At the ICOLSE 2022 conference in Madrid, we presented two new studies based on lightning data from LKDS®:
- Investigation of Weather Conditions Leading to Different Types of Lightning Strikes Measured in Wind Turbine Blades
- Wind Turbine Blade LPS Design Process Revisited – Leveraging on Latest Knowledge From Actual Lightning Measurements in Wind Turbines
Reach out to our lightning specialist, Søren F. Madsen, to get a copy of the two publications.
Highlights
The presented studies sparked great discussions within the expert group attending the conference. Here are the highlights of the discussions:
- Experts agreed that lightning monitoring is crucial to do targeted maintenance of wind turbines – and monitoring should be compliant with the recommendations in the future Annex L of IEC 61400-24.
- Various research institutions specialized in lightning and atmospheric physics agreed on collaborations using LKDS® as the ground truth reference to aid fundamental understanding of lightning phenomena.
- There is a wide consensus that “non-business-critical” information should be shared within the industry. An example of this could be lightning waveforms, which give us a fundamentally better understanding of what we are all facing.
- We need to challenge the established standards with wind turbine-specific lightning parameters.
If you know the characteristics of the lightning that strikes the turbine, you can more accurately design reliable blades and lightning protection systems and carry out predictive maintenance. And as wind turbines are more prone to lightning strikes than static towers, we must ensure that all installations withstand even the most extreme strikes.
Thanks to all who joined us at the ICOLSE 2022 conference and for the great discussions we had on lightning protection of wind turbines.