Flapwise and Edgewise Blade Loads Analysis of HAWT Rotor by Using Fluid-Oscillation Coupled Calculation Model

A horizontal axis wind turbine suffers fluctuating aerodynamic loads, which result in oscillations of the rotor blades. Since the blade oscillation has considerable effects on the blade fatigue life, the influence on the fatigue loads from the interaction between the aerodynamic loads and the structural oscillations should be considered in the design process of the wind turbine rotor. The objective of this work is to analyze the aerodynamic effects on the fatigue loads of rotor blade due to structural oscillation and inflow conditions, by using numerical calculation method. This paper explains a calculation model which can estimate the aerodynamic loads on the rotor blade of the horizontal axis wind turbine in the inflow conditions with the turbulence and yawed misalignment. The fluid-oscillation coupled calculation has been performed for the geometry of the NREL test turbine. The calculated results are compared with the experimental results to evaluate the validity of the calculation model.Copyright © 2011 by JSME