Hamburg, 23.10.2017. Hamburg-based 8.2 Consulting AG has investigated the lifetime extension of more than 300 onshore and offshore wind turbines. The experts’ analyses show that most wind turbines can extend the operation beyond their design life of 20 years. The company will be presenting its findings at the WindEurope Conference & Exhibition in Amsterdam from 28 to 30 November.
“Rising cost pressure and stricter statutory regulations make the repowering of wind turbines increasingly harder. Operators have to consider very carefully how they can maximise their energy output and reduce operating costs”, explains Philipp Stukenbrock, Head of Sales and Marketing at 8.2 Consulting. Lifetime extension can be a solution, based on a technical verification combined with an adapted O&M concept for aging wind turbines.
Determine the remaining lifetime
The market is large. In Germany alone, around 7,000 wind turbines will lose their funding eligibility in 2021. In order to avoid high maintenance and repair costs, operators must know the remaining life of all the main components. 8.2 Consulting is the only company that can verify the overall residual working life in terms of the components.
To generate the verification the engineers use the ADCoS aeroelastic simulation software, with which it is possible to model each individual turbine. Afterwards, the model is exposed to the site-specific loads that result from the wind conditions in order to calculate the fatigue load spectra. From this it is possible to derive the damage equivalent loads and calculate the resulting overall lifetime.
Unique wealth of experience
To carry out their surveys, the engineers can rely on a wealth of experience that is unique in the wind industry. The globally active network of experts drew up the first lifetime extension assessment back in 2011. The network’s data collection now encompasses over 22,000 inspected wind turbines at home and abroad. As a result, 8.2 Consulting not only knows the weaknesses of each individual wind turbine type, but the engineers can also easily project missing information – about turbulences and controller algorithms for example. The 8.2 Consulting staff will announce more details at WindEurope in Amsterdam.
About 8.2
The 8.2 Group is a network of technical experts that was created in Germany in 1995 and has member companies all over the world. The network currently consists of 130 experts and covers all areas of technical expertise within the renewable energy industry.
8.2 Consulting is the largest company within the 8.2 Group. It was founded for the purpose of handling large and complex international projects such as technical due diligences. It is certified according to ISO 9001:2015 and its inspection body is accredited according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17020.
