FANWIN

Over the past decade, various experimental approaches have been developed to enable increasingly accurate representation of the aerodynamic behavior of turbines. The most recent developments aim to combine numerical simulation and physical testing. These approaches, known as “software-in-the-loop,” “hardware-in-the-loop,” or “hybrid,” are based on the principle of emulating the rotor’s response using a system of actuators placed at the top of the mast. Aerodynamic forces are simulated numerically and communicated to the actuator. In response, sensors placed on the model provide the digital model with information on the position and speed of the nacelle.

In 2017, the LHEEA was awarded the WEAMEC Research AAP grant to fund the SOFTWIND project. The aim of this three-year project is to develop an experimental device based on a hybrid approach. A first ground-based device, consisting of an emulator with a single actuator and a sensor, was tested at the end of the last quarter of 2018 and the beginning of the first quarter of 2019. The results showed that the system performed very well.

Fig 1: The SOFTWIND experimental set-up composed of the 1-degree rotor emulation system mounted at the top of a spar-type floating substructure during validation tests of rotor control laws.

However, this emulation is limited to thrust force alone, and moreover with a mains power supply.

In order to emulate all the components of the force torso, it is necessary to add new actuators and, for pool tests, to consider a battery pack.

The FANWIN project aims to finance these elements in order to enable the development of a complete and even more accurate device.