A study of transient magnetic fields in a wind turbine nacelle

When lightning strikes a wind turbine generator system, a current flows into the ground through the nacelle and the tower. The lightning current that flows through the grids of the nacelle and the down conductors in or on the blades sets up magnetic fields inside the nacelle. The magnetic fields induce a voltage in the communication and control circuits. This results in the breakdown or malfunction of the communication and control systems. This paper presents the study of magnetic fields in a nacelle due to a lightning stroke at the tip of the blade or the rear portion of the nacelle. The magnetic fields in the nacelle are analyzed using the FDTD (finite-difference time-domain) method, which is one of the techniques used for the analysis of electromagnetic fields.