Economic analysis of condition monitoring systems for offshore wind turbine sub-systems

Allan May, David McMillan, Sebastian Thöns

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingArticle in proceedingsResearchpeer-review

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Abstract

The use of condition monitoring systems on wind turbines has increased dramatically in recent times. However, their use is mostly restricted to vibration
based monitoring systems for the gearbox, generator and drive train. There are many forms and types of condition monitoring systems now available for
wind turbines. A survey of commercially available condition monitoring systems and their associated costs has been undertaken for the blades, drive train
and tower. This paper considers what value can be obtained from these systems if they are used correctly. This is achieved by running simulations on an operations and maintenance model for a 20 year life cycle wind farm. The model uses Hidden Markov Models to represent both the actual system state and
the observed state. The costs for system failures are derived, as are possible reductions in these costs due to early detection. Various scenarios are simulated
including the addition of condition monitoring systems to the drive train and blade and tower monitoring. Finally, the efficacy of these systems is examined
and its effect on operation costs.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of EWEA 2014
Number of pages9
Publication date2014
Publication statusPublished - 2014
Externally publishedYes
EventEuropean Wind Energy Conference & Exhibition 2014 - Fira de Barcelona Gran Via, Barcelona, Spain
Duration: 10 Mar 201413 Mar 2014
http://www.ewea.org/annual2014/

Conference

ConferenceEuropean Wind Energy Conference & Exhibition 2014
LocationFira de Barcelona Gran Via
Country/TerritorySpain
CityBarcelona
Period10/03/201413/03/2014
Internet address

Keywords

  • Condition monitoring
  • Structural health
  • Operations and maintenance

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