SBIR Phase II: IDT Sensors for Monitoring Wind Energy Infrastructure

该小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第二阶段项目将展示一种检测和监测传感器系统，该系统通过创新的无损评估（NDE）传感器系统解决复合材料部件的结构评估问题。复合材料由于其多层和各向异性的材料结构，一直是检测的挑战。当处理风力涡轮机叶片时，由于其巨大的尺寸、构造、强度要求、操作环境和安全考虑，该挑战增加。第二阶段的工作将进一步升级和完善第一阶段开发的传感器操作能力。信噪比和检测覆盖面积（传感器覆盖区）将进一步提高。该系统的能力将得到扩展，使一个单一的控制单元可以操作和接收来自传感器网络阵列的数据。传感器系统将在制造过程中应用，以验证部件质量，用于安装前和安装后检查，以检查运输或组装损坏，以及在组件？的使用寿命作为结构健康监测系统。这些传感器可以在灾难性的叶片故障发生之前在源头发现制造缺陷，从而大幅节省成本并减少停机时间。该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力将促进风能发电机的经济安装和运行。美国已经设定了到2030年风力发电占总发电量20%（300吉瓦）的目标。基于典型的公用事业规模涡轮机（1.5- 2.0 MW），这意味着到2030年国内服务的涡轮机叶片将超过50万个。根据风力涡轮机的大小，每个叶片的成本为5.5万至30万美元，安装一个1.5- 2.0兆瓦的涡轮机的成本为2 - 3百万美元。风能的增长对生产、安装和维护涡轮机叶片提出了巨大的制造挑战。在该项目期间开发的传感器系统有可能在供应链早期和生命周期中检测到缺陷或损坏，从而避免昂贵的能源容量停机时间或灾难性的塔故障。叶片故障不仅是成本问题，也是安全问题。精确检测复杂叶片结构的方法可以对行业产生重大的经济影响。正在开发的传感器系统也可用于航空航天和基础设施/桥梁应用。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will demonstrate an inspection and monitoring sensor system that addresses the problem of structural evaluation of composite components with an innovative nondestructive evaluation (NDE) sensor system. Composites have always been a challenge for inspection due to their multilayer and anisotropic material construction. This challenge is increased when dealing with wind turbine blades due to their enormous size, construction, strength requirements, operational environment, and safety considerations. The Phase II effort will further upgrade and refine the sensor operational capabilities developed in Phase I. The signal to noise ratio and inspection coverage area (sensor footprint) will be further improved. The system capability will be expanded so that a single control unit can operate and receive data from a networked array of sensor. The sensor system will have application during manufacture to verify part quality, for pre- and post-installation inspection to check for shipping or assembly damage and during the component?s service life as a structural health monitor system. These sensors offer the possibility for substantial savings and reduction of downtime as manufacturing defects are discovered at the point of origin, before catastrophic blade failure can occur.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to facilitate the economical installation and operation of wind energy generators. The U.S. has set a goal of 20% (300GW) of electrical power to be generated from wind by 2030. Based on the typical utility scale turbine (1.5-2.0MW) this translates to having over 500,000 turbine blades in domestic service by 2030. Depending on the wind turbine size, blade costs are $55k to $300k each with a 1.5-2.0MW turbine costing $2-3M to install. The growth of wind energy represents a huge manufacturing challenge to produce, install and maintain the turbine blades. The sensor system developed during this program has the potential to detect defects or damage both early in the supply chain and during the life cycle so that expensive energy capacity downtime or catastrophic tower failures can be avoid. Blade failure is not only a cost issue but also a safety one as well. An accurate method for inspection of complex blade structures can have a major economic impact on the industry. The sensor system being developed also has use in Aerospace and Infrastructure/Bridge applications.