Análise de fadiga em torres de aerogeradores de eixos horizontais de pequeno porte

Abstract

This work presents a fatigue analysis of the CGS3 tower used in small horizontal axis wind turbines, where this was done through the determination of loads on the structure, coming from the wind in a generic urban region of southern Brazil. The study aims to assess the applicability of the structure and serve as an incentive for the exploitation of wind energy in the country. The basis for this study after modeling the structure was an analysis using finite elements, where the loading conditions were dictated by the absence and presence of the average wind actions, determined from ABNT NBR 6123: 1988. This analysis is made based on the equivalent von Mises tension and the criterion of Modified Goodman's fatigue failure applied to guarantee a minimum life of twenty years, this study enabled a better understanding of the requests to which the structure will be subject and its behavior under such conditions. Therefore, through the necessary simulations and calculations, it was identified that the critical points of the structure presented safety coefficients for the fatigue and flow failure that guarantee a minimum required life and even an infinite life, even when it is exposed to conditions in other environments with high responsibility and low pressure loss, thus characterizing the applicability of the structure in the predetermined region.