Maintenance and operation of a small wind generator in the marine environment. Final report
This report discusses the maintenance and operation of a wind-turbine generator that has been undergoing tests as a source of energy for remote Coast Guard lighthouses. The report documents both the effects of operating the wind machine in the marine environment and the maintenance that it required. Design parameters and performance records of the generator are also evaluated. The HR2 is a horizontal-axis, upwind-oriented, three-bladed wind machine. It is equipped with a direct-drive system that allows the kinetic force captured by the propeller to be converted directly into rotational force driving the main shaft. The HR2 alternator and blade/hub system are allowed to tilt out of a near-vertical plane about a shaft and bearing mechanism. The VARCS is a torsion spring- and hinge-mechanism that acts against the lifting dynamics of the spinning blades. As high winds or gusts tilt the alternator about the hinge, the VARCS's spring opposes this force and regulates the blades angle of attack into the wind; the propeller's RPM drop when tilted because of the feathering action. If the wind subsides, the force of the VARCS spring drives the alternator assembly down and presents the blades back into the wind.
- Research Organization:
- Coast Guard Research and Development Center, Groton, CT (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 7182791
- Report Number(s):
- AD-A-174887/0/XAB; CGR/DC-9/86
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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