Wind Energy Technologies

Completed

Renewable Energy Sources(Wind Energy)

Basic and strategic applied research

PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Metallurgy and Materials)
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Applied Mathematics)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Electrical and Electronic Engineering)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (General Engineering and Mineral & Mining Engineering)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering)

Not Cross-cutting

Professor P J Tavner
Engineering
Durham University

Standard

EPSRC

23 March 2006

22 March 2010

48 months

£2,552,788

Energy

North East

Energy -- Energy Research Capacity

Professor P J Tavner, Engineering, Durham University

Professor A Brown, Electrical & Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester
Dr AG Dutton, Engineering and Instrumentation, STFC (Science & Technology Facilities Council)
Dr P Hancock, Mechanical, Medical, and Aerospace Engineering, University of Surrey
Professor P Hogg, Royal Holloway, University of London
Professor WE Leithead, Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde
Mr C Mingham, Computing and Mathematics, Manchester Metropolitan University
Professor AC Smith, Electrical & Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester
Prof S Watson, Electronic and Electrical Engineering, Loughborough University

Project Contact, Smart Fibres Ltd
Project Contact, H R Wallingford Ltd
Project Contact, National Oceanography Centre
Project Contact, Scottish Power Ltd
Project Contact, E.ON UK (formerly PowerGen)
Project Contact, New and Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC)
Project Contact, AMEC Wind Energy
Project Contact, Econnect
Project Contact, Garrad Hassan and Partners Ltd
Project Contact, Areva
Project Contact, Chell Instruments
Project Contact, University of Nottingham

This is a SUPERGEN Consortium of 8 Universities and 1 Research Laboratory with expertise in wind turbine design, location operation, aerodynamics, hydrodynamics, materials, electrical machinery, control, reliability and condition monitoring. The Consortium has the active support of 9 Partners with Industrial and Research experience, including wind farm Operators, Manufacturers Consultants.The Consortium s objective is to investigate Wind Energy Technologies.The Management Hub is Strathclyde University, the Finance Hub is Durham University.The challenge facing the Consortium is significant encompassing the search for engineering solutions:1. To improve the efficiency and reliability of wind energy.2. To reduce the cost of energy production.3. To facilitate the siting of machines in off-shore locations.4. To reduce the impact on existing infrastructure.The interdependences of the challenges and the interdisciplinary nature of the work call for flexibility, imagination and careful co-ordination of effort from the consortium that includes experts in all the relevant engineering disciplines.We believe that the Consortium offers a unique opportunity in wind energy research. The EU Framework VI programme addresses renewable energy but concentrates on the demonstration of technology. In contrast, the Consortium will focus sharply on the technological challenges, particularly those related to the exploitation of the UK s extensive offshore wind resource. The Consortium willundertake some truly interdisciplinary research that is essential in a technology comprised of many different branches of engineering. The overall objective is to improve the acceptability and cost-effectiveness of large scale offshore wind energy development by1. Investigating the reliability and availability of wind turbines and to modelling their failure modes in order to develop a predictive and proactive condition monitoring system.2. Assessing the potential design limits of large wind turbines via detailed understanding of technical developments in innovative materials and active load reduction.3. Developing new/improved methods for optimised siting and design of large wind turbines as influenced by wind flow, seabed movement, lightning and radar visibility

01/01/07