Case Studies

The BearInspect project will support the effort of the wind power generation industry in the North of England by delivering efficient wind energy not only to the North of England but also to the whole of Europe by achieving better reliability standards and reducing corrective maintenance costs through accurate condition monitoring of wind turbines.

The BearInspect project will implement an integrated condition monitoring system which will combine the use of acoustic emission and vibration sensors in conjunction with electronic bolting monitoring, oil temperature sensors and oil particle counters to evaluate the overall operational condition of the turbine's generator, gearbox bearings, main shaft and yaw bearings. Integration of the aforementioned sensors will allow the full assessment of the condition of the wind turbine mechanical components through the application of a single monitoring system. The implementation of the BearInspect system will result in a noteworthy reduction of inspection times when compared with existing state-of-the-art procedures. It will also minimise the need for corrective maintenance thus leading to a substantial decrease of the overall operational and maintenance costs. Furthermore, by fusing and analysing the data obtained through the different sensors, it will be made possible to quantify the faults detected by the system and enabling the wind farm operators to update the maintenance schedule accordingly.

The BearInspect consortium intends to contribute profoundly in the improvement of reliability within the wind power generation industry in the North of England by delivering the technology required in order to substantially reduce unexpected wind turbine failures and unnecessary costs that result from them. By increasing the reliability of the North England wind turbine fleet the wind farm operators will be able to improve their maintenance strategies, minimise operating costs leading to a reduction of the cost per MWh produced, improve their efficiency and increase public confidence in renewable energy sources. Moreover it will allow the use of the financial resources recovered as a direct result of the reduction of operating costs for the improvement of existing infrastructure and the construction of new wind farms throughout North England. The long-term implication is that it will be possible to plan the economic future of the region on the basis of known and predictable cost of electricity, derived from an indigenous energy source free of all the security, economic and environmental disadvantages associated with oil and gas.

Dr. Slim Soua, PhD
Senior Project Leader

NDT Technology Group
TWI - Technology Engineering
Granta Park, Great Abington,
Cambridge CB21 6AL, UK

Tel: +44 (0)1223 899000 ext. 9199
Email: slim.soua@twi.co.uk
Website: www.twi.co.uk