A wind power
plant, on average, consists of 7000-8000 different parts. Inside there are
utility power converters that convert direct current into direct current of
fixed frequency for transmission to the grid, a control panel that shows the
technical parameters of the WPP in real time, a pitch grease lubrication
system, a generator, a pitch control system and others.
Rated wind speed
- 11.4 m/s. Rated speed of rotation - 14.8 rpm. Operating wind speed range: 2.5
- 25 m/s.
Wind power plant elements:
• Foundation
ensures the stability of the wind power plant under wind loads;
• Tower,
on which the rotor, generator and nacelle are mounted;
• Nacelle
- it houses a number of the main control components of the generator module:
hydraulic and braking systems, motors, nacelle rotation sensor and other
equipment;
• Generator
is attached to the nacelle and converts mechanical rotational energy into
electrical energy and regulates the shaft rotation speed;
• Rotor
is attached to the generator and represents a hub with blades that convert wind energy into rotational energy of
the main shaft. The hub contains the mechanism for the angle of attack of the
blades into the wind;
• Other
mandatory equipment: transformer, cables, grounding, protection systems,
etc.
Description of WPP elements:
1. Foundation.
The number of
driven piles is from 230 to 314 pcs. The height of each pile is 16 m (the
height of a 6-storey building). Foundation diameter – 21-22 m.
2. Tower.
It consists of
about one hundred bent steel sheets, which are made on special bending presses
and fastened into sections. Inside the tower there are power cables that
transmit electric current from the generator to the convector.
The number of
sections - 8 pcs. The height of the first section is 9.5 meters, from the
second to the seventh - 12 meters, the eighth - 18 meters. The total height of the tower is 96 meters (the height of a 31-storey
building). For comparison, the height of the Statue of Liberty in New York is
93 meters.
The diameter at
the base is 4.2 meters. Diameter at the top point - 2.3 m. The weight of thetoweris 217 tons (54 elephants or about 4 cars of a passenger
train). Number of components
- 49,763 pcs. Number of bolts - 10,000 pcs. Time it takes to climb up using the
technical elevator - 7 min.
3. Nacelle.
Serves for
attaching the generator and wind wheel to the tower. It provides access of the
maintenance personnel to the generator and the wind wheel. Weight - 16 tons (4 elephants). Number of components - 9,321 pcs.
4. Synchronous multi-pole generator.
DC generator is
an electrical machine that converts mechanical energy into DC electric energy. The weight of the generator - 49.5 tons (9
Indian elephants or 99 cows). Diameter - 4.3 meters. Number of components -
368,206 pcs. Power - 2.5 MW.
300,000 plates
are needed to make the generator. The plates are made of electrical steel to
accommodate copper windings and permanent magnets. The permanent magnets form a
magnetic field and when the rotor rotates, an electric current is generated in
the copper windings. The weight of the magnets is 3.3 tons and the weight of
the copper conductors is 3.9 tons.
5. Rotor assembly (hub and 3 blades).
Diameter - 100 m (33-storey building). Swept area - 7,900
square meters (soccer field - 7,140 square meters).
·
Hub.
It is a
high-tech large-size casting made of high-strength cast iron, machined on
special high-precision machines. Weight
- 20 tons (5 elephants). Number of components - 2,609 pcs.
·
Blades.
The efficiency
of the wind generator directly depends on the perfection of the aerodynamic
characteristics of the blade. Blades must be strong and elastic, otherwise high
altitude winds will break them like matchsticks. In addition, the blades must
have a minimum weight, because increasing the weight increases the stresses on
the structure as a whole. Weight - 8.6
tons. Length - 49.05 meters (16-storey building). Speed of rotation at the end
of the blade - 225 km/h (equal to the average speed of a racing car).
6. WPP assembly.
The total WPP
weight is about 324 tons.
Total height
(taking into account the length of the blades) - 150 m (about 50-storey
building).
WPP service life is 20-25 years.
