Investigation on the Aeroelastic Characteristics of Ultra-Long Flexible Blades for an Offshore Wind Turbine in Extreme Environments

Abstract

With the growing demand for wind turbines in deep offshore regions, frequent typhoon disasters at sea have impeded the continued development of the wind power industry. To address the problem of typhoons destroying offshore wind power facilities, this paper investigates the aeroelastic characteristics of long flexible blades on ultra-large offshore wind turbines under typhoon loads. The WRF numerical model is employed for high-precision simulations of Typhoon Mangkhut (No. 1822). By optimizing parameterization schemes and incorporating 3DVAR data assimilation techniques, typhoon wind speed profiles in the target sea area are obtained. Based on IEA 15 MW offshore wind turbine data, 3D unsteady CFD models and full-scale finite element models of the blades are established to acquire the aerodynamic loads and structural responses of the blades in typhoon environments. The results indicate that, under extreme typhoon loads and considering wind shear and tower shadow effects, the forces near the blade root are greater; the maximum out-of-plane aerodynamic force occurs at the 14% span position of the blade at 90° azimuth, and the maximum torsional aerodynamic moment is experienced at the 26.5% span position of the blade at 270° azimuth. When the blade pitch angle and rotor yaw angle do not reach ideal states, the deflection of ultra-long flexible blades can increase by up to 3.26 times. These findings overcome the limitations of traditional uniform wind field studies and provide a theoretical basis for subsequent coping strategies for offshore blades under typhoon conditions.

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