistries, says EnerSys. We have nickel-cadmium batteries and are working on some nickelzinc chemistries, says EnerSys marketing director Mike Kulesky. We also have Li-ion, flat plate valve regulated, flat plate valve regulated gel, flooded flat plate, and tubular flat plate. Designer OptiGrid Stored Energy solutions has the battery pictured connected it to a factory where it maintains the supply of electricity for manufacturing operations during periods of utility curtailment when electricity is diverted to power the local ski lifts and snow-making machines. A grid connection is scheduled.
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P O W E R
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The CellCube, a vanadium ow battery, is intended as a turnkey building block for larger storage systems. When an application calls for a 1 MWh battery, the company says it would simply assemble a number of 40-ft containers of CellCubes that can be placed in any outdoor area.
Where chemistries work well
The chart was extracted from a larger Discharge time versus Rated power chart produced by the DOE. Lux Research says it expects ow batteries to increase to 30% of the utility-battery market by 2017 as a leading energy storage technology.
Chart source: Pacic Northwest National Lab
The challenges A range of power-storage companies some well established and some still in the lab have recognized the business opportunity and are quite happy to provide solutions. One list tallies over two dozen rms with battery propositions. Government agencies are also pushing things along with rules and regulations intended to encourage development of storage batteries. For example: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently passed FERC order 784 which may be benecial to the
development of energy-storage systems, says law rm Bricker & Eckler. Whether using battery, hydro, compressed air, or other energy storage technology,the order permits enterprises other than large utilities to sell ancillary services power sources that can be tapped quickly when needed to meet a rapidly changing supply or demand situation. This would seem to open the door to a variety of power sellers. For instance, the Order creates opportunities for energy-storage technologies to help customers self-supply their own Regulation and Frequency Response service requirements which
Free off-grid battery sizing calculator

Trojan Battery Co (trojanbattery.com) a manufacturer
of deep-cycle batteries, has developed a battery sizing calculator to accurately size a battery bank for renewable energy applications. The calculator is available at batterysizingcalculator.com. When sizing a storage battery bank, the company says consider the electrical power required, or load for the application. Also weigh the maximum depth of discharge to allow the battery and the number of days the battery will be used to power the loads.
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FEBRUARY 2014
You cant control the wind . . . but youve got to control the power it generates.
With 100 years of experience in the design and manufacture of high-voltage electrical equipment, S&C offers proven switchgear solutions that deliver superior performance in the most challenging environments. Our compact Vista and System VI Switchgearwhich today connect gigawatts of wind energy to the grid worldwidereliably control the power flow from your turbines to the substation. Both feature switches with a clearly visible open gap and integral grounding capabilityfor a higher level of safety for your operating personnel. And for real peace of mind, S&C can furnish a total switchgear solution for your project. Well determine the models and ratings needed along with the correct protective settings, then install, test, and commission the switchgear. And well provide an extended warranty for the gear too. Wind power is all about control, leave it to the experts at S&C. Visit us at sandc.com/controls or call us today at 773-338-1000.
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ou want the highest-possible return for your wind project. But poorly designed and constructed switchgear can cause ongoing operation and maintenance headaches that erode that return.
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P O W E R
S T O R A G E
Vanadium electrolyte in the anode and cathode is up to 50% of the battery cost. A few benets of the design include multi-hour and multi-megawatt capacity, unlimited cycling, and the battery can hold 99% of a charge for one year.
A look inside Aquion Energys base battery
Developer Aquion says its Aqueous Hybrid Ion technology is designed for stationary, long duration, dailycycling applications. When applied to grid services, the battery allows load shifting, frequency regulation, and the integration of renewable energy.
opens certain ancillary services markets to all generators selling at market-based rates. The California Public Utilities Commission recently approved a decision to establish an energy-storage-procurement target for Californias investor-owned utilities, electricservice providers, and community-choice aggregators. The utilities are required to collectively procure 1,325 MW of energy storage resources by 2020. Electric service providers and aggregators arerequiredto procure energy storage resources equal to 1% of their peak load by 2020. A few newer batteries There are dozens of companies offering batteries of several different chemistries along with services to build their base cells into large assemblies capable of storing many MWh. Space prohibits a close exam of all so we elected to examine three signicantly different designs.
Aqueous Hybrid Ion (AHI) Battery The idea here is that a large format battery to store many MW for grid functions need not be light, small, or have a high energy density, qualities the automotive industry demands. Aquion Energy (aquionenergy.com) instead focused on materials that are inexpensive, abundant, and nontoxic, making the design recyclable and environmentally friendly, they say. Weve developed a battery that has excellent calendar and cycle life, high efficiency, and no thermal management issues which results in lower system costs,
Building bigger batteries

Aquion is now in limited production for its 1.5 kWh S10 battery stack, a column of seven B10 batteries, with a voltage range of 35 to 52 Vdc. The company expects larger scale production for its 18 kWh M100 module, composed of twelve S10 stacks, in the second half of the year.
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Company name A123 Systems
The large-battery market in one table

Lithium ion
Battery chemistries and comments Battery reseller and assembler Various chemistries Nano Lithium-titanate Liquid metal batter and formerly Liquid Metal Battery Corp. Vanadium flow battery, the CellCube Aqueous hybrid ion Multi-celled asymmetrically supercapacitive lead-acid-carbon hybrid battery Lithion ion Iron phosphate Dow has exited this battery development Lead acid tech with super capacitor Zinc air with zinc-hybrid cathode Redox flow battery Sodium metal halide chemistry Lithium-ion Lithium-ion Lithium ion Lithium ion Silicon anode lithium-ion batteries Sodium sulfur Zinc based flow battery Vanadium flow battery Various chemistries Zinc-bromide flow batteries Vanadium redox flow battery Several nickel-based chemistries SCiB, made with nano-based lithium titanate Advanced lead-acid and others Lithium iron Magnesium phosphate Common and inexpensive materials, still in development Zinc bromide flow battery
Advanced Battery Systems Inc. AES Energy Storage,

says Ted Wiley, VP of Product & Corporate Strategy. Furthermore, he says, it uses an inherently safe chemistry that is non-ammable and non-explosive, and has no dangerous failure modes. The design boasts a wide temperature operating range with 100% DoD cycling with minimal degradation, its self-balancing with minimal self-discharge, and it needs no trickle charge. It also has a high tolerance to long stands at partial charge and requires no regular maintenance. Designed to be cost competitive with lead acid batteries, Aquion uses inexpensive materials to make its Aqueous Hybrid Ion (AHI) batteries: a manganese oxide cathode, synthetic cotton separator, carbon composite anode, and saltwater electrolyte. Bill Gates is involved with funding.
Modular ow battery. Youve read a
Altair Nanotechnologies Inc Ambri American Vanadium Aquion Energy Axion Power International Inc. Boston Power Build Your Dreams (BYD) Ltd. Dow Kokam Ecoult EOS EnerVault Corp. GE Energy Storage GS Yuasa LG Chem Ltd M+W Group Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd Nexeon NGK Insulators Ltd Primus Power Prudent Energy OptiGrid Stored Energy RedFlow Ltd Renewable Energy Dynamics Technology Ltd Saft Toshiba Corp Trojan Batteries Valence Technology Inc Wind Power Performance ZBB Energy Corp
lot about Lithium as a primary element in modern batteries powering just about everything electric. Get ready to hear more about Vanadium, an element fundamental to a battery class intended for the longterm storage of large amounts of power. American Vanadium (americanvanadium. com) has recently introduced the CellCube vanadium ow battery to America. First conceived of by NASA decades ago, the vanadiumredox ow battery uses positive and negative electrodes made of vanadium. This unique characteristic lets this type of energy-storage device avoid the classical electrochemical reaction of most batteries in which the exchange of ions between electrodes of different elements result in a degradation of the battery with each charge and discharge cycle. Company president Bill Radvak says its design gives the battery several advantages including a 20 year lifespan with minimal loss of efficiency and the ability to maintain 99% of the energy in cold storage for a year. Also, the battery can repeatedly discharge to zero and back to 100% without damage. To double the required power period of the vanadium battery, just double the amount of electrolyte.
A $1.17 billion market in 2013 and more later The grid scale battery storage market is an emerging and vibrant with good potential for future growth. ASDReports says the value of the global grid scale battery storage market will have hit $1.17 billion in 2013. The table lists the companies we know of that manufacture batteries sufficient for grid-scale applications. Expect others to surface in the next few years.
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Building a larger Ambri power storage facility starts with Cells (top) that are assembled into a 200 kWh Core, then a Pod, and into the size for a needed capacity.
Ambri building blocks

