Despite a buoyant European offshore wind market, offshore construction & installation contractors that fall short of budget and technology challenges risk falling by the wayside.

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Bladeskyn, a blade surfacing material for wind turbines, from Blade Dynamics in the U.K. and soon of New Orleans, is said to deliver new levels of coating protection, using fluoropolymers in an innovative film application format. The company says its advantages include 20-year performance, assured quality, and lowest lifetime cost.

The developer says the coating lasts far longer than traditional paint and gelcoat. The chemistry and nanotechnology has been developed to meet the needs of modern wind turbine blades and has proven longevity in demanding architectural tasks. Its performance advantages include absolute UV stability, minimal dirt pickup, excellent abrasion resistance, and low reflectivity.

The company says Bladeskyn resolves the costly processing and quality issues associated with alternatives. Trained operatives can apply the coating quickly, easily, and with little equipment. There are no sprays, solvents, or mixing so the surface quality is not at risk from human error and the working environment is far safer. The company says clients will receive assured surface properties, a repeatable process, and a simple and clean application. The following tables from Blade Dynamics provide a few comparisons with competing and conventional blade coatings.

Blade Dynamics

bladedynamics.com

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Many view wind turbines as a great way to produce clean energy. However, some think that wind farms adversely affect the health of those living nearby them. These concerns include effects of infrasound, electromagnetic radiation, shadow flicker, and blade glint. But are they relevant? The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council published a report of studies that have found no substantial evidence that turbines pose any health risk. Here’s what the report says regarding those health allegations.

Infrasound is sound generally inaudible to the human ear. The World Health Organization states there is no reliable evidence that sounds below the hearing threshold produce physiological or psychological effects. Based on information in the accompanying table, noise levels from wind turbines have been assessed as negligible. That is, they appear to be no different from the noise found in other everyday situations.

Table 1 compares the noise produced by a ten turbine wind farm compared to noise levels from selected activities.

Electromagnetic radiation is also a concern, but the Australian Wind Energy Association says the closeness of the electrical cables counters the electromagnetic field, as shielding does with metal armor.

Shadow flicker is the flicking on and off of the turbine’s shadow as the blades rotate. The primary concern here is that the flickering will cause epileptic seizures, though the report says the risk is very low.

Blade glint happens when sunlight reflects off turbine blades and into a person’s eye. However, all major wind turbine blade manufacturers coat their blades with a low reflectivity treatment that prevents reflective glint from the surface of the blade. Therefore, the NHMRC considers the risk of blade glint low as well.

Others complain of annoyance, anxiety, hearing loss, and interference with sleep, speech and learning. However there is no published scientific evidence to support such adverse effects of turbines on health. Some argue symptoms come from stress, which can result when people worry about their health. Another study shows people who benefit economically from wind turbines are less likely to report annoyance, despite exposure to similar sound levels.

Still, because evidence to health risk is limited, the report recommends authorities take a precautionary approach and continue to monitor research outcomes.

Australian National Health and Medical Research Council www.nhmrc.gov.au

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American Superconductor Corp. says it has acquired a 25% ownership ($8 million) in Blade Dynamics Ltd., a designer and manufacturer of advanced wind turbine blades based on proprietary materials and structural technologies. Founded in the United Kingdom in 2007, Blade Dynamics designs and develops wind turbine blades to increase the efficiency and performance of multi-megawatt wind turbines while also reducing costs. The Venture Capital group of Dow Chemical Co. also made a minority equity investment in the blade manufacturer.

American Superconductor Corp. is developing a 10-MW offshore turbine in Germany with partner Windtec. Plans are now that it will use blades designed and developed by Blade Dynamics.

Today’s 2-MW wind turbines require rotors with more than a 70-m (230 ft) diameter, and 5-MW turbines require rotors at least 120 m (360 ft) in diameter. Rotor diameter determines the swept area of a wind turbine’s blades. Ideally, wind turbines would be equipped with even larger-diameter rotors to maximize power output. But cost, weight, and transportation factors have limited the size of rotors, outweighing performance and efficiency benefits.

“Blade Dynamics has developed unique and proprietary structural designs and manufacturing methods aimed at overcoming critical barriers facing today’s wind industry,” says Blade Dynamics founder and CEO Paul Rudling. “Using advanced manufacturing processes, innovative structural designs, proven composite materials, and an advanced surface coating called Bladeskyn, our wind-turbine blades provide compelling performance and efficiency advantages for wind turbine manufacturers. Our company will use American Superconductor’s (AMSC’s) unique wind-turbine-design capabilities and business model as well as Dow’s composite materials to capitalize on the opportunities in front of us.”

