GE Renewable Energy debuts high-speed blade inspection system for wind turbines

• 6 years ago (2018-10-11)
• David Flin

North America 1021 Wind 257

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GE Renewable Energy has announced that it has made available a new ground-based blade inspection system for wind turbines. This system combines thermal imaging technology and wide-band acoustic spectral analysis to detect anomalies on blades across an entire wind fleet, including both GE and non-GE turbines. GE said that the system has the proven potential to reduce blade O&M costs by up to around 25 per cent.

The system is self-contained, and provide real-time data analytics on turbine health in a quick and safe manner. This method reduces the need for up-tower inspections, leading to safer and less costly repairs, and also does not require wind assets to be powered down for a prolonged period. To date, more than 1500 turbines have been inspected using this technology. On average, the inspection time per unit is under 15 minutes.

Staged at the base of a wind turbine, the inspection technology takes a series of recordings of the blades as they are turning and under active load. This produces a real-time view of the subsurface health of a blade, layered with advanced digital image analytic capabilities that read and detect a wide range of anomalies. In addition, certain blade anomalies under rotation produce a distinct sound, which the system detects and analyses to pinpoint the specific location of the anomaly.

The system can detect a range of defects harmful to blade function, including fatigue cracks, fibre waves, delamination, bonding issues, breaking or missing adhesive joints, splits and defective repairs. As the images are gathered, a combination of artificial intelligence algorithms and deep expertise in physical models/turbine engineering help teams conduct an in-depth analysis of the overall health of the blades. This service is currently available through GE Renewable Energy Services in the North American region, and will be extended to other regions over the next few months.

Anne McEntee, CEO of Digital Services, said: “Wind turbine blade inspections have come a long way. Ground scopes, drones, and tap testing are just a few of the methods that operators have used to help prevent against failures both small and catastrophic. But most down-tower blade inspections are limited to showing what’s happening with the surface of the blade. Many of the issues that lead to larger failures are deeper within the blade itself. The ability to look beyond the exterior coating of the blade, regardless of manufacturer, marks a significant advance in blade inspection technology.”