SELECTION OF JOINT DESIGN FOR A MODULAR WIND TURBINE BLADE

Abstract- Thermoplastic materials are being explored as a replacement for the widely used thermoset composites in turbine blade manufacturing. 40% carbon fiber filled PEEK (polyether ether ketone) is chosen as a thermoplastic candidate promising up to 27% weight reduction. Manufacturing one-piece injection molded 40–50 m thermoplastic blades presents many challenges. For this reason, joint design techniques are selected for the injection molded blade segments assembly. This research examines the flexure stiffness of Nylon 6/6 and PEEK CF40 double covered butt joints. Three different joining techniques are presented: adhesive bonding, riveting, and hybrid (combination of adhesive bonding and riveting). Flexure tests of the joints showed that hybrid joints result in a higher flexure modulus than adhesive bonding or riveting alone. The joining technique is a crucial parameter in blade manufacturing, as it is more important in determining the performance of the joint design than the stiffness of the substrate material Keywords -,t, , .