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Green Building Bible, Fourth Edition
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Renewable Energy: Proven 2.5 wind turbine

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  1.  
    • CommentAuthorGBP-Keith
    • CommentTimeDec 26th 2014 edited
     
    Hi.my turbine has suddenly taken it upon itself to start triggering the trickle dump which is built onto the top of the controller box and it is triggering at very low voltage-about 25.5 volts. Has anyone else come across this phenomena? I'm wondering if it is a result of the lightning storms at the end of November. The lightning wrecked my tracker too.
  2.  
    i don't know about the proven turbines but i work on endurance turbines and lightning strike near can clause stuff to get damaged. also if it has hit the grid supply to your house it could have spiked.
    • CommentAuthorCWatters
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2014
     
    ...so perhaps not a good idea to put them on high ground after all?
  4.  
    It is exactly the same with larger turbines. They very often cope with strikes but now and then it can damage components, split blades etc.
    I have seen one strike and the turbine did not even stop.
    • CommentAuthorEd Davies
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2014
     
    Lighting can vary tremendously. About a decade ago a helicopter was struck (over the North Sea, I think) and destroyed which was, in both senses, a bit of a shock as it was thought to be able to survive such things. While they were scratching their heads over that one a glider was struck at the London Gliding Club near Dunstable. Gliders are less likely to survive a direct strike but still the amount of damage was surprising [¹]. Lots more investigation including putting the wing of a written off glider in the test rig used by the electricity board to test pylons and things for lightning strikes. The general conclusion was that most lightning strikes are well within the bounds which the aircraft certifications require survival for but a small proportion are a lot more powerful - about 6 times, IIRC.

    Wouldn't completely amaze me if this A320 they're picking bits of up now turns out to be related.

    [¹] Instructor and pupil bailed out successfully and got away with only fairly minor injuries.
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeDec 31st 2014
     
    Posted By: Ed DaviesInstructor and pupil bailed out successfully and got away with only fairly minor injuries.
    I met one of them at a pub called The Red Lion at Marsworth, don't remember which one though (instructor I think).
    The Ballooning Club of Great Britain used to be administered by a neighbour of my parents, was a fun day when the Christmas Eve flight took out the local powerline. They all got a free meal at the pub that Cameron left his daughter at though.
    • CommentAuthorEd Davies
    • CommentTimeJan 2nd 2015
     
    Accident report for that glider, with lots of details of the lightning effects vs what aircraft were then certified against:

    http://www.aaib.gov.uk/publications/bulletins/december_1999/schleicher_500699.cfm
    • CommentAuthorCWatters
    • CommentTimeJan 3rd 2015
     
    I used to fly gliders. Lots of interesting stuff in that report including...

    The lack of lightning related damage, particularly to the airbrake operating mechanism, indicated that the strike was likely to have been of positive polarity.


    I've no idea why the polarity of the lightning would make a difference. Anyone understand that?
    • CommentAuthorEd Davies
    • CommentTimeJan 3rd 2015
     
    Yes, I didn't think that was made clear but I assume that they mean that a positive strike is a single large pulse so would take one path whereas negative strikes consist of multiple smaller pulses over a long period of time so would likely find more paths through the structure.
    • CommentAuthorCWatters
    • CommentTimeJan 4th 2015 edited
     
    That would make sense.

    This was the other interesting comment..

    <blockquote>The Action Integral energy level of this strike was assessed, by test and calculation, to have been at least some 8 to 9 fold higher than the Action Integral level specified in Advisory Circular AC 20-53A which lightning certificated aircraft are currently required to tolerate with minimal damage. </blockquote>

    Might even have relevance to other aircraft accidents where storms are involved, including the one in the news at the moment.
    • CommentAuthorGBP-Keith
    • CommentTimeJan 5th 2015
     
    Thanks for the feedback. The November lightning has affected stuff all over my property in some small way - including a number of my renewables kit. the strike was on a pole about 500 yards away.

    What i have done with this proven is completely disable the trickle charge and full power dumploads that are part of the control box and it all seems fine again now. I have massive batteries and three stable AC dump loads connected that still operate fine at at the correct voltages so I see no need to try to get the Proven bits fixed or replaced right now.

    I'm more worried about my tracker and the panels on that. It seems to be very kaputt! (see my other recent thread.)

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