Investigation into the Effects of Static Electricity on Wind Turbine Systems - IEEE Conference Publication
Wind turbines employed today use a variety on onboard electronics
systems. These onboard electronics include a wide variety of controls
and sensors for maintaining wind turbines within their operational
ranges. As such, interference or interruptions of these electronics can
cause unwanted system behavior or worse, system damage and destruction. A
significant source for wind turbine performance degradation or
reductions in reliability comes in the form of static electricity. As
wind turbine blades sweep through the air, electrostatic accumulation
occurs on the wind turbine blade surfaces. This accumulation can have
detrimental effects on the system’s equipment unless proper precautions
are taken to mitigate static electric charge accumulation. The scope of
this research is to analyze the capability and effects of electrostatic
accumulation on wind turbine components. This research is intended to
(1) define the current risk that static electricity poses to wind
turbines, (2) investigate causes for static electric accumulation, and
(3) assess potential mitigation methods to better safeguard wind
turbines against the effects of static electricity.
