Validation of robotic inspection and maintenance of offshore wind turbine blades

The UK leads the world in installed offshore wind capacity, and will need to increase from 9GW today to at least 75GW to reach the UK's net zero target by 2050\. This will push wind farms further offshore, entering deeper waters and operating in more extreme conditions. Key issues for operations and maintenance in the offshore wind sector are the safety of personnel and the costs involved in sending specialised technicians to perform individual tasks.

Offshore wind turbines operate in harsh environments such as the North Sea. The tip speeds of wind turbine blades can exceed 200mph, allowing particulates in the air such as rain and dust to wear away the surface of a blade's leading edge, in a phenomenon known as leading edge erosion. This subsequently alters the blade's aerodynamic shape, reducing its efficiency and exposing it to further and more serious damage, thereby reducing its working life. In addition, the blades require periodic inspections to ensure safety critical features such as the lightning protection system and drain holes are functioning correctly and any other damage is identified and treated.

Maintaining blades in the offshore wind sector is an expensive and challenging job where teams of highly-skilled rope access technicians are required to carry out these repairs.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the challenges of maintaining offshore wind turbines and other critical infrastructure with restrictions of personnel working in close proximity.

BladeBUG has successfully proven the concept and developed a working prototype of their inspection, maintenance and repair robot. In this project, the team will continue its work with the ORE Catapult to validate the BladeBUG robotic system designed specifically to carry out a number of these detailed inspections and repetitive repairs of wind turbine blades in front of potential customers.

The ability to perform these tasks remotely will increase the time spent by skilled rope access technicians on specialist repairs or larger upgrades to blades. The net result will allow both the repair of a greater number of blades over the same period, as well as an increased quality of repair across all turbines. The electrical output of windfarms will increase and therefore so will revenues to turbine owners and the environmental benefit in CO2 savings.