Since 2016 MegaWindForce has been working on a special type of wind turbine with remarkable characteristics. The team found a way of improving electricity production by leaving off 1/3 of the blade! Innovative carbon production methods make this attainable. A worldwide patent was granted on this invention.
With the growth of the size of turbine rotors, the driving torque at the blade root section increases more than linearly, with the length of the blade. In the case where the same materials and concept are being used, the weight increases cubically with size, demanding heavier structures to withstand forces. The low rotational speed meant the hub needed to be bigger, for the direct drive generators and heavy gearboxes. By replacing the main shaft with a ring-shaped generator-support combination, the disadvantages of classical up scaling are eliminated.
The Concept
The rotor area, close to the rotor centre, contributes only a small part to the energy production of a ‘classical’ wind turbine. This area plays a crucial role in supporting the blades and absorbing the driving forces of the generator system. In the MWF concept, forces are spread equally over the large surface of the ring, avoiding stress concentrations. Since the ring is sized 1/3 of the rotor diameter, blades are 1/3 shorter. This results in a huge reduction of the torque in the blade root. It leads to savings of weight, without exceeding the strength tolerances of the materials used. For example, a 90m 5MW max load turbine will weigh only 60 tons in total, so massive weight reductions are achieved. The ring-shaped rotor is scalable and allows the MWF turbine to harvest energy in the optimum range of the rotor swept area, with light weight components. This new technique allows us to customize the set up for each wind area in order to reach the best LCOE. Pitching and yawing is conventional.
At the beginning of 2019, the first MegaWindForce turbine will be erected in Germany for test purposes. MegaWindForce are proud to present a 7.5m diameter model of this first real-life turbine in September at WindEnergy Hamburg.
