Cooling wind turbines effectively and efficiently

Thermal management Cooling wind turbines effectively and efficiently

2024-04-15 From Maximilian Grimm | Translated by AI 5 min Reading Time

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Every increase in performance in wind turbines also means a higher heat load - and this needs to be dissipated as efficiently as possible. Fans play an important role in this. Effective cooling that uses as little energy as possible can increase the performance and thus the economy of the entire system.

Among renewable energies, wind power is considered to have great growth potential; its share of the energy balance will continue to rise.(Image: EBM-Papst with Adobe Firefly (AI-supported)) — Among renewable energies, wind power is considered to have great growth potential; its share of the energy balance will continue to rise.
(Image: EBM-Papst with Adobe Firefly (AI-supported))

Maximilian Grimm is Global Business Development Manager Renewable Energies at ebm-papst Mulfingen.

Among renewable energies, wind power is considered to have great growth potential; its share of the energy budget will continue to rise. At the same time, the performance of wind power plants is increasing, thanks to innovations in materials used and optimised blade geometries. The increased waste heat load resulting from the increase in power must be dissipated as efficiently as possible. This is crucial for the technology installed in wind turbines to function reliably and without damage. Fans enable effective cooling that uses as little energy as possible. This can increase the performance and thus the economic efficiency of the entire system.

High cooling demand for electronics, drives, air conditioning.

The cooling demand in wind turbines is high. In addition to electronics, inverters, and generators, pitch drives, switchgear, and gearboxes also need to be cooled, and the nacelle needs to be air conditioned. As varied as the individual applications are, so are the requirements for the fans used. Usually, the required air performance is not the only decisive factor. The fans also need to convince in terms of energy efficiency, acoustics, and above all, their reliability, often coping with cramped installation conditions. For the different climate control solutions, EBM-Papst therefore offers many axial and radial fans with energy-saving EC motors that are designed for the properties required in wind turbines.

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Thanks to their high power density, robustness, and large pressure build-up, the Radipac series radial fans are used in generator cooling.(Image: EBM-Papst)

The Radical EC fans impress above all through...(Image: EBM-Papst)

...high volume flows, good noise characteristics, and compact dimensions, which also enable easy replacement of previous AC solutions, for example in cabinet cooling.(Image: EBM-Papst)

The air conditioning of the gondola protects components inside from too high temperatures. (1 Fan fresh air, 2 Fan inner circuit, 3 Cross-flow heat exchanger)(Image: EBM-Papst)

Gallery with 7 images

EC fans – continuously adjustable, quiet, robust

When the wind turbine produces little or no electricity, the cooling demand decreases and the fans must adapt to the operating conditions. Here, energy-efficient EC fans are used, the speed of which can be infinitely variable. Flow-optimized design ensures quiet operation. This is important for wind turbines that operate near residential areas. It is also important that the integrated electronics of the EC motors are robust enough to cope with unclean networks thanks to their high voltage resistance. At the same time, the electronics offer the option for remote monitoring, in which all information from speed and motor temperature to operational and fault messages is available anytime and anywhere. The measurement values of the vibration and temperature sensors integrated into the motors can be used for condition monitoring. This forms the basis for preventive maintenance measures as part of the scheduled service intervals. Unexpected failures of the air conditioning system, due to the fan, are significantly reduced.

If there is a risk of corrosion because the fans come into contact with salty or humid air, a special coating protects the surfaces. Corrosion protection requirements in accordance with class C5-M according to DIN EN ISO 12944 can thus be met.

The internal temperature of the gondola never exceeds 30 °C.

The nacelle is the machine house of every wind turbine. Inside, the temperature should not rise above 30 °C. Power electronics, generator, etc. are cooled with the room air after all. The systems for nacelle air conditioning differ in design, but always require reliable and robust fans. Depending on the installation situation in the air conditioning system and geometry of the heat exchanger, either axial or radial fans are used. With Axiblade and Axieco (Ed. note: company's own spelling AxiBlade, AxiEco), there are two axial fan series that cover different requirements:

The former impresses with its high power density and low noise emission.
While the other series is especially suitable for applications that require a particularly high pressure build-up, for example due to installation conditions or heat exchanger geometries.

Radial fans are also suitable for nacelle air conditioning. For example, when developing the Radipac radial fans (Ed. note: company's own spelling RadiPac), the real, often tight installation situation in the customer device was taken into account. In particular, the flow behavior of the impeller could be optimized and deflection losses in the air conditioning device as well as the exit losses could be reduced by a special shape. At the same operating point, the fans can therefore run at a lower speed, which in turn means that less energy is needed and the operating noise is lower. Due to a wide efficiency optimum and a high overall static efficiency, the fans operate with low power consumption in wide operating ranges.

Cool Synchronous or Asynchronous Generators Correctly

Synchronous or asynchronous generators are the "heart" of the wind turbine. They should work maintenance-free for as long as possible. To achieve this, the generators must be kept at a comfortable temperature level. If they become too hot, efficiency and lifespan decrease. In the worst case, components could get damaged, which would result in extensive repair work. To cool down, radial fans often carry air over the outer stator of the generator to dissipate the heat. Here, the already mentioned Radipac radial fans have found a typical application area thanks to their high power density, robustness, and great pressure build-up. Thanks to the compact dimensions, both conventional and ring generators can be cooled. Demand-driven, temperature-controlled control is then possible via Modbus RTU or analog signals, for example. Due to the high efficiency of the EC motors, the generator only needs to generate a little energy for its own cooling. Especially when many fans are in use on large generators, this is worth it.

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Enclosure Cooling and Inverter Cooling

In terms of their use for cooling control cabinets specifically in wind turbines, the smaller Radical EC fans were developed. They are particularly impressive due to their high volume flows, good noise behaviour and compact dimensions, which also facilitate an easy exchange of previous AC solutions. They cover air performances up to approx. 14,000 m³/h (at up to 1,400 Pa) in sizes 133 to 560.

In wind turbines, powerful Radipac EC fans are used for converter cooling. Compact dimensions due to the usually very tight installation conditions, durability, robust electronics and energy efficiency are also important arguments that speak for the radial fans with the high power density. Since the Radipac series is available in sizes 250 to 1,000 at up to 2,500 Pa and with air performances up to 37,000 m³/h, the range of applications is wide.

In addition, there are numerous other fans suitable for use in wind turbines, and customer-specific modifications can also be realized.