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Transporting today’s increasingly long and heavy wind turbine blades is becoming more complex. Every step – from loading to ship and road transport to final installation – introduces mechanical loads that can cause damage if not fully understood. To make this process safer and more efficient, Fraunhofer IWES is developing advanced load-case analysis methods aimed at detecting risks early and feeding insights directly back into blade and handling-equipment design.

Why blade transport needs better monitoring

Wind turbine blades can reach lengths of 100 meters or more. During transport, they experience a combination of static and dynamic loads: shocks from uneven roads, torsional deformation during handling, pressure points from clamping systems, and cyclic stresses over long journeys. Existing transport processes often rely on experience and best practices – but without detailed measurements, potentially damaging load events can go unnoticed.

As rotor blades grow longer, they become more flexible and more sensitive to how clamping forces, contact pressures, and torsional loads are applied.

IWES approach: load-case analysis in scaled and full-scale testing

The first step in developing monitoring solutions is a thorough understanding of potential failure mechanisms and maximum allowable load values. To determine the blade behavior during transportation, Fraunhofer IWES performs both small-scale tests on critical blade subcomponents – especially the shear web segments – as well as full-scale test campaigns. Selected full-scale tests can also be carried out at the customer’s premises using Fraunhofer IWES test setups and measurement systems. The alternative would be to carry out the relevant tests after the certification test if the rotor blade is already at Fraunhofer IWES.

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The