P O W E R S T O R A G E
The batteries are best for storing power for two to eight hours, 500 kW and more, says Radvak.And while it has a long-term storage capability, it can also perform short duration functions which increase the quality of the power that runs through the battery. For wind operators, we can make energy storage economical anywhere, says VP Operations Mike Doyle. Grid operators will have to give energy-storage owners fair value for the power they provide. Whats more, the battery unit can be stacked together for storing large amounts of power in 200 kW power blocks combined with two-hour electolyte blocks. The battery is manufactured in Germany byGildemeister Energy Solutions, (en.cellcube.com), now using material from sources such as South Africa and China. The company is expected to gear up production towards 2 GWh/yr after a Nevada vanadium mine comes on stream.
Liquid-metal battery An emissions-free liquid metal
battery is said to operate silently without pumps. These
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characteristics allow placing it in the middle of a city or a desert without special regulatory or permitting requirements. The battery will use existing power electronics and follow interconnection standards. Developer Ambri (ambri.com) says the low cost comes through use of inexpensive, easy to procure, earthabundant materials. Our products also take advantage of the economies of scale inherent to electro-metallurgy and conventional manufacturing, says Ambri President Philip Giudice. The liquid electrodes avoid cycle-to-cycle capacity fade because they reconstitute with each charge, he says. Prototypes have operated in a lab environment for more than 17 months with daily cycling and no reduction in performance. A molten-salt electrolyte separates the electrodes and combines high conductivity with a tolerance for abuse. The liquid components segregate themselves due to three immiscible liquid phases of different densities, like oil and water. This allows for reliable operation and manufacturing ease. These attributes let the liquidmetal battery exceed 70% round-trip ac efficiency for over a decade and

without degradation. Management and control electronics are congured to allow remote operation and monitoring of the battery without on-site personnel. Giudice says the battery responds with its entire nameplate capacity in milliseconds and can store up to 12 hours of energy and discharge it slowly over time. The technology has been under development for more than six years, he says. Recent accomplishments have resulted in a signicant increase in size and total capacity of batteries tested. He says ARPA-e sponsorship of its development at MIT has been critical to its rapid scale up.WPE
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FEBRUARY 2014
2014
INTRODUCTION
T
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LEADERSHIP IN WIND ENGINEERING

he wind industry is in a transition mode of sorts that over the next couple years will take it from one partially supported by the Production Tax Credit, to one in which it is fully self sustaining. Making the transition will take leadership from OEMs and suppliers alike. OEMs will have to provide more reliable and more efficient equipment turbines that turn out more power than previous similar models, and then need less maintenance all around. Although 2013 started weak, it ended strong with a rapid construction pace that has continued into 2014. Although 2015 may fall of the pace, developments, improvements, and changes will not. Wind power is just too good to turn off. Turbines have reached healthy sizes with 3 to 5-MW units coming off production lines, and larger prototypes (7 and 8 MW) entering their shake-down cruises. None of this happened without good leadership from technically competent companies. Just think, the wind farms that are under construction in 2014 should be working till 2034 and possibly longer, when many of us will be retired. What will the wind industry look like then? With proper leadership, it will be quite different, but still healthy, thriving, and looking forward to the next two decades. To keep the energy owing, we at Windpower Engineering & Development know its important to recognize our leaders. In the pages that follow youll see the accomplishments of fellow engineers and designers in a range of categories. Your vote for one or more the companies listed (classied by discipline) will be recorded at our website through December 2014. Winners will be recognized in the rst issue of 2015.
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www.windpowerengineering.com/leadership Your vote will identify an engineering rm you think has provided leadership in the wind power industry.
Categories for nomination include: Bearings Electrical and electronic equipment Fastening and joining Fluid Power Hardware and components Turbine OEMs Sensors Simulation services Support services Towers
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Abaris Training Composites are our livelihood. Weve been specializing in advanced composite training in all industries since 1983. Over time, weve trained more than 20,000 students, in elds ranging
Abaris Training Resources, Inc. 5401 Longley Lane Suite 49, Reno, NV 89511 USA (800) 638-8441 (775) 827-6568 Fax: (775) 827-6599 email:info@abaris.com
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from aerospace to automotive, on how to make composites, how to repair them, and how to use them to t specic applications.
Our courses are hands-on as well as theoretical, supplying students with troubleshooting techniques that save both time and money. We provide strong technical foundations in the classroom, and then go to workshops where students fabricate and repair actual parts. Students are also encouraged to bring practical problems to class. Personality is always part of our training philosophy. We enjoy doing what we do and that attitude comes through to our students. Creating an atmosphere where students can learn is a priority for Abaris Training. Our classes combine friendliness and an at-home feel with technical accuracy and the latest technology. Instructors at Abaris Training have taught proper composite repair since 1983; to date they have taught over 20,000 students worldwide. Their vast experience and knowledge of advanced composites keep them among the top in their respective elds. Their hard work has kept them current with the latest skills and techniques in composites. At Abaris, the focus is strictly on training. Currently, there are twenty-six different courses in various disciplines of advanced composite instruction. Classes at the Abaris facilities in Reno, Nevada and Griffin, GA range from ve to a maximum of twentyfour students. Students are expected to attend a minimum of eight hours each day. If a student needs to stay longer to understand a days subject matter, the instructors gladly review with the student to ensure the material is fully understood.
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The Abaris mission is to train people how to use composites correctly, and the facilities are designed specically for that purpose. Class lectures are conducted in traditional settings, stocked with material samples, actual composite parts, and technical/product literature from a variety of suppliers and organizations. The training laboratories parallel typical composite shop layout with exceptional cleanrooms, trim rooms, and adjacent workshop and process facilities. Students spend 40-60% of their time in the labs practicing acquired skills through intensive, hands-on instruction. When students leave an Abaris Training class, they are condent and enthusiastic, and return to their jobs with practical, hands-on expertise. In addition, students then have access to a large network of composite professionals, technicians, and material suppliers through Abaris continually growing source-network.
windpowerengineering. com/leadership Voting for this company will identify it as a leader in the wind power industry.
6 4 WinDPowEr EnginEEring & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
2014
AeroTorque roots have been in managing torque in extreme machines in a wide variety of industries for 35 years. Their sister company, PT Tech, has products that can be found in many of the toughest equipment in the world, from computer
AeroTorque Corporation 1441 Wolf Creek Trail P.O. Box 305 Sharon Center, OH 44274-0305 Phone: 330.239.4933 Fax: 330.239.2012 www.aerotorque.com
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Gearbox reliability has been an issue for a long time in the Wind Industry. Advancements have been made to improve the design, components and controls but gearboxes continue to see shorter life than desired. The industry has continued to seek what component, element or load case is missing from the equation. Axial cracks of high-speed and intermediate-speed bearing inner races are the most common failure modes needing to be addressed. AeroTorques work in advancing the knowledge of transient torque reversals, impact loading and how they can be mitigated is a major breakthrough. Transient torque reversals can be that missing element in the understanding of drivetrain dynamics. Years of eld testing have shown that these events appear to occur in all types of turbines and manufacturers, caused by emergency stops, curtailments, grid faults, control faults, wind gusts and more. The near instantaneous load reversal, unwinds the drivetrain and causes impacts on the inner race of the bearings. It is not the number of incidents but the magnitude of the impact and the speed at which it occurs that can lead to eventual failure under normal loads. Once damaged by an impact load, it is only a matter of time until an axial crack forms. AeroTorques WindTM was designed to measure and report these transient events from turbines in the eld. It accurately measures torque and shaft speed and reports via cellular link or Bluetooth. It is designed to easily install and uninstall from the main shaft of the turbine. The AeroTorque WindTC is a torsional control to mitigate these transient reverse load events. It acts as a standard torque limiter for forward loads but it limits reverse loads to 40% of nominal. This acts as a snubber of the torsional reversals in the drivetrain, dissipating the energy at a reduced rate and slowing the speed of the impact. This easy retrot solution is inexpensive insurance and protection to the expensive gearbox, adding years of life to the bearing and your bottom line.
controlled clutches for diesel engine drives in rock crushers to brakes and clutches in mining operations and tunnel boring. Our approach is to bring innovation to the drivetrain by improving the entire system rather than just working on a symptom. We work to improve the overall performance by increasing the productivity, availability, reliability and
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safety of the equipment.
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WINDpower ENGINeerING & DEVELOPMENT
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AMSOIL, INC. In 1972, AMSOIL INC. developed the rst synthetic motor oil in the world to meet American Petroleum Institute service requirements. Today, AMSOIL formulates synthetic
AMSOIL Wind One AMSOIL Way Superior, WI 54880 (715) 392-7101 www.synwind.com
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Promoting Wind Turbine Efficiency

