shifts the speed reference signal of the inactive controller while the active one works to
avoid this problem.
• Minimum pitch Saturation: Near rated condition thrust force reaches its highest values,
since below rated wind speed is lower and above rated condition blade pitching reduces
that force. In order to limit the loads, this module defines a minimum value of blade
pitch angle which will be used as a saturation limit during control operations.
• Floating offshore wind turbine feedback: This module introduces a new term in the PI
blade pitch controller, with the aim of finding a gains’ value that reduces rotor angular
acceleration to increase the average extracted power and stabilize the structure.
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4. Methodology
The objective of this work is to perform a fatigue analysis on the blades of the IEA 15 MW
offshore reference wind turbine, supported by the semisubmersible structure platform, under
realistic load cases. A brief explanation of the methodology that will be followed in the next
chapters is given here:
Firstly, aeroelastic simulations are carried out under specific cases of external conditions (wind
speeds and sea states) to obtain the internal forces of the blade. Different cross sections of the
blade are selected to retrieve the internal cross-sectional forces and moments.
Then, using a postprocessor, each section is divided in multiple elements, in which the resulting
stresses due to the state of loading are calculated. For each of these elements the fatigue
analysis is carried out, where the equivalent damage accumulated after the load cycles is
calculated. The accumulated damage is used to estimate the life of the material, which allows
to understand the behaviour of the blade under the effects of fatigue and even to vary the design
of the blade to obtain a better response.
These steps will be further explained in the next chapters. Figure 21 represents a schematic
description of the workflow followed for structural blade analysis.
Figure 21. Schematic description of the workflow for structural analysis of the wind turbine
blades [16]
Starting from the geometrical model of the blade, a pre-processing phase is necessary to
generate the beam finite elements representing the blade in the aeroelastic analysis. To do so,
a series of cross sections along the blade are analysed and its geometry and properties are
retrieved (figure 22). The resulting is a beam finite elements model which is used to represent
the blades in the wind turbine assembly inside the aeroelastic analysis tool. Finally, based on the
cross-section forces and moments resulting from the aeroelastic simulations it is possible to
recover the detailed three-dimensional stress components, which are used to perform the
fatigue analysis.
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Figure 22. Methodology to account for 3D structural designs in 1D beam finite element models
[17]
This work covers the aeroelastic analysis and the post-processing of the results do the fatigue
analysis, as the first stages (design of the blade and pre-processing) are already defined. The
geometry, materials and internal structure of the blade are already known, and the work of the
pre-processor is mainly to compute, based on these quantities, the cross-section stiffness and
mass properties, which are then used in the aeroelastic analysis. The developers used SONATA
(Structural Optimization and Aeroelastic Analysis) [17], as the pre-processor.
For the aeroelastic analysis, Beamdyn [18] is used to get the internal forces and moments of the
cross sections. It works as a module inside OpenFAST [19].
For the Post-processing, BECAS (BEam Cross section Analysis Software) [20] was used. BECAS, a
finite element based cross section analysis tool, is a group of Matlab functions used for the
analysis of beam cross sections. It can be used either as a pre-processor, that is, for the
generation of beam finite element models in cross sections of arbitrary geometry; or as a post-
processor, to perform a stress and strain recovery of the cross-section elements, as it is used in
this work.
Wind turbine aeroelastic codes are commonly based on beam theory, as is the case for both
BeamDyn and BECAS, which allow for an accurate yet computationally inexpensive
representation of a general class of three-dimensional beam-like structures. The development
of beam models which accurately describe the behaviour of the blades is challenging, as modern
wind turbine blades feature complex geometry and a mix of different anisotropic materials.
Although 3D finite element models (shell or solid models) provide accurate results, they are
computationally expensive. On the other hand, beam models achieve a great level of accuracy
while being more computationally efficient (figure 23).
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Figure 23. Beam model (up) and shell model (down) of a wind turbine blade [16]
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5. Aeroelastic simulations
5.1. Understanding BeamDyn
The objective of the simulations is to retrieve the internal forces and moments of the blade
under a realistic set of load cases. Also, the deflection of the blade will be analysed to better
understand its behaviour. To do so, BeamDyn is used coupled into OpenFAST as the software
for the aeroelastic simulations. These tools allow to simulate the wind turbine in a dynamic time-
domain scenario. OpenFAST (previously called FAST v8) is a computer-aided engineering tool for
simulating the coupled dynamic response of wind turbines. It joins:
• Aerodynamics models, using wind-inflow data to compute the blade aerodynamic loads
(AeroDyn module)
• Hydrodynamics models, which simulate the incident waves (HydroDyn module)
• Control and electrical system dynamics models, to simulate the controller logic
• Structural dynamics models, which simulate the elasticity of the blades and support
structure applying the aerodynamic, hydrodynamic and gravitational loads (BeamDyn
and ElastoDyn modules)
There are modules to account also for the mooring system (MoorDyn), the tower and structure
motion (ElastoDyn) and wind distributions generation (Turbsim). The coupling between all
models is achieved through a glue code.
BeamDyn is based in the geometrically exact beam theory (GEBT), which supports full geometric
nonlinearity and large deflection (with bending, torsion, shear, and extensional degree-of-
freedom), anisotropic composite material couplings and a reference axis that permits blades
that are not straight, as it is the case of the 15 MW wind turbine blade. Figure 24 represents the
workflow of BeamDyn when coupled with OpenFAST (BeamDyn can also work in a stand-alone
version which will not be dealt with in this work).
Figure 24. Coupled interaction between BeamDyn and FAST [21]
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Loads are transferred between the different modules. From other modules, BeamDyn receives:
• The blade root node displacements (three translations and three rotations)
• The blade root node velocities (three translational and three rotational)
• The blade root node accelerations (three translational and three rotational)
With this variables, BeamDyn computes:
• The six reaction forces at the root (three forces and three moments)
• The blade displacements, velocities, and accelerations along the beam length
These displacements are then used in AeroDyn to compute the aerodynamic loads distributed
along the length of the blade, which are used in turn as input to BeamDyn to calculate the
internal reaction loads of the blade.
The output values can be requested by the user at a maximum of nine nodes among the
quadrature points (QPs), which are the points that BeamDyn uses internally to perform the
calculations and derive from the finite element nodes (FE nodes). These points range from the
blade root to the blade tip.
5.2. Input files
Two input files are used as input to BeamDyn to perform the simulations, which are explained
here.
5.2.1. Primary input file
Named “IEA-15-240-RWT_BeamDyn”, in this file the blade geometry is defined through a set of
key-point (kp) coordinates and initial twist angles. Each key point is defined by three physical
coordinates (“kp_xr”, “kp_yr” and “kp_zr”) in the IEC standard blade coordinate system,
where Zr is along blade axis from root to tip, Xr directs normally toward the suction side,
and Yr directs normally toward the trailing edge. The blade reference coordinate system is
represented in figure 25.
Figure 25. BeamDyn Blade Geometry - Top: Side View; Middle: Front View (Looking Downwind);
Bottom: Cross Section View (Looking Toward the Tip, from the Root) [21]
For each key point, a structural twist angle (“initial_twist” variable) is given. The structural twist
angle is also following the IEC standard which is defined as the twist about the negative Zl axis.
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