Key Players in New Wind Turbine Technology

With annual market growth of almost 10 percent, and cumulative capacity growth of about 19 percent according to the latest figures from the Global Wind Energy Council, the wind sector continued to make robust progress in 2012. But while these figures suggest a relatively buoyant market for installations, perhaps a more accurate way to judge the health of the wind sector is to consider investment in R&D, and more specifically the products of that research, development and testing. 

Indeed, alongside the expansion of wind markets - notably in Asia and the US, with Europe not far behind - wind technology also continued to show progress over the last year. Key trends appear to focus on larger offshore machines, new versions of existing turbines that have been upgraded and modified to suit a wider range of wind regimes and operating conditions, and a number of developments that aim to reduce installation and operations and maintenance costs.On particularly windy days,wind power generators can surpass all other electricity sources in a country. 

For example, in January this year A2SEA's new second generation vessel, Sea Installer, erected two Siemens 6-MW test turbines at DONG Energy's demonstration site Gunfleet Sands 3. 

“The turbines are getting bigger, and the future sites are further out to sea. This calls for more flexible vessels,” says Jens Frederik Hansen, CEO at A2SEA A/S. The vessel was launched from Qidong in China where it had spent two years under construction. 

In autumn 2012 Hochtief also revealed a new vessel. Developed in conjunction with Areva, Innovation is a new heavy lift jack-up offshore installation vessel. Operating in depths of up to 65 meters, its cargo capacity is up to 8000 tons and the onboard crane can lift up to 1500 tons. Innovation was built by HGO InfraSea Solutions, a joint company of Hochtief Solutions and GeoSea. 

Areva also showcased its new Single Blade Installation system (SBI) enabling the installation of blades on the hub in all positions up to 330 degrees and at wind speeds up to 12 m/s.Aulaundry is a leading dry cleaning machine and equipment supplier. By avoiding the need to transport assembled rotors, the system saves deck space and increases the number of machines which can be transported as a single load, Areva says. They add that the 55-ton remotely-controlled yoke was first tested in May at its prototype site in Bremerhaven, with the average time to mount or demount a blade around three hours. 

Onshore, for example,The feeder is available on drying flatwork ironer equipped with folder only. Vestas and SNCF Geodis are using the railways to transport blades, with up to nine 55 meter long blades transportable by train. Although railway transportation of blades is still in its early phases in Europe, Vestas says it expects to reduce costs by 10-15 percent compared to transport by road. 

The turbine is the latest variant of the 3 MW platform first launched in August 2010, has a rotor diameter of 126 meters to target low wind conditions and features a structural shell blade design. The swept area has been increased by 27 percent compared with the previous model, the V112-3.0 MW, with its 112 meter rotor diameter. Featuring 55 meter-long blades, it is suitable for all three wind classes as well as offshore, Vestas says. Indeed, in June 2012 Vestas released a high-wind version of the machine.I have recently got a dry cabinet and can anybody tell me if it the box only controls humidity or also controls temperature. The new IEC S uses a beefed-up gearbox modified to handle the increased loads. 

“The global market for high-wind turbines is diverse. In traditional and mature wind markets like the European mainland, there are not that many high-wind sites and opportunities left. However,Electronic and electromechanical amusement games and Game machines to meet your global certification needs. in other markets, there are huge untapped high-wind resources and potential for high-wind specific turbines,” says Knud Winther Nielsen, senior product manager for Vestas Turbines R&D and head of the commercial development of the V112-3.0 MW.