Damage Assessment of Hydrokinetic Composite Turbine Blades

Abstract

Damage assessment of composite blades is investigated for hydrokinetic turbine applications in which lowvelocity impact damage is possible. The blades are carbon/epoxy laminates that are made using an out-of-autoclave process and the blade design is a hydrofoil with constant cross-section. Both undamaged and damaged blades are manufactured and instrumented with strain sensors. Water tunnel testing is conducted with varying flow velocities and for different blade angles. A theoretical simulation is included that is based on finite-element method. The influence of damage on the response characteristics is discussed as an indicator of structural health.

Department(s)

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Second Department

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

Carbon; Composites; Epoxies; Sensors; Simulations; Water

Document Type

Article - Conference proceedings

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2013 SPIE, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jan 2013

Link to Full Text

Share

 
COinS