Unique Dynamometer Enables Rapid Advancement of Industry Leader; The Spectrum of Clean Energy Innovation (Fact Sheet) Page: 1 of 2
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Unique Dynamometer
Enables Rapid Advancement
of Industry Leader
In the past decade, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
(NREL) and newly formed wind turbine builder, Clipper Windpower
Inc., forged a partnership based on rapid innovation. Over a four-year
span, Clipper developed its LibertyTurbine using NREL's unique wind
turbine dynamometer, the only such facility in the world. It might
seem surprising that Clipper, begun in 2001, could move so quickly
to viability, but Clipper's roots go deep into NREL's soil. Even so, the
project didn't unfold without challenges.
Two decades before launching Clipper, its founder, James Dehlsen, had started Zond, a
pioneering U.S. wind power firm. Zond worked closely with NREL, and once it was acquired by
another firm in the late 1990s, Dehlsen was free to pursue his latest wind turbine innovations.
His new idea was the Distributed Generation Drivetrain (DGD), which Dehlsen patented.The
DGD concept offered to lower the cost and weight of the wind turbine nacelle by employing
a radical departure from the standard turbine gearboxes. In part, weight savings came from
reduced component bulk, accomplished by eliminating much of the heavy copper that would
typically be required for windings in the rotor.:
=,.
f,
,;,The 2.5-MW Clipper Liberty wind turbine features
a new lightweight, enlarged rotor that increases
power production, a revolutionary generator
design thatimproves reliability, and reduced
gearbox weight and size. P~I 115The NREL-Clipper collaboration also allowed
exploration of the turbine's variable-speed
design. Beginning in 2002, Clipper was able
to build a proof-of-concept DGD that had
eight output shafts and eight indepen-
dent permanent magnet generators. The
company then tested the model at NREL's
dynamometer site, a unique facility that can
demonstrate decades of wear in a matter of
months by loading turbine drivetrains and
gearboxes at various speeds with low or high
torque. The one-of-a-kind tool has a powerful
3,350-horsepower electric motor coupled to
a 2.5-megawatt (MW), three-stage epicyclic
gearbox that can produce variable speeds
from 0 to 146 revolutions per minute and run
at torque levels up to 9.6 million inch-pounds
to simulate the effects of various wind
conditions. This process uncovered what one
researcher described as irresoluble prob-
lems with the controller as it was trying to
synchronize and properly load the individual::: NRE EL
NATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY LABORATORY
NREL is a national laboratory of the
U.S. Department of Energy, Office
of Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy, operated by the Alliance for
Sustainable Energy, LLC.The Spectrum of
Clean Energy Innovation
'undam'ntal Science
karket-Relevant Research
Systems Integration
Testing and Validation
Commercialization
Deployment
Through deep technical expertise
and an unmatched breadth of
capabilities, NREL leads an integrated
approach across the spectrum of
renewable energy innovation. From
scientific discovery to accelerating
market deployment, NREL works in
partnership with private industry
to drive the transformation of our
nation's energy systems.
This case study illustrates NREL's
contributions in Market-Relevant
Research through Deployment.
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Unique Dynamometer Enables Rapid Advancement of Industry Leader; The Spectrum of Clean Energy Innovation (Fact Sheet), report, June 1, 2010; Golden, Colorado. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1015135/m1/1/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.