Materials for Turbine Power Blades, Reinforcements, and Resins - Hybrid Anisotropic Materials for Wind Power Turbine Blades - page 75

“At. lower. wind. speeds,. weight-saving. Ultrablade. fabric. solutions. can.
help. increase. a. blade's. aerodynamic. lift,. torque,. and. energy. output.. The.
end. result. will. be. higher. annual. energy. production. from. optimized. blade.
designs.using.high-performance.fabrics,”.according.to.Skinner.
The.company.is.using.distinctive.pink.stitching.to.market.the.product.to.
buyers.familiar.with.the.“Pink.Panther”.Owens.Corning.iberglass.insulation.
Although. turbine. blades. have. been. getting. longer,. they. must. be. sleek,.
light,.and.resilient.to.wear.and.tear.as.they.spin.through.the.wind..Owens.
Corning.claims.that.its.Ultrablade.fabric.treated.with.epoxy.resin.can.help.
improve.blade.aerodynamics.and.strength.without.sacriicing.length.

3.7.2 Film Layer Protects Wind Turbine Blades

against Electromagnetic Fields

Special.lightning.current.can.generate.electromagnetic.ields.around.a.wind.
turbine.to.which.sensitive.electronic.equipment,.e.g.,.microcontrollers,.may.
be.exposed..Thus,.the.electromagnetic.ield.may.cause.signiicant.damage.to.
the.electronic.equipment.due.to.electromagnetic.induction.of.the.current.in.
the.equipment,.which.can.result.in.a.malfunction.of.the.wind.turbine.
The.invention 31. .relates.to.a.wind.turbine.comprising.a.rotating.part.includ-
ing.a.rotor.with.at.least.one.blade.and.a.wind.turbine.hub.with.at.least.one.
enclosure.structure.or.similar.wall.structure,.and.a.stationary.part.including.
a. nacelle. with. at. least. one. enclosure. structure. or. similar. wall. structure.. At.
least.one.of.the.parts.comprises.a.conductive.ilm.layer.of.the.enclosure.struc-
ture.with.connection.to.a.ground.potential.where.the.ilm.layer.forms.a.shield.
enclosing.the.part.or.parts.and.protects.against.electromagnetic.ields..The.
invention.also.relates.to.a.method.to.manufacture.the.enclosure.structure. 30,31

3.7.3 Painting of Wind Turbines

With.the.standard.painting.of.wind.turbines.white,.this.could.be.attracting.
vast.numbers.of.insects,.which,.in.turn,.attract.birds.and.bats..A.new.study.
has. suggested. that. painting. wind. turbines. purple. would. stop. the. blades.
from.attracting.and.killing.thousands.of.bats.and.birds.each.year. 32
It.has.long.been.known.that.wind.turbines.attract.vast.numbers.of.insects,.
which. in. turn. bring. larger. predators. within. range. of. the. spinning. blades..
Now,. scientists. have. discovered. that. the. color. of. the. turbines. themselves.
could.make.a.huge.difference.to.the.number.of.insects.that.are.attracted.to.
it..The.study,.carried.out.by.PhD.students.from.Loughborough.University.in.
the.United.Kingdom,.analyzed.how.the.color.of.a.wind.turbine.inluences.
the. number. of. insects. that. are. attracted. to. it.. They. laid. colored. cards. in. a.
random. sequence. next. to. a. 13. m-high,. three-blade. wind. turbine. situated.
in.a.meadow.near.Leicestershire..They.found.that.while.most.turbines.are.
painted. pure. white. or. light. grey. to. blend. in. with. the. surroundings,. these.
colors.are.extremely.attractive.to.insects.