‘Grace’ is an E-3120 wind turbine owned by DC21, situated on an exceptionally windy site in West Yorkshire. Wind speeds at the site average at around 8.5m/s. As the site has previously destroyed two original E-3120 bedplates, it has proven to be an excellent testing ground for DC21 upgrades.
A recent brake failure put the DC21 upgrades to the test. Despite enduring forces that would have severely damaged a standard E-3120 bedplate and shaft, the turbine was quickly back in service. A complete non-destructive testing (NDT) survey of the turbine revealed no issues with the turbine. Condition monitoring also showed the turbine was in great condition before and after the brake failure.
Without the upgrades there could have been a major loss totalling over £100k and an extended period of outage.
Turbine Failures
One of the remaining frailties of the E-3120 turbine is the braking system. In this instance, the failure of the high-speed coupling led to damage to both brake calipers such that they were unable to clamp the brake disc when the control system attempted to stop the turbine.
As a result, the turbine had to be left over speeding until calm weather arrived and DC21 engineers could safely climb and make the wind turbine safe.
E-3120 Braking System Repairs
To put the turbine back into service, the braking system had to be repaired. Once complete, the whole turbine was subject to non-destructive testing. This showed no discoverable degradation to any of the turbine components, save for the yaw pinion that had broken teeth.
M-HAS Detection
In addition, the turbine is fitted with the Machine Health Assessment System (M-HAS) from Turner ICENI. This shows there has been no detectable degradation to the turbine from the Overspeed event. It should be noted that vibration sensors came loose during this event, making the vibrations appear worse.
From experience, it is expected that an original E-3120 bedplate would not have survived this event.
Endurance Wind Turbine E-3120 Upgrade and Repair Services
As highlighted, the robustness and longevity of the original shafts and bedplates can be problematic for Endurance E-3120 turbines. Therefore, DC21 has developed a solution for the bedplate based on technology from the aerospace and automotive sectors, demonstrated to reduce peak stresses by 77%. We have also designed a new shaft that eliminates the weaknesses of the original design.
Machine Health Assessment System (M-HAS) from Turner ICENI
M-HAS is a condition monitoring system collaboration between Turner ICENI and DC21. The system works by collecting data from multiple sensors within the wind turbine. The data is then processed in conjunction with supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software alerts are sent to Turner ICENI and DC21 if any developing problems are detected.
M-HAS is provided by DC21 on a 5-year lease.
Many Years’ Experience of Endurance Wind Turbine Repairs
DC21 Group has many years of experience in the repair and upgrading of Endurance Wind Turbines, bringing our technical knowledge and experience to the market for over 13 years.
We continue to develop and collaborate with other experts to provide our customers with the best services, including:
- Machine Health Assessment System (M-HAS).
- Non-destructive Testing (NDT) Surveys.
- Endurance E-3120 Bedplate Repair.
- E-3120 Low Speed Shaft (LSS) Upgrades.
We also provide a complete turbine overhaul package, with a budget based on work expected to be required to bring your Endurance E-3120 Turbine back in line with its expected performance.
For FREE advice or to book one of our services, contact us here or call today on +44 (0) 1484 702702
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