Wind turbine gearboxes represent one of the most challenging lubricant applications in the industrial world. AMSOIL INC., a leader in synthetic lubricant technology, engineered and manufactured a premium gear lube that meets these challenges. AMSOIL Synthetic Power Transmission Gear Lube promotes wind turbine efficiency through superior water resistance, anti-foaming properties, wear control and lterability. But even more, AMSOIL INC. provides on-site, up-tower guidance. Experienced and certied wind energy personnel join with operators to help them fully harness the exceptional performance of AMSOIL Synthetic Power Transmission EP Gear Lube. With AMSOIL, operators get more than a lubricant provider, they get a partner. Proven Water Resistance Water is one of the biggest contributors to gearbox failure. It can cause sludge formation, additive drop-out, viscosity loss and lter plugging. Throughout a 24-month eld study, AMSOIL Synthetic Power Transmission EP Gear Lube demonstrated a low average of 89 ppm water for maximum lubricant effectiveness and component life. Engineered Wear Control + Viscosity Retention AMSOIL Synthetic Power Transmission EP Gear Lube is designed with extreme pressure (EP) additives and shear-stable synthetic base oils that exhibit excellent viscosity retention. As a result, micropitting and scuffing wear is minimized. Superior Foam Control AMSOIL Synthetic Power Transmission EP Gear Lube resists foaming to deliver the correct engineered uid lm thickness, which reduces premature gear and bearing failure and results in gears and bearings lasting as designed. On-Site, Up-Tower Service AMSOIL safety- and rescue-trained wind energy personnel work on-site and up-tower to direct the lubrication process, from oil changeover to understanding oil analysis. With AMSOIL consultation services, operators are positioned to maximize their operations and maintenance programs. Proprietary Gearbox Flushing Procedure The four-phase AMSOIL ushing procedure eliminates nearly all gearbox contaminants prior to installing the new lubricant. The ushing procedure ensures the nal-ll lubricant demonstrates cleanliness for optimum oil life. Consultation Based on rst-hand knowledge of wind turbine gearbox lubrication, AMSOIL wind energy personnel consult with operators on how best to utilize their oil analysis programs. AMSOIL can recommend which specic test methodologies most accurately reveal the condition of their gearboxes and how best to interpret the oil analysis reports sent from the lab of the operators choice. Using AMSOIL consultation services helps operators identify the maintenance practices most likely to increase efficiency and protability.
lubricants for all types of industrial gear, wind turbine, on-road and heavy-duty off-road applications, as well as sophisticated additives and ltration systems. AMSOIL products are recognized as the best and most cost-effective choices for prolonging equipment life, reducing maintenance and increasing performance.
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WinDpoweR EngineeRing & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
2014
Aurora Bearing Company was founded in 1971 and manufactures the worlds most complete range of rod end and spherical bearings. Congurations
Aurora Bearing Company 901 Aucutt Rd. Montgomery, IL 60538 Ph: 630-859-2030 Fax: 630-859-0971 aurorabearing.com
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Aurora Bearing Cos new LCOM Spherical Bearings outperform LS bearings Like all Aurora Bearing spherical bearings, the LCOM series features a one piece steel raceway, swaged around the ball for a smooth, precise, close tolerance t, along with the benet of the strength and vibration resistance of steel. In addition, this series is optionally available with Auroras proprietary AT series PTFE liner, for a zero clearance, self lubricating t. Aurora LCOM Spherical Bearings were designed to offer a higher level of performance with dimensional interchangeability for the LS spherical bearing category; a market segment which has remained largely unchanged since the 1950s. LS bearings are characterized by being of 3 or 4 piece construction, with an inner ball, an outer ring, and a one or two piece brass, bronze, or copper alloy race between. Since the early 1950s users of these bearings, which are also marketed with a FLBG, RS, or VBC prex, have had to accept their low strength and poor vibration resistance due to the low strength race material. Auroras LCOM bearings incorporate superior materials and manufacturing processes to overcome the performance deciencies associated with LS bearings. COMM-M Bearings are stronger choice for DIN ISO 12240-1 applications Metric spherical plain bearings built to DIN ISO 12240-1 (formerly DIN 648) schedule K often are made with inner races or rings made of brass, bronze or copper. For many low demand applications these bearings have proven to give satisfactory service. However, in applications with high loads or high vibration levels or both, the bearings can quickly develop excess clearance due to a deformation of the relatively soft race material. This weakness is addressed in the Aurora Bearing Companys COM-M series spherical bearings. Like all Aurora inch dimension spherical bearings, these metric bearings all feature a 1 piece steel raceway, cold formed around a chrome plated, alloy steel ball for strength, precision, and structural integrity. Aurora COM-M series bearings are available in sizes from 3mm to 30mm., and follow the dimensions of DIN 648 schedule K. Bearings are optionally available with Auroras self lubricating AT series ptfe liner, for a smooth, zero clearance t that is self lubricating and maintenance free. Maintenance free & corrosion resistant rod ends from Aurora The Aurora CM/CW-ET series rod ends offer a combination of features unique in the rod end industry. Instead of the low strength steels typically found in stainless rod ends, the ET series features bodies made from heat treated 17-4PH material. Not only do they offer excellent corrosion resistance compared to conventional rod ends, they provide greater load capacity, strength, and durability as well. The ET series comes standard with Auroras exclusive AT2100 PTFE liner. This, combined with a heat treated 440C stainless ball, gives a durable, zero clearance, self lubricating, maintenance free bearing interface to go with the benets of the heat treated body. Their two piece design allows exploiting these high performance features to be exploited at an economical price. The Aurora ET series bearings can be used to enhance the performance of equipment in wash down, marine, and other environments that require extra corrosion resistance.
range from 2-piece economy commercial and molded race construction through 3-piece precision designs. Aurora also produces a full line of military spec rod ends, spherical bearings, and journal bushings. Custom designed rod ends, spherical bearings, and linkages are a specialty.
For more information, contact: 630-859-2030
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Fax: 630-859-0971 www.aurorabearing.com
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2014
Aztec Bolting Services, Inc. is the premier provider of bolting services and products for bolting applications. With more than 116 years combined experience, our sales team can nd the right solutions for your torque or tension requirements.
Aztec Bolting Services 520 Dallas Street League City, TX 77573 1113 Lamar Street Sweetwater, TX 79556 Toll Free: 800-233-8675 Ph: 281-338-2112 Fax: 281-332-1780 www.aztecbolting.com
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Wind energy is globally recognized as the smartest and cleanest renewable energy alternative to fossil fuels. Aztec Bolting is at the forefront of wind turbine and generation construction and maintenance. Vigorous research, innovative designs, and superior technology identify Aztec Bolting as an industry leader providing the nest wind-turbine tools. We have been supplying quality wind turbine tools and equipment since 1987, offering an in house ISO 17025 Accredited Calibration lab for services and repairs as well as on site services with our new Mobile Calibration Fleet. Our hydraulic torque-wrench systems are fundamental in wind turbine applications. Aztec Bolting is an authorized distributor of Enerpac Bolting Products, including the Enerpac S-Series and Enerpac W-Series hydraulic torque wrenches and Enerpac torque multipliers. We also proudly carry Norbar hand torque wrenches, Norbar torque multipliers, Norbar Electronics including the latest technology the Evotorque. Aztec also carries Hydratight wind tensioners as well as Stahlwille torque and hand tools. Our extensive hydraulic torque-wrench inventory is essential to wind turbine applications, specically regarding tower ange and nacelle maintenance and repairs. In addition to our quality Enerpac, Norbar torque wrench products and Stahlwille products, our Hydratight hydraulic tensioners are renowned for their power and reliability to facilitate all wind turbine applications. Aztec also supplies exclusively designed hydraulic power consoles that complete your torque wrench system and are an invaluable centerpiece to your collection of wind turbine tools. As expected, Aztec Bolting offers only the nest in Skidmore-Wilhelm bolt testers and Aztec static and dynamic test stands and calibration equipment. Norbar and Stahlwille are rst in quality for calibration and testing equipment for all critical bolting applications and an important addition to your set of wind turbine tools. Norbar EvoTorque We are excited to introduce the newest evolution in Norbar torque engineering, the Norbar EvoTorque. This electronic power tool is equipped with patent pending motor technology and shut off control software for superior joint control. The EvoTorque features correct torque output from hard through to soft joints and can safely be used on pre-tightened bolts as part of a joint verication process. The impressive EvoTorque is third party veried sound power of 72.3 dB(A) and vibration level of 0.304m/s for exceptionally smooth and quiet power delivery. Enerpac S-Series Aztec Bolting offers the nest in industry technology, and is proud to support the Enerpac S-Series Hydraulic Torque Wrench. The Enerpac S-Series is the fundamental square-drive torque wrench. This incredibly versatile torque wrench is light and sleek, yet muscular, delivering up to 25,140 Ft/lbs of torque. S-Series torque wrenches have 360 degree swivel manifolds and durable rigid steel design. Another example of a quality tool is the Enerpac W-Series Steel Hexagon Torque Wrench sets the standard in versatility, reliability, and durability. The innovative W-Series sports a pinless construction with quick release drive and auto crank engagement. This hexagon torque wrench has a 360 degree swivel manifold and you wont need tools for changing hexagon heads. And because Aztec Bolting is an authorized national distributor of Enerpac products, you can count on a lifetime warranty. Aztec Bolting and Enerpac products are guaranteed.
Custom or standard, no job is too big or too small. We offer a broad range of the nest tools available on the market today for sale or rent, including hydraulic tools that can yield up to 80,000 ft./ lbs. We deliver anytime, anywhere, 24 hours a day. The integrity of bolts, seals, anges and process equipment is key at Aztec. Our services are generally performed with hydraulic torque wrenches for a faster, safer method in the breakout of large or frozen bolts, and a more accurate means of tightening those same bolts. That results in a huge savings
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in manpower and equipment costs. Working alone, or onsite with your labor force, Aztec is committed to delivering the right solution, to meet your timing and budgetary requirements. When the work is critical, Aztec has the knowledge and experience to get the job done.
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WinDpoweR EnGineeRinG & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
2014
C.C.JENSEN products are known worldwide for efficient and effective oil contamination control. For 60 years, industry professionals around the world have come to trust and rely on C.C.JENSEN to provide clean oil for a variety of applications. Along with the right products, the C.C.JENSEN team also
C.C. Jensen, Inc. 320 Coweta Industrial Parkway Suite J Newnan, GA 30265 Phone: 770 692 6001 www.ccjensen.com
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has the knowledge to implement the most effective strategy for oil contamination control. Our worldwide network of technical sales people ensure you have topnotch service and support for your projects.
Oil is the Lifeblood of a Wind Turbine

