Investigation of shape memory alloy embedded wind turbine blades for the passive control of vibrations

This paper investigates hybridized architectures of large wind turbine blade material with the aim to passively suppress uncontrolled vibration. The laminate composite layup of the blade was hybridized by embedding shape memory alloy (SMA) layers, in areas which are recognized as having a major role in the dissipation of energy. The embedded SMA thin sheet was laser patterned in order to improve the interface adhesion and to tailor the flexural stiffness requirement. The response of the blade with new architecture has been investigated in the time domain, to find an optimal composite layup in which the smallest amount of SMA is used while system damping is being maximized.