Blade for a wind turbine and wind turbine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12104577-B2
Application number	US-202016858790-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 27, 2020
Priority date	May 9, 2019
Publication date	Oct 1, 2024
Grant date	Oct 1, 2024

Abstract

Provided is a blade for a wind turbine including at least one blade component, wherein at least one section of the blade component facing the tip of the blade is carbon fiber reinforced, wherein the blade further includes a lightning protection arrangement with a discharging conductor extending along the blade to discharge an electric current caused by a lightning striking into the blade, wherein the lightning protection arrangement includes at least one, electrically conductive, elongated and flat lightning receptor which is electrically connected with the discharging conductor, wherein the lightning receptor is arranged at or near the outer surface of the blade and located between the at least one blade component section and the blade tip and extends at least partially from a trailing edge towards a leading edge of the blade.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A blade for a wind turbine, the blade having a blade tip and comprising:
at least one blade component, wherein at least one section of the blade component facing the blade tip is reinforced by carbon fibers spanning a length of the blade past a root of the blade toward the blade tip and configured to reinforce the blade against bending loads on the blade, and
a lightning protection arrangement with a discharging conductor extending along the blade to discharge an electric current caused by a lightning striking into the blade, wherein the lightning protection arrangement includes:
at least one, electrically conductive, elongated and flat lightning receptor which is electrically connected with the discharging conductor, wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is arranged at or near the outer surface of the blade and located between the at least one section of the blade component and the blade tip and extends at least partially from a trailing edge towards a leading edge of the blade, wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is, seen in a direction towards the blade tip, spaced apart from the at least one section of the blade component to prevent flash-over, and
at least one electrically conductive lightning conductor protruding from the outer surface of the blade, wherein the at least one electrically conductive lightning conductor is located at or near the blade tip and is electrically connected with the discharging conductor,
wherein a distance between the carbon fibers and the lightning receptor is small enough that a lightning which would otherwise strike into the at least one blade component is attracted by the lightning receptor, and wherein the distance is large enough that the lightning receptor does not attract lightning which then strikes into the at least one blade component.

2. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is or comprises a band or a plate or a stripe.

3. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the lightning protection arrangement comprises at least two elongated and flat lightning receptors each extending at least partially from the trailing edge towards the leading edge of the blade, wherein at least two of the at least two elongated and flat lightning receptors are arranged on opposite sides of the blade.

4. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor extends from the trailing edge to the leading edge at a front side of the blade and, subsequently, from the leading edge to the trailing edge at a rear side of the blade.

5. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is electrically connected with the discharging conductor by a conductive block of the lightning protection arrangement located inside the blade.

6. The blade according to claim 5 , wherein the at least one electrically conductive lightning conductor protruding from the outer surface of the blade is electrically connected with the discharging conductor by the conductive block.

7. The blade according to claim 5 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor and/or the at least one lightning conductor protruding from the outer surface of the blade is attached to the conductive block.

8. The blade according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor and the at least one lightning conductor protruding from the outer surface of the blade are attached to the conductive block by a common attachment device.

9. The blade according to claim 5 , wherein the conductive block is a metal block of the lightning protection arrangement located inside the blade.

10. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one section of the blade component includes a heating element and/or deicing element.

11. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is laminated into the blade.

12. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongated and flat lightning receptor is covered by a layer.

13. The blade according to claim 12 , wherein the layer is a glass fiber layer.

14. A wind turbine comprising at least one blade according to claim 1 .

15. The blade according to claim 1 , wherein a distance between the carbon fibers and the lightning receptor is in the range between 5 centimetres and 2 meters.

16. The blade according to claim 15 , wherein the lightning receptor is located about 7 meters apart from the blade tip.

Assignees

• Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy As

Inventors

• Christiansen Thomas Lehrmann
• Girolamo Donato

Classifications

• F03D1/0679

  Load carrying structures, e.g. beams · CPC title

• F03D80/301

  Lightning receptor and down conductor systems in or on blades · CPC title

• F03D1/0675 Primary

  of the blades · CPC title

• Y02E10/72

  Wind turbines with rotation axis in wind direction · CPC title

• F05B2280/6003

  Composites; e.g. fibre-reinforced · CPC title