Keep it Clean with C.C.JENSEN.
C.C.JENSEN lters continuously remove dirt, water, and oxidation from gear and hydraulic oil. With over 75,000 wind turbine installations worldwide, we have the experience, technical support and know-how to deliver clean oil for your project. Return-on-investment is typically less than one year. We also offer gearbox ushing and condition monitoring systems. Clean oil will reduce failures, improve reliability and slash operating costs. Its what were all about: Clean Oil Bright Ideas Before and after results using C.C.JENSEN
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Offline Filter with Built-In Particle Counter
Gear Flushing Unit
FEBRUARY 2014
WInDPower EnGIneerInG & DEVELOPMENT
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Get the Power of One. Composites One. With their high strengthto-weight ratio, design exibility, reduced drag, and excellent fatigue and corrosion resistance, composites are ideal for producing wind energy components. As North Americas largest
Composite One Corporate Headquarters Arlington Heights, Illinois 85 W Algonquin Rd. Arlington Heights, IL 60005-4421 800-621-8003 www.compositesone.com
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composites distributor, Composites One has everything you need, from process experts guiding you through nished parts manufacturing, to the materials required for production. Youll also nd Closed Mold experts who can help you produce wind components better, faster and with less waste, plus technical support, local customer service For more than 60 years, Composites One has been committed to providing the right mix of products, people, processes and performance needed for the most demanding industries and applications. That includes the wind industry. We offer more than 2,000 products, including reinforcements, resins, gel coats, coatings, adhesives, catalysts and other core materials ideal for producing rotor blades, nacelles, hubs and other high performance wind energy components. They are competitively priced and available at very short lead times, thanks to our nationwide network of more than 30 local distribution centers. Among the 400-plus top suppliers we represent are industry leaders whose products are specically geared toward wind component manufacturers. We can provide virtually everything you need from a single source, including customized solutions for keeping wind components in top shape in the eld. Our technical sales representatives specialize in providing solutions that help customers evaluate and improve their organizations productivity. Their industry experience and technical know-how make it easy for wind components manufacturers to select the right product and process for any job. As a founding member of the Closed Mold Alliance, Composites One is well situated to help manufacturers make a seamless transition to processes that can help them produce wind energy components better and faster, with less waste. Together with our partners Magnum Venus Plastech (MVP) and RTM North Technologies we provide the knowledge, training and resources it takes to succeed in Closed Mold. Also available are nancial services, custom packaging, an e-commerce website and other value-added services.
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and other value-added benets.
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Find out what the Power of One can do for you. Contact our Wind Energy experts at 1-800-621-8003 or visit compositesone.com.
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WInDpower EnGIneerInG & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
2014
Deublin is the leading manufacturer of precision rotating unions for water, steam, air, hydraulic, vacuum, coolant and hot oil service. With manufacturing and / or sales offices in 17
Deublin 2050 Norman Drive Waukegan, IL 60085-6747 USA Phone: 847.689.8600 Fax: 847.689.8690 www.deublin.com
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countries worldwide, Deublins international headquarters is located at 2050 Norman Drive West, Waukegan, IL. As the proven leader for the manufacture of precision rotary unions for wind turbine hydraulic pitch control, Deublin continues to focus on reliability and performance. Our hydraulic rotary unions for wind energy applications are available in congurations ranging from monoow to fourpassage designs, with central passages for cable connection to electrical slip rings. Each Deublin rotary union employs a proprietary, controlled leakage sealing technology. Durability features such as water resistant construction and hardened stainless steel rotors provide unparalleled lifecycle reliability over millions of cycles. This signicantly reduces downtime and maintenance costs for both on- and off-shore operations. All unions are 100% factory tested under operating pressures to ensure that each union is completely operational upon receipt and ready to install. In addition, Deublin is certied as an Authorized Economic Operator (AEO), which provides assurance that Deublin s supply chain is approved as both secure and customsreliable.
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Deublins Headquarters.
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Hydraulic Unions and Slip Rings for Wind Turbines, Request Catalogs WE102 and SR102.
FEBRUARY 2014
WindPOwer EnGineerinG & DEVELOPMENT
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2014
Dexmet Corporation manufactures precision expanded metal foils and polymers for applications in aerospace, power generation, ltration and automotive industries. Dexmet was founded in 1942 and is based in Wallingford, Connecticut. For over 60 years Dexmet has been at the
Dexmet Wallingford, CT 203-294-4440 www.dexmet.com
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As the power output requirements increase for wind turbines, wind generator manufacturers are moving towards larger blades to rotate these larger turbines at lower wind speeds. As the wind blades increase to over 45 meters in length, blade construction is moving away from the more traditional all berglass construction to utilize more carbon ber. The carbon ber provides a substantial weight savings and increased strength to combat the extreme stress loads exerted on the blades during operation. Carbon ber, however, is conductive and more prone to be struck by lightning. Without proper protection, they are susceptible to severe damage and catastrophic failure. For two decades Dexmet has been working with aircraft designers developing precision expanded MicroGrid foils for lightning strike protection on carbon ber composite aircraft and its components. Beneting from the development work done in the aircraft industry, Wind Blade Manufacturers are now realizing the importance of having the proper lightning strike protection for larger carbon ber blades and incorporating Dexmets precision expanded MicroGrid materials into their designs. Dexmet MicroGrid materials are thin, open area products applied to the top adhesive layer of the composite and are capable of achieving the critical conductivity required to dissipate a destructive lightning strike, protecting the carbon ber layer below. Dexmets expanded copper and aluminum MicroGrid meshes are essential at extending the life of carbon ber composite blades. In addition to protecting blades, lightning strike materials can also be incorporated into the composite turbine nacelles for additional protection of the structure. Dexmet MicroGrid Proven Lightning Strike Protection Proven Technology For Lightning Strike Protection Highly Conductive Patterns Matched To Specic Requirements Open Area Design For Easy Dry Or Wet Layup Without Delaminating Easily Repairable For Low Maintenance Costs And Minimal Downtime MicroGrid Materials For Wind Generator Applications As with Aerospace applications, weight is always critical so Dexmet provides different conductive materials to minimize the weight based on the different strike zones. As with all rotary blades, lighting is more prone to hit the leading edge and the outer blade surfaces towards the tips where the highest amount of static energy is generated. For these locations, the heavier, more conductive materials are utilized. As you move towards the root of the blade, a lighter weight material can be incorporated to reduce weight and cost. The variability with Dexmets expanding process provides the capability of producing a custom material based on desired weight, conductivity, or open area to meet exact application requirements. To learn more about the benets of Dexmet materials, witness its lightning protection performance or understand how it can reduce your maintenance costs and down time, contact us at products@dexmet. com or visit our web site and let us show you how to incorporate the innovative MicroGrid materials into your composite designs and start recognizing the benets today.
FEBRUARY 2014 www.windpowerengineering.com
forefront of expanding technology and has redened the standards for micro mesh materials providing the greatest range of products and capabilities for foil gauge metals and thin polymer lms. Dexmet manufactures thin, light-weight precision expanded Copper and Aluminum from .001 thick and widths reaching over 48 that can meet specic weight, conductivity and open area requirements required by aerospace or wind generation applications. Precision MicroGrid materials from Dexmet are the industry standard for expanded materials used in lightning strike protection, on carbon ber structures with OEM aircraft manufacturers as well as EMI/RFI, and ESD protection for sensitive internal instrumentation. The Dexmet Quality System is ISO 9001:2008 and AS9100 certied.
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2014
DISC-LOCK International, headquartered in Culver City, Calif., manufactures a complete range of safety fastening solutions for transportation, industry and the military
DISC-LOCK International 6101 W. Centinela Ave., Suite 280 Culver City, CA 90230 , USA US Toll Free: 877.944.9352 Tel. 310.944.9352 Fax 310.944.9522 www.disc-lock.com
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DISC-LOCK (TM) International manufactures and sells many types of secure, safe, durable and robust fastening solutions for industry, transportation, military and the windpower industry world-wide. The DISC-LOCK Delta Protekt, preassembled washer pair is a heavy duty, structural self-locking fastener which prevents loosening of bolted joints caused by shock or vibration in high stress applications. It is ideally suited to many windpower fastener situations. The DISC-LOCK Washer pair can be utilized in either blind hole or through hole applications. In blind hole applications, the washer pair is placed under the bolt head while through hole applications use the washers beneath the nut. The working principle behind the DISC-LOCK Washer is uncomplicated. It consists of two washer-shaped pieces which are preassembled (glued pairs) which have inclined cams on one side and a series of ridges on the other. On installation the two cam sides are mated together and placed between the nut and the joint material. Under vibration, the nut will attempt to rotate loose but, as the angle of the cams is greater than the pitch angle of the bolt thread, the interlocking cams and the non-slip ridges of the washer work together to create a jamming effect which prevents loosening.
including trucks, trailers, buses, wind turbines and towers and solar energy. DISC-LOCK products include; Locking Washer, Safety Wheel Nut, Vibration Proof Locking Nut, Truck Frame Fastening System, Rail Car Fastening System, Armor Fastening System, Shear Wrench, Tension Control Bolt and Hex Head Bolt. Established in 1980, DISC-LOCK International distributes
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to all 50 states in the U.S. and 31 countries worldwide.
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Windpower EnGineerinG & DEVELOPMENT
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With 7,300+ MW of energy under contract, EDF Renewable Services is the leading North American provider of Operations & Maintenance Services.
EDF Renewable Services O&M Business Development 858.521.3575 O&MBusDev@edf-re.com www. edf-renewable-services.com
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Trusted Leader in Operations & Maintenance EDF Renewable Services understands renewable energy facilities represent a substantial investment. We are the industry leader in O&M services, earning the respect and condence of our partners and delivering the best possible service and results. EDF Renewable Services offers the full range of services for established renewable energy projects - including operations, asset managment and administration, procurement, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, and more. From our state-of-the-art Operations and Control Center (OCC) we provide 24/7/365 remote monitoring, trouble-shooting, resets and other auxiliary services. The OCC uses advanced technology to optimize turbine availability and protability, increasing customers revenues, round-the-clock. With trained technicians, in-house equipment repair depots, proven practices and procedures, and over twenty ve years of eld service experience, combined with a superior safety record, EDF Renewable Services adds immeasurable value year after year.
With our 25 years of experience we maximize project protability and ensure the performance of your investment for the long term. As part of a global organization, we bring a depth of experience to every project.
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Our experienced on-site team of over 450 full-time wind technicians and 50 supervisors, managers, and support staff, means EDF Renewable Services is fully equipped to manage the balance of plant and day-to-day operations of your wind project. Operations and maintenance service is our core business. Our goal is to optimize your plant performance and maximize availability, regardless of technology type. Our team has extensive experience with nearly every variety of wind turbine and provides the highest quality maintenance services and safety standards performed by trained EDF Renewable Services technicians.
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2014
Encoder Products Company (EPC) is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of rotary encoders. In 1969, CEO William Watt developed an innovative cube-shaped encoder and launched the company from his garage. Today, EPC manufactures a diverse line of AccuCoderTM
Encoder Products Company www.encoder.com
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New Standards In Rotary Encoder Design Inventors of the original Cube encoder, Encoder Products Company (EPC) has delivered numerous rsts in encoder design. Many EPC innovations have not only been widely imitated, they are now industry standards. Advanced Sensor Technology At the heart of EPCs high-performance encoders is its Advanced Opto-ASIC sensor design. This feature integrates many previous board-level components into a single chip with uniform material properties. In addition to greatly reduced packaging size, it allows for a generous sensor-to-disk air gap, resulting in clean, stable signal output over a wide range of operating conditions. Engineered For Harsh Duty The Model 725 Industrial Housing option was developed for applications in harsh industrial environments. In this design, an internal hollow-bore encoder is coupled to the external shaft and secured by an internal ex mount, minimizing the effects of shaft loads. Recent enhancements include an exclusive double-lip true-IP67 shaft seal and dual O-ring case seals. Also upgraded bearings are now rated to loads of 80 lbs axial/radial. All these features combine to isolate the encoders electronics from shock, vibration, dirt, dust, moisture and other external hazards. This novel encoderwithin-an-encoder concept is also found in the MA63S muli-turn absolute and the HD-10 Heavy-Duty Cube Housing, with 95 lbs radial load bearings. Linear Measurement Made Simple Previously, many encoder measuring wheel applications involved cumbersome and costly ad-hoc spring and pivot arm assemblies. In response, EPC developed the TruTracTM line of encoders. They feature an integrated, fully-congurable encoder, an internal spring-loaded pivot arm and a precision measuring wheel. The TR1 TruTracTM is a general purpose unit that includes a single 6 wheel. For applications with irregular surfaces, heavy shock, dust and moisture, the TR3 Heavy Duty TruTracTM employs a ruggedized metal pivot arm and a single or dual 12 circumference measuring wheels.. For reciprocating linear motion, EPC offers the TR2 TruTracTM with a precision pinion gear and rack system. Alternatively, the Linear Cube Encoder (LCE) incorporates a 50 draw-string module with an Model 716 cube encoder. Finally, EPC offers the worlds largest variety of encoder measuring wheel sizes, bores, materials and proles. Versatile Performance Designed with versatility in mind, the Model 25T features 0.25 thru 1.125 bore sizes, 20C to 105C rating, IP66 seal and up to 10,000 CPR. Its housing design features a chemically stable, high-strength polymer and integral cooling ns. This lightweight design means less mass is attached to the mounting shaft, an important benet in many applications. This compact single unit eliminates the need for separate size 20, 25 and 35 through bore encoders. Customer Support EPC is committed to supporting customers in selecting, applying and servicing their encoder. EPC offers Expert Cross Reference Service, short Standard and Expedite lead times, a 3-year warranty, a staffed Repair department and live technical support available 5AM to 4:30PM Pacic, M-F.
