DFWind II (German Research Plattform for Wind Energy)

Wind turbines are an essential component of independent and sustainable energy supply. The supporting structures of these plants are mainly made of steel, which is constantly being further developed and optimized. The Institute of Steel Construction has already contributed to this with several research projects over the last two decades. In the interdisciplinary joint project DFWind, the Institute of Steel Construction is continuing this work and is instrumenting the steel tower of a wind turbine at the WiValdi research wind farm (forschungspark-windenergie.de) with extensive sensors and associated measurement technology. Further sensors and measurement technology in the foundation, nacelle and blades of the turbine will be installed by a broad-based and highly specialized project consortium. The aim of the joint project is to create a unique research infrastructure - consisting of three turbines, an IEC-Plus met mast and a met mast array - for at least 20 years. The project management of this ambitious project is in the hands of DLR, which is also involved with several institutes in the instrumentation of the wind turbine. In addition to the Institute of Steel Construction, numerous other partner institutes of the research association ForWind - Center for Wind Energy Research (forwind.de) from Hanover, Bremen and Oldenburg as well as the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems are involved in the instrumentation of the research wind turbines. For the Institute of Steel Construction, the wind turbines of the WiValdi wind park offer a unique opportunity to monitor support structures over several years and gain new insights into the service life time of steel structures. Follow-up projects are already being developed for this purpose.