Predictive Condition Monitoring and Fault Diagnosis Techniques for Offshore Wind Turbines

Wind energy conversion is the fastest-growing source of new electric generation in the world. The unforeseen damages of a component in a wind turbine have significant impact on the wind turbines, especially offshore ones. There has been a trend towards adoption of various forms of condition monitoring and fault diagnosis to know the deteriorating condition for both mechanical and electrial components, well in advance of a breakdown. This paper review the most recent advances in these areas with a special focus on offshore wind turbines. Different type of faults on offshore wind turbines are reviewed, including gearbox and bearing failures, generators failures, rotor failures and electrical failures. And then two widely-used methods(vibration analysis and oil monitoring) for predictive condition monitoring and fault diagnosis in offshore wind turbines are reviewed.