FEBRUARY 2014 WiNdpower ENgiNeeriNg & DEVELOPMENT
brand advanced incremental and absolute rotary encoders for OEM and MRO customers in nearly every industry. A modern, vertically integrated 100,000 sq. ft. facility in Sagle, Idaho serves as both Global and Americas Division headquarters. The Asian and European Divisions are supported by EPCs China and UK facilities. EPC products are available through a network of qualied industrial distributors and resellers as
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well as direct sales channels EPC believes that each and every customer deserves our very best--quality products, superior service, and expert support. By adhering to this founding principle, EPC has maintained long-lasting relationships with satised customers throughout four decades of steady growth.
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2014
World-class image quality, overnight delivery, and prices onehalf to one-third that of comparable borescopes. . . thats the innovative Hawkeye Precision
Gradient Lens Corporation 207 Tremont Street Rochester, New York 14608 Phone: 585-235-2620 800-536-0790 Fax: 585-235-6645 info@gradientlens.com
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The new Hawkeye Pro V2 Video Borescopes represent the next generation of fully portable, articulating, video borescopes manufactured by Gradient Lens Corporation (http://www.gradientlens. com/V2). We know portability, image quality, and cost-efficiency are the most important factors for windpower inspection & maintenance teams said Dr. Doug Kindred, Gradient Lens President and Chief Scientist. Our new V2 delivers on all three The wide 70 FOV allows more of the inspection area to be visible to the user. The deep DOF allow sharp-focus of objects as close as 15 mm, up to innity. With the optional Close-Focus Tip users can attain sharp focus of objects from 4 mm 22 mm. The Hawkeye V2 is brighter, has higher resolution, and has more durable construction than most other portable videoscopes on the market today. It is available in diameters of 4 and 6 mm, offers 4-way articulation, is priced starting at $8995, and is made in the USA. Optional Close-Focus, and 90 Prism, adaptors are available that work seamlessly with the V2 when the subject matter is close to, or to the side of, the borescope tip. Hawkeye Video Borescopes deliver the same image quality, portability, and articulation of scopes costing three times as much. Fully portable, Hawkeye V2 Video Borescopes have exible, durable, tungsten sheathing, and come complete with video monitor and light source, all in one easy-touse device. Video and still image capture is quick and easy, and images are stored on SD Memory Cards.They are available in lengths of 1.5, 3.0, and 6.0 meters. Custom lengths are available upon request.
Borescopes manufactured by Gradient Lens Corporation. We sell more industrial borescopes than any other manufacturer. Our new Hawkeye V2 Videoscopes are fully portable and offer 4-way articulation. However, any Hawkeye Rigid or Flexible, Borescopes can be attached to our Luxxor Video Camera allowing high-quality inspection images to be displayed on portable video monitors, or, laptop and desktop computers.
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Those images can be saved, documented and e-mailed. We carry over 80 models of rigid, exible, and video borescopes, and video microscopes. All are in stock and ready for overnight delivery. www. gradientlens.com
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FEBRUARY 2014
2014
Helwig Carbon Products, Inc.is one of the last American owned manufacturers of carbon brushes, brush holders, and grounding systems for bearing and lightning protection. Our carbon brushes and brush
Helwig Carbon 8900 West Tower Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53224 800.962.4851 414.354.08886 Fax www.helwigcarbon.com
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Quality Carbon Brushes and Holders for Wind Energy Generator Brushes Approved for use on Winergy, Hitachi, ABB, Marathon and other generators. Constant Force Brush Holders Custom designed and engineered for all turbine applications. Lightning Protection Superior performance and protection against high surges. Bearing Protection Stops major causes of bearing failure. The Helwig Advantage Engineering Expertise Expert problem solving to maximize product performance and prolong brush life. Research and Development In-house grade development targeted specically to your application. Manufacturing Excellence All parts are manufactured in Milwaukee, WI - USA, and backed by ISO 9001:2008.
holders are used on wind generators, wind pitch motors and grounding applications on wind turbines. Our products are custom designed for your application to give maximum life and lower overall maintenance costs. We serve a wide range of industries including power generation, steel, paper, motor repair, elevator, railroad, transit, and OEM.
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Call us at 800-962-4851. Visit our website at www.helwigcarbon.com.
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WINDPower ENGINeerING & DEVELOPMENT
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Henkel Corporation is a global leader in adhesives, sealants, structural bonders, lubricants and maintenance/ repair chemicals for wind turbine manufacturing (OEM) and maintenance operations (O & M). For OEMs, Henkel provides composite mold-release agents and GL-approved high-performance polyurethane adhesives for rotor blade assemblies that provide superior long-term dynamic fatigue strength. O & M solutions include polyurethane compounds for blade edge, tip and tailing edge erosion repair, structural bonders, sealers, threadlockers and retaining compounds, corrosion protection and non-slip safety coatings, base grouts, cable/ange sealants and cleaners. Henkel operates worldwide with leading brands and technologies in three business areas: Laundry & Home Care, Beauty Care and Adhesive Technologies. Founded in 1876, Henkel holds globally leading market positions both in the consumer and industrial businesses with well-known brands such as Persil, Schwarzkopf and Loctite. Henkel employs 47,000 people with sales of $21.13 in scal 2012.
Henkel Corporation One Henkel Way Rocky Hill, CT 06067 PHONE: 1-800-562-8483 WEBSITE: www.henkelna.com/ windpower
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A Full Spectrum of O & M Solutions. Henkel provides adhesives, sealants, anti-corrosion and non-slip safety coatings, base grouts, cable/ange sealants, threadlockers, retaining compounds and cleaners for the entire life cycle of the wind turbine. Henkel products are designed for blades, towers, bases and nacelles. Blade repair products include: Loctite UK 1370 Putty: For lling voids, gaps, and holes; Excellent resistance to erosion and crack propagation; Superior sanded nish. Loctite UK 1405 NA Lay-Up Resin: For larger repairs where new reinforcement is needed; Excellent resistance to erosion and crack propagation; For use by hand lay-up or vacuum infusion. Loctite UK 1351 B25 Structural Bonder: Structural bonding blade halves; Repairs of small components and patches; GL approved; Superior fatigue strength versus epoxies. GL-Approved Two-Part Polyurethane Adhesive For Turbine Blade Bonding. Loctite Macroplast UK 1340 is an adhesive developed by Henkel for bonding composite turbine blades. It is the only two-part structural polyurethane adhesive to pass the rigorous testing standards established by Germanischer Lloyd (GL). As blade length increases, stresses on the blade are magnied. Our adhesive provides superior dynamic fatigue strength and cures rapidly at elevated temperatures dramatically reducing production time while minimizing thermal loading that can lead to stress cracking. Loctite Macroplast UK 1340 also bonds well at room temperature and allows manufacturers to build stronger, higher quality blades, while enabling faster blade production and greater yield per mold compared to conventional epoxy systems. The superior dynamic fatigue strength of Loctite Macroplast UK 1340 results in higher resistance to crack propagation and prolongs blade life while virtually eliminating the risk of structural failure after installation. Loctite Macroplast UK 1340 adhesive meets the industrys highest standards of reliability, performance and quality. Sub-Component Testing For Evaluating Changes In Blade Design. Turbine blade testing is costly ( $1 million per test) and time consuming. Henkel engineers developed a method for evaluating blade performance by component variables for a fraction of the cost. Our 6 long test beam is a customBEFORE AFTER fabricated composite structure made to the unique specications of the blade manufacturer. Changes and variations in blade design, dimensions, material composition and adhesive can be evaluated BEFORE AFTER quickly and economically. The beam is installed in a xture, and then subjected to stresses (static and dynamic) per the specications of the blade designer. The data collected is then projected across BEFORE AFTER a full scale design. The signicantly lower cost of the Henkel Beam test (@ $5,000) allows the process of developing more efficient blade designs to be accelerated and shortens the time to market.
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2014
From the beginning, SGS Herguth was there! The wind industry was held together by dedicated wind farm technicians and supported by SGS Herguth.
SGS Herguth Laboratories, Inc. 101 Corporate Place Vallejo, CA 94590, USA Tel: Fax: 1-800-645-5227 (OIL-LABS) 1-707-554-0109 Local: 1-707-554-4611
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SGS Herguth ensures early identication of wear debris and contaminants: Wear Debris & Contamination Analysis for Oil and Grease Plasma Spectroscopy on Acid Dissolved Metals Filter Debris Analysis Direct Reading and Analytical Ferrography Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) Lubricant Life and Serviceability Evaluations for Oil and Grease Acidity and Viscosity Remaining Antioxidant Levels Flender Foam and Air Entrainment Tester ASTM Foam and Air Release Testing Grease Evaluations
www.sgsherguth.com
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FEBRUARY 2014 WINDPOwer ENgINeerINg & DEVELOPMENT
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About Hy-Pro Filtration Hy-Pro Filtration manufactures DFE rated lter elements and uid conditioning equipment for the Wind-Power industry. Give us a call to keep your equipment up
Hy-Pro Filtration 12955 Ford Drive Fishers, IN 46038 info@hyproltration.com www.hyproltration.com
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People, Innovation, Flexibility Get the full support of Hy-Pro Nation. Together with a global distribution network our expert team of Hy-Pro technical eld sales engineers are ready to implement proactive strategies to solve hydraulic & lube oil and diesel fuel problems. Experienced in lubrication, ltration and uid power they carry the highest industry certications including (CFPS and CLS). Our engineering staff is ready to support your application needs with expert product & industry knowledge to make condition based recommendations for standard or customized contamination solutions. Rely on Hy-Pros customer service team to put a personal touch on your rush requests and anything else that you might need including up to date order status, product availability and pricing quotations. Were not satised until we exceed your expectations. Innovation is at the core of Hy-Pro Culture. Serious problems require serious solutions and at Hy-Pro we have developed a full range of products that are proven to handle industrys toughest contamination challenges. A commitment to developing new products while continuously improving existing products is what makes Hy-Pro a leader. Flexible People . . . Flexible Manufacturing. When you have an emergency we see it as an opportunity to prove ourselves. Finished element stock and our exible element manufacturing capabilities allow us to dene typical lead times in days not weeks and when you really need we will do whatever it takes to deliver elements anywhere in the world as fast as possible. We also maintain a eet of stock and rental equipment for the uid conditioning range of products. When you make the call well be ready!
and running at maximum efficiency.
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2014
About Megger Established in the late 1800s, Megger has been designing and making test and measurement instruments that perform electrical measurements
www.megger.com USA Valley Forge Contact for Building/Wiring/ Contractor & Comms products Valley Forge Corporate Centre 2621 Van Buren Avenue Norristown, PA 19403 USA Tel: 1-610 676 8500 Fax: 1-610-676-8610
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Megger PVM210 Irradiance Meter The Megger PVM210 has been designed to provide the solar / photovoltaic engineer a compact, pocket size instrument that is easy to use. Single-handed operation is possible due to the solar detector and meter being housed in one neat unit. This feature is ideal when using the instrument on a sloping roof or when working at the top of a ladder. The easy to read display and measurement hold feature the meter allows fast accurate readings of solar power. Applications Initially, the PVM210 may be used as an aid to select the most appropriate site for placing the solar panels. Once the installation is complete the PVM210 will be used to verify the stated short circuit current, as marked on each panel, in conjunction with either a suitable multimeter or clampmeter. Overview The PVM210 has a 3 digit LCD display with a measurement range up to 1999 W/m. In addition to W/m measurements, a selectable BTU (British Thermal Unit) measurement range up to 634 BTU / (ft 2*h) is also featured. The unit features a data hold function that freezes the display to allow easy reading of measurements. Range selection is featured on the PVM210. A universal camera screw thread on the rear of the instrument allows accurate positioning if required when using a camera stand. Features, Advantages and Benets of PVM210 F Detector and meter housed in one unit A Easy of use B No umbilical connecting lead F Data hold A Freezes display B Allows easy measurements F A B Single-button operation Single-handed use Ambidextrous use F A B F A B Compact instrument Fits in pocket Easy to carry Calibration certicate included Traceability of calibration Initial calibration not required
for preventative maintenance, troubleshooting and commissioning for decades. Megger products have supported customers all over the world to improve their facilities efficiency, reduce costs, extend the life of apparatus and through trending and analysis, anticipate equipment failure and future performance. It now has local offices in many locations with eld sales teams and
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distributors all over the world. Manufacturing plants are located in the USA, UK, Sweden and Germany.
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F Protective pouch A Protects instrument from accidental damage B Prolongs instrument life F Automatic on / off A Prolonged battery life B Low ownership costs F Universal camera thread A Allows accurate positioning B Precise measurements
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The Nord-Lock Group is a world leader in bolt securing systems. We offer a unique combination of bolting expertise and a wide product range, including wedge-locking solutions and Superbolt
Nord-Lock Inc / Superbolt, Inc. 1000 Gregg St. Carnegie, PA 15106 Tel: +1 877 799 1097 +1 412 279 1149 Fax: +1 412 279 1185 bolting@nord-lock.com www.nord-lock.com
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Innovative wind turbine maker gets peace of mind with Nord-Lock
Quality and durability are Eastern Wind Powers top priorities for its 50kW vertical axis wind turbines. Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Eastern Wind Power (EWP) is about to launch a wind turbine that could soon be spotted on roofs of urban highrises, at remote industrial plants, or in developing countries, providing power for basic needs like drinking water and lighting. Unlike the propeller-type horizontal axis wind turbines that are common in many parts of the world, EWPs vertical axis wind turbine has three vertical six-metre high carbon bre blades. The benets of this vertical conguration include lower noise, less risk to birds, no gearboxes and their associated mechanical issues, and they can be erected closer together than traditional wind turbines. Not satised with the bolt securing solutions they had used previously in their Sky Farm 50kW Vertical Axis Wind Turbine, EWP tried Nord-Lock wedge-locking washers and were amazed with the results. We cannot afford failures, says Linda Mongelli Haar, Chairman of Eastern Wind Power, Inc. We wanted to make sure after all our design and development work that we didnt lose the quality by putting on nuts and bolts that werent going to do the job. That is why we turned to Nord-Lock. EWP currently uses Nord-Lock NL8ss washers 24 per turbine to secure the blades to the struts. If the bolts here are not properly secured you get the bolt backing out a little and it will start to vibrate, says Jonathan Haar, President and CEO of EWP. And even if it doesnt back out all the way, it might snap the whole blade off because youve allowed enough space for vibration. That vibration can throw your whole turbine out of balance. EWP has attracted the attention of Siemens Industry Inc, one of the biggest players in the world wind power sector. Siemens was looking to venture into small wind and they wanted to prototype their inverters with a vertical axis turbine, says Linda. They interviewed a lot of companies and they selected us, which was a great vote of condence. The project is in particular receiving a lot of interest from markets like Hawaii and the Caribbean where the energy prices are as high as the wind speeds. We are also starting to get some interest from owners of high-rise buildings closer to home who understand that distributed energy will pay them back quickly and they will have a good 20 years of virtually free energy after a short break-even, says Linda.
