Investigation into the Effects of Static Electricity on Wind Turbine Systems

Wind turbines employed today use a variety on onboard electronics systems. These onboard electronics include a wide variety of controls and sensors for maintaining wind turbines within their operational ranges. As such, interference or interruptions of these electronics can cause unwanted system behavior or worse, system damage and destruction. A significant source for wind turbine performance degradation or reductions in reliability comes in the form of static electricity. As wind turbine blades sweep through the air, electrostatic accumulation occurs on the wind turbine blade surfaces. This accumulation can have detrimental effects on the system's equipment unless proper precautions are taken to mitigate static electric charge accumulation. The scope of this research is to analyze the capability and effects of electrostatic accumulation on wind turbine components. This research is intended to (1) define the current risk that static electricity poses to wind turbines, (2) investigate causes for static electric accumulation, and (3) assess potential mitigation methods to better safeguard wind turbines against the effects of static electricity.