Project

BLEEPID - Towards improved reliability and reduced costs of offshore wind by Blade-Leading-Edge Erosion Prediction and Drone-based Inspection

Code
160X07822
Duration
01 November 2022 → 31 October 2025
Funding
Federal funding: various
Promotor-spokesperson
Research disciplines
  • Natural sciences
    • Fluid mechanics
    • Image processing
  • Engineering and technology
    • Tribology
    • Composites and hybrid materials not elsewhere classified
    • Computational materials science
Keywords
Wind Turbine Blades Leading Edge Erosion Liquid Droplet Impingement Erosion Drones visual inspection CFD-modelling Peridynamics
 
Project description

Leading edge erosion of offshore wind blades has drastic impact on maintenance costs and operational energy production and leads to unwanted microplastics in the environment. Herein, we will develop fundamental image capturing and camera techniques, combined with quantitative wear analysis from experimental erosion testing and multi-physics modelling combining CFD-FSI impact and subsurface fatigue modelling. These advances will enable accurate drone-based inspections of offshore wind blades, and thus optimize maintenance planning and extent the blade’s lifetime.