tensioners. Our mission is to safeguard human lives and customer investments by securing the worlds most demanding applications. Nord-Lock products have documented success in every major industry and hold several certicates from many independent institutes. We share our experience, knowledge and creativity to help our clients achieve outstanding results. The Nord-Lock Group looks forward to being your partner in bolt optimization.
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2014
SAB North America is the North American sales, distribution, and service center of SAB Brckskes located in Viersen, Germany- the leading manufacturer and distributor of cables worldwide since 1947. We house a wide-ranging line of European and
SAB North America 344 Kaplan Drive Faireld NJ 07004 Tel: 973-276-0500 Fax: 973-276-1515 Toll Free: 866-722-2974 Email: info@sabcable.com Website: www.sabcable.com
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Elastomer (TPE), Silicon, Polypropylene, FEP, ETFE, XLPE) and any combination of components such as power, control, signal, communication, and coax. Additionally adding pneumatic, hydraulic or air hoses are a possibility to make any cable perfect for your specic requirements. We have designed more than 2,000 specialty cables in the past year with great success in an assortment of diverse functionalities. SABs long history of exible cable manufacturing enables us to provide cables for almost any application. STANDARD: At SAB North America, we stock a wide ranging line of European and Domestic wire, cable, and cable accessory products available for immediate delivery from our location in Faireld, NJ. Our catalog contains a line of cables ranging from Flexible Control Cables and Continuous Flex Cables to Tray Cables and Halogen-Free Cables to name a few. SAB is pleased to offer worldwide approvals including UL, CSA, CE, and VDE Certications to most of the product line. ACCESSORIES: SAB also offers an extensive inventory and product line of high-quality cable accessories. The variety of polyamide and nickel plated brass Cord Grips, EMC Cable Glands, and other accessories complement our exible control and automation cables perfectly. SERVICE: With unmatched levels of customer service and an extensive in-stock inventory, SAB North America offers immediate off-the-shelf delivery on most of its cables. Specialty cables can be designed, manufactured, and delivered in just a few weeks. For clarications, details or explanations about any of our products and how they can be used in your specic applications, give one of our experienced Sales Staff a call. Visit our website, www.sabcable.com, to experience our commitment to solving your problems faster than you think possible.
Domestic products in stock for immediate delivery and have the shortest manufacturing lead times in the industry. For over 60 years SAB has not only provided our customers with a wide array of wire, cable, & accessories but also impeccable, unmatched service. Call one of our representatives or visit our website to experience
SAB North America is known in more than 40 countries and often specied by name. SABs adherence to product quality has proven itself in thousands of the worlds most demanding applications. Our products are produced at our facility in Viersen, Germany ensuring a strictly controlled manufacturing environment producing consistently high quality products. They have been intensively tested for over 60 years and have proven to have a longer service life and are of an overall better quality than similar products on the market. SPECIALTY: The strength of SAB lies in the development and manufacturing of special products that meet and exceed our customers exacting specications. Many capabilities can be achieved by selecting different combinations of jacketing, shielding, conductor, and insulation materials. Our competences are extensive including various jacketing materials (PVC, Polyurethane, Thermoplastic
FEBRUARY 2014
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our commitment to solving your problems faster than you think.
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2014
Southwire connects with customers at every step of power delivery, from the point of generation to the end connection for residential, commercial and industrial users. But this connection is through more than just our wire and cable products. We connect through our shared
Southwire 1 Southwire Dr. Carrollton, GA 30119 (770) 832-4000 www.southwire.com
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principles. Our common goals. Our commitment to innovation, technology and reliability. And a workforce of smart industry veterans. People who are dedicated to providing our customers with an uncommon level of expertise to go along with our complete range of transmission and distribution solutions. Our real power doesnt run through our products. It stands behind them. Southwire was founded in 1950 with the goal of providing the very best in products and service to our utility customers. While the generation of power has evolved considerably over the last 60+ years, our commitment to this goal has remained steadfast. Today, Southwire is the number one provider of wire and cable for utilities in the U.S, and a one-stop resource for wind and solar wire, cable and support. As such, we offer a full line of solutions for the collection and transmission of renewable energy on the grid everything from turbine and tower cables to wind collection cables and with our robust manufacturing capabilities, we have the exibility to completely customize these solutions for you, improving costs, reliability and compliance across the energy value chain. Beyond our innovative products, we also offer our considerable engineering resources from the initial cable spec all the way through to installation. But, our value to the wind energy market doesnt end at the point of power generation. Southwire also manufactures a full line of wire and cable products for your substations, plus we custom cut and kit those products, and support them with some of the industrys smartest minds. With environmental mandates dictating that more power come from renewable energy resources, the need for the efficient collection and transmission of that power is more important than ever. Make sure you have a partner with the size, scope and service to keep up.
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2014
Melvin Ulteig founded the company in 1944 to help bring electricity to the people of the rural Midwest through Rural Electrication Administration (REA) transmission line
Ulteig 3350 38th Ave S Fargo, ND 58104 www.ulteig.com info@ulteig.com
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projects. A leader in the energy industry, Ulteig has expanded its portfolio to include a variety of civil engineering and land surveying projects. A nationally accredited company, Ulteig ranked number 211 in the Top 500 Engineering Design Firms by the Engineering News-Record. Ulteig is 100% employeeowned and offers a wide variety of engineering, surveying and consulting A leader in the energy industry, Ulteig has expanded its project portfolio to include a variety of civil engineering and land surveying work. A nationally accredited company, Ulteig ranks number 211 in the Top 500 Engineering Design Firms by the Engineering News-Record. Ulteig is 100% employee-owned and offers a wide variety of engineering, surveying and consulting services. Ulteig has eight office locations in ve states. Mission Our mission is to be the place where people want to work. To be the company that people want to hire. Our business stems from these two ideas, whether its hiring new talent or completing projects for our various clients, these two concepts dene our purpose as an organization. Core Values As a professional organization, we are grounded in our core values. They dene us as individuals and as an organization. These values dene the foundational components of our identity, priorities, and boundaries. Our core values are: Dedicating ourselves to our clients success Pursuing excellence in our work Acting with integrity Guiding Principle We are the company our clients can rely on to deliver what they need across a wide spectrum of disciplines, and we strive to meet those needs with exemplary service and professionalism. Our mission gives us a purpose, and our guiding principle offers the direction for how we can accomplish it. Our guiding principle is a simple, yet powerful statement: Make a fair prot from current operations, meet our obligations, sustain our growth, and attain our vision.
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services. The company has offices in Bismarck, Fargo and Williston, N.D.; Detroit Lakes and St. Paul, Minn.; Sioux Falls, S.D.; Denver, Colo.; and Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
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FEBRUARY 2014
WindpOwer EnGineerinG & DEVELOPMENT
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Each of UEAs products is engineered to perform in the harshest environments. UEA takes pride in being an ISO 9001:2008 certied company. Our philosophy of Total Quality Management insures each employees
United Equipment Accessories 2103 East Bremer Ave. P.O. Box 817 Waverly, IA 50677 Phone: (319) 352-3946 Fax: (319) 352-2175 Email: info@uea-inc.com www.uea-inc.com
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commitment to quality improvement. UEA is proud to have been a family-owned company since 1952. UEAs staff is eager to work with you on a design and assembly for your unique application. Whether its megawatts or kilowattsm UEA has a slip ring solution. Our customers receive comprehensive solutions with premium UEA perforamnce and unmatched customer service. UEA Slip Rings offer design versatility as component kit rings or as completed, ready-to-mount assemblies with optional pre-wired harnesses. A wide selection of circuitry is available with many combinations of
Creating a Wind Revolution
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amperage and voltage (AC or DC).
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WiNdPower ENGiNeeriNG & DEVELOPMENT
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2014
UpWind Solutions is an independent provider of operation and maintenance services, asset management, performance upgrades, engineering and parts for wind energy projects. Leveraging our proprietary O&M Excellence model, we operate and maintain a large eet of wind turbines for customers in North America,
UpWind Solutions, Inc. 4863 Shawline St., Suite A San Diego, CA 92111 +1 866.927.3142 www.upwindsolutions.com
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Fire Island
Optimized with UpWind assetONE
CIRI's
offering a proven alternative to the turbine suppliers. We believe in transparency, collaboration and partnering with our customers to improve production, extend asset life and lower the cost of electricity. UpWind is a wind industry leader because we continuously improve upon: 1. Availability: Operating projects for customers on average at over 99% availability. 2. Reliability: Using reliability-centered From the earliest phases in the life cycle of a project, UpWind Solutions deep expertise and innovative solutions can enhance asset performance, Reliability Centered Maintenance by whether its working with the developer from the planning stages of a project, helping customers maximize the value of an OEM warranty, or delivering high quality O&M. As an Independent Service Provider that manages a 2.5+ GW eet of wind turbines, we leverage cross-platform spare parts capabilities and proprietary solutions for monitoring and assessing asset condition in order to maximize production. Our extensive database of operational data and eld inspection records uniquely positions us as the partner of choice for wind farm owners that want to liberate their assets and optimize energy yield.
UW_FireIsland_FebWPED_01.indd 1 2/4/14 6:53 PM
Our portfolio includes: Operation & Maintenance Services 24/7 Remote Operating of wind turbines (NERC compliant) UpWind Sentinel - drive train component monitoring and diagnostics UpWind Analytics - performance optimization software UpWind Solutions Vortex Generators - maximizing energy production End of Warranty and Due Diligence Inspections - delivered via UpWind Reports Performance Engineering for improved asset performance
VOTE
maintenance principles to manage wind assets effectively. 3. Production: Continuously innovating to drive up production and lower the cost of electricity.
ONLINE
Together with our staff of over 250 highly trained technicians and our leadership team with 275 years of combined experience is uniquely capable of understanding your needs and delivering success on your terms. Your goals are our goals. Your success is our success. Its that simple.
FEBRUARY 2014
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2014
A trusted and reliable technology partner, ZF Services, LLC has expanded its services for wind turbine gearboxes by becoming an authorized repair center for all legacy models of Hansen windpower transmission
ZF Services, LLC 800-451-2595 www.zf.com/us
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applications worldwide. Our regional service center offers multi-brand driveline services to provide a one-stop-shop solution. Were here to help with local service, and global coverage.
ZF Services, LLC as an international multi-brand repair and service provider is using its skills that have made the ZF group successful in the automotive and non-automotive industry for decades: technical expertise, commitment to quality, exibility and its global service network. ZF Services, LLC offers repair and service for many different types of gearboxes in almost any performance range and from many different manufacturers. Since 2007, ZF Services, LLC has been repairing and testing gearboxes, main shafts up to 2.5 MW and YAW gearboxes. In addition, specialists of the company can carry out video endoscopic damage analysis, mobile vibration measurements, as well as the replacement of individual components directly at onshore plants. To further increase the exibility and speed that ZF Services, LLC already offers, ZF Services, LLC provides replacement gearboxes and a targeted stock of replacement parts, such as geared parts and anti-friction bearing sets. This ensures short repair times which are requested by our customers. Services at a Glance ZF Services, LLC offers a complete and comprehensive range of services for the repair and service of wind energy gearboxes. Repair and service of main gear units Repair and testing of mechanical driveline components (e.g. brake, cooling system) Repair of main shafts Repair of Yaw gearboxes Failure analysis by video endoscopy Replacement gear units Reconditioning and upgrading to the most up-to-date technology Reverse engineering Gearbox training for wind professionals Benets for Customers of ZF Services, LLC Service and repair by gearbox specialists Minimal downtimes due to maximum time savings during exchange and repair Constant availability of gearing parts and roller bearing sets for different gear types Reproduction of original parts which are no longer available Worldwide service network for fast and smooth spare parts delivery On-site service centers and contact persons
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ONLINE
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WiNDPowEr ENgiNEEriNg & DEVELOPMENT
FEBRUARY 2014
EQUIP M ENT
Durable sensor is easy to read
Automation Products Group www.apgsensors.com
The MND Modbus Network Display features an intuitive and exible IP67 display that can operate in sniffer or master mode. It can display volume, level, distance, and pressure readings from up to 10 sensors in a Modbus RTU network. Users can select from standard or custom units of measure, and readings are presented on a 5-digit display with large 0.4-in. characters. In master mode, a battery-powered MND can provide enough power for itself and a slave sensor to create a self-contained monitoring system. It can be used to convert a calculated differential reading from two Modbus Pressure sensors into a 4 to 20 mA output. In sniffer mode, an MND can be added to a Tank Cloud Remote Monitoring System to provide local readings in addition to online readings.
Environment friendly lters