“Design and manufacturing for wind turbine blades have remained fundamentally unchanged for 20 years,” says AMSC founder and CEO Greg Yurek. “Today, however, the market is migrating to higher power ratings for wind turbines. Onshore turbines exceed 2 MW in many locations, and offshore wind farm developers increasingly seek wind turbines with power ratings exceeding 5 MW. Blade Dynamics presents us – and the entire wind industry – with a wind-turbine-blade technology that enhances performance, and reduces weight and cost for high power wind turbines. We view this as a good investment and expect many wind turbine manufacturers, including our own AMSC Windtec licensees, to quickly migrate to the Blade Dynamics solution to avail themselves of these advantages. In fact, AMSC Windtec and Blade Dynamics engineers have already been working in close collaboration to improve blades for AMSC Windtec turbine designs.”

In addition to providing AMSC Windtec licensees with differentiated blades, the company expects its investment could expand the company’s sales opportunities with other wind turbine manufacturers around the world. The company also says that Blade Dynamics will provide blades for the company’s 10-MW SeaTitan superconductor wind turbines.

Encouraging the blade manufacturer to move close to the U.S. market, Louisiana Economic Development (LED) says it is providing an incentive package to help the U.K. firm establish and operate a manufacturing facility in New Orleans. This incentive package, worth up to $30 million, hinges on the company meeting certain capital investment and job creation milestones. Located at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility, the Blade Dynamics operation is expected to add at least 600 direct new jobs to the local economy over the next decade. Through Louisiana’s FastStart, LED will also provide workforce support including assistance with employee recruitment, screening, training development, and training delivery, for up to two years during the company’s employment ramp-up.

The Michoud Assembly Facility, an 832-acre site owned by NASA, is one of the largest manufacturing campuses in the world. NASA and Lockheed Martin have used this site for the construction of the Space Shuttle’s external fuel tanks for more than 30 years. Michoud is now a multi-tenant complex for other government agencies, government contractors, and commercial businesses, in addition to its core NASA work. In addition to its presence in New Orleans, Blade Dynamics plans to expand its operations in the U.K. as part of a long-term commitment to Europe’s offshore wind market.

American Superconductor Corp.

amsc.com

Blade Dynamics

bladedynamics.com

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A new hybrid gas-wind turbine called SmartGen has been designed to work on low winds based on a system that turns the turbine with compressed air from a compressor running on biogas.

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Renewable energy production and demand growth is gaining momentum in many ways across the world. There is a booming demand of wind power today and all wind energy equipment manufacturers are gearing up to meet the demand and take advantage of it. Wind power capacity growth will be reaching 447GW in the next five [...]
Posted in: Wind Farms, Wind Power, Wind Turbines

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From an editorial in the Wisconsin State Journal:

The Wisconsin Division of Public Health has reviewed more than 150 scientific and medical reports related to wind turbines and public health.

Division staff have listened and responded to concerns about wind turbines from the public, municipal leaders and local health officers. The division has sought the expertise of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and health departments in states with heavier reliance on wind energy.

So what did the Wisconsin Division of Public Health determine from all of that careful inspection?

“We conclude that current scientific evidence is not sufficient to support a conclusion that contemporary wind turbines cause adverse health outcomes in those living at distances consistent with current draft rules being considered by the Public Service Commission,” wrote Dr. Seth Foldy, state health officer and administrator, in a July 19 letter to wind farm critics who claim all manner of ailments from wind turbine noise, vibrations and shadow flicker as the sun sets behind turbines.

Dr. Jevon McFadden, an epidemiologic intelligence service officer with the CDC, offered similar reassurance in May to the Wisconsin Wind Siting Council that he serves on.

“Evidence does not support the conclusion that wind turbines cause or are associated with adverse health outcomes,” McFadden wrote in his presentation.

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The app is compatible with the iPhone and BlackBerry handsets. Versions for Android and Windows Mobile will be released soon.

A new mobile app allows users to search for hydraulic hoses and related information on the go. The application, HoseFinder from motion and control products manufacturer Parker Hannifin, features a selection process that enables the user to specify their preferred size, temperature, and pressure. The app then narrows down results to display suitable hoses. After the user identifies a product of interest, the Find It option locates the nearest Parker distributor by zip code.  The Send It option is also available for forwarding the product details along with a message to a friend or colleague. The app also offers access to a catalog, which allows users to search for fitting, crimper, and accessories, as well as watch reference training videos and tutorials.

Parker Hannifin Corp.

www.parker.com

WindEnergyUpdate speaks to 2-B Energy’s co-founder and chief operating officer, Mikael Jakobsson, about a next generation turbine likely to feature in the UK’s Round 3, and why turbine reliability is crucial to project risk management.

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This week’s WindEnergyUpdate news brief includes: Vestas, PNE Wind, Nordisk Vindkraft and HgCapital; Block Island wind farm; Cape Wind & the FAA; Sea Energy & Ampelmann; Corus; Siemens, Samsung & C&T Corp.; and Douglas Westwood.

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