Field Demonstration of Radar-based SHM of Wind Turbine Blades at a 2 MW Wind Turbine: Installation, Data Acquisition and Signal Analysis

Abstract

This paper reports on a radar-based structural health monitoring (SHM) system for wind turbine blades. Initial results are presented from a field installation at a 2 MW wind energy plant (WEP) where two FMCW radar systems with high output power are placed at the tower of the WEP. The frequency bands are 24.05-24.25GHz and 33.4-36.0GHz, respectively. The remote sensing inspection takes place when the blades pass the sensor system during normal WEP operation. Here, we present the concept and realization of this innovative SHM system, the synchronous data processing chain as well as experimental data from both radar sensors