Universal Air Filter www.uaf.com
These electrostatic air lters feature a polypropylene mesh, a washable and durable alternative to disposable lters. A triboelectric charge enhances the attraction of airborne dust. The frame is rollformed into a sturdy one-piece channel, letting the lter stand up to repeated cleanings and harsh environments. The lter can be t to several frame sizes, which use thick 3000-series aluminum. The lters are UL900 classied, mildew resistant, and UV protected.
Software upgrade handles complex sites

AWS openWind awsopenwind.org
AWS Truepower has upgraded its openWind Enterprise design and optimization software for use at complex sites with large turbines. The upgrade uses the latest IEC recommendations on effects of turbulence and shear on turbine output. It has the ability to use wind proles to 200m from sodar, lidar, and tall towers. It also includes more environmental analysis, including timeseries modeling of shadow icker and improved noise modeling and reporting. For each time step, the software calculates the rotor-equivalent wind speed and turbulence adjustment based on multiheight wind proles.
A light for hazardous places

Dialight www.dialight.com
Dialight has released its rst ATEX/IECEx LED streetlight. With improved safety and reliability, this light for hazardous areas carries a seven-year full-performance warranty and delivers up to 83 lumens per Watt and 70% lumen maintenance over 100,000 hours. Maintenance can be done through a side entry port, enabling easy change-out from existing cobra head ttings to help reduce maintenance costs.
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com
February 2014
www.windpowerengineering.
A D
I ND EX
The technical resource
ENG INEE RIN G &

for wind profitability
DEV ELO PME NT
INSIDE:
Heavy lifter flexes its flight mussels PagE 08
Turbine of the month, Vergnet 1 MW PagE 40
Tracking the source of
Battle of the batteries? PagE 56
gearbox bearing failures

PagE 42
Abaris Training......................................................... 62 AeroTorque.............................................................. 2

WPE FEB 2014_Cover_Vs6.indd 2 2/14/14 2:44 PM
Amsoil Inc................................................................ 1 Aurora Bearing Company..................................... 55 Aztec Bolting.................................cover/corner, IFC Bachmann electronic GmbH............................... 29 C.C. Jensen.............................................................. 7 Composites One.................................................... 11 Deublin..................................................................... 35 Dexmet Corporation............................................. 15 DISC-LOCK.............................................................. 39 EDF Renewable Energy......................................... 18 Encoder Products.................................................. 54 Helwig Carbon Products, Inc.............................. 28
Henkel....................................................................... BC Herguth.................................................................... 48 Hy-Pro Filtration..................................................... 4 JEC Americas.......................................................... 91 Nord-Lock............................................................... 17 SAB North America................................................ 21 S&C Electric Company.......................................... 59 Ulteig......................................................................... 41 United Equipment Accessories........................... 27 UpWind..................................................................... IBC
Update Event. ....................... Gradient Lens Corporation.................................. 24 tneme ganam Wind lamEnergy reht o t hcaO&M orpp aw en a si gInsert nilooc ZF Services North America................................... 35
ria tneliS
2014
Abaris Training........................................64 AeroTorque.............................................65 Amsoil Inc...............................................66 Aurora Bearing Company....................67 Aztec Bolting..........................................68 C.C. Jensen.............................................69 Composites One...................................70 Deublin....................................................71 Dexmet Corporation............................72
90
WINDPOwER ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT FEBRUARY 2014

DISC-LOCK.............................................73 EDF Renewable Energy........................74 Encoder Products.................................75 Gradient Lens Corporation.................76 Helwig Carbon Products, Inc.............77 Henkel......................................................78 Herguth...................................................79 Hy-Pro Filtration....................................80 Megger....................................................81 Nord-Lock..............................................82 SAB North America...............................83 Southwire................................................84 Ulteig........................................................85 United Equipment Accessories..........86 UpWind....................................................87 ZF Services North America..................88
JEC Group brings the worldwide composites industry to Atlanta in a new mega event.
Discover the full global composites value chain from materials producers to end-users. See every final application sector, from design to mass production. Expand your business horizons, meet new partners, learn about the latest in composites innovations. Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas join the JEC Group to bring this 3-in-1 international event to American composites stakeholders.
Georgia World Congress Center: May 13 14 15 2014

www.JECcompositesamericas-exhibitor.com
JEC Europe- Paris JEC Americas-Atlanta JEC Americas- Boston JEC Asia - Singapore
DO WN WI ND
(Left) Maintaining continuous, reliable power at remote, off-grid substations is a critical concern in industries ranging from oil and gas to telecom, and mining to railroad. Hybrid systems that incorporate both solar panels and wind turbines are quickly becoming the solution. (Right) To enhance power reliability and build in redundancy, many off-grid industrial substations are now being retrotted with small, offgrid wind turbines from suppliers such as Primus Wind Power.
Sometimes the sun is not enough

Off-grid industrial devices and
substations powered with solar panels have speckled the countryside for years. Solar, after all, is more cost-effective than running power lines at up to $100,000 per mile. But what about the weather? Snow can cover photovoltaic cells, which lets batteries run dry, and that may take critical equipment offline.
(Below) Wind power compliments solar power because it often produces the most power precisely when solar power is reduced or unavailable, such as at night, in inclement weather, and during winter.
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FEBRUARY 2014
>
D e vot e d t o a l l t h i n g s w i n d , cu r iou s, a n d p o ssib l y u se f u l .
In the energy industry, for example, the failure of a solar-powered monitoring station can have serious consequences. Without continuous remote data, safety requirements might call for energy producers to shut down production, says Tony Kaspari, an electrical engineer who works with industrial companies. An unplanned outage can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Hybrid systems that incorporate solar and windpower are a way to reduce the risk of power failure. Many off-grid industrial substations are being retrotted with small wind turbines to enhance power reliability and build in redundancy. While solar works well in the daytime, windpower compliments it by also working through the night. Also, while solar works better during long summer days, windpower thrives through the blustery winter. On stormy days, windpower is the only option. Another benet of adding wind power to a solar-only system is that it lengthens battery life by reducing the depth and frequency of discharge. One small wind turbine manufacturer, Primus Wind Power, produces several models for areas with different wind speeds and climates. Primus turbines generate power at wind speeds as low as 6 mph, and can generate as much as 40 to 80 kWh a month per turbine. Each turbine rotor measures about 4 ft. in diameter, while the whole unit weighs about 13 lbs. and costs about $1,000. If your paycheck depends on having reliable remote power, then you need to look into adding a wind turbine to your existing solar-only system, or integrate it from the beginning, says Brent Busenlehner, president of ReadyFlo Systems, a Texas-based integrator of remote power devices. The combination extends system capacity and makes the worst case scenario, a power outage, unlikely. WPE
Fire Island
Optimized with UpWind assetONE
CIRI's
Reliability Centered Maintenance by
Lightning strikes, tip fractures, edge erosion & delamination. . .
. . .Henkel offers global repair solutions for the life of your turbines.
LOCTITE high performance wind blade repair products, such as GL approved UK 1351 B25 polyurethane structural bonder, offer the speed and reliability you need to get damaged rotor blades back in service fast. Polyurethanes cure rapidly at all temperatures, significantly reducing repair time compared to epoxies. Henkels single-source solutions* for adhesives, sealants, functional coatings and threadlockers can help you repair, operate and maintain wind turbines and keep them spinning for the long haul.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
After
For details, visit www.henkelna.com/windpower or, in the US, call 1-800-562-8483.

*Henkel makes products for these applications: tip fractures, impact damage, edge wear and delamination, non-skid coatings, panel sealing, yaw-bearing sealing, corrosion protection, threadlocking, ladder bonding, tower & platform sealing, base grouting/pad repair and cable sealing.
All marks used are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Henkel and its affiliates in the U.S. and elsewhere. = registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. 2013 Henkel Corporation. All rights reserved. 11782 (12/13)

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ENGINEERING & DEVELOPMENT

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42 Understanding root causes of axial cracking in windturbine gearbox bearings

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25 Bolting - A better way to tighten and check many bolts

50 Lessons from the enforcement of recent eagle takes

26 Insurance - Planning for the future with proactive and

30 Safety - Working when its bitter cold

34 Condition Monitoring - What a blade monitoring

89 Equipment World - Hazard lights, sensor display, lters,

92 Downwind - Wind compliments solar at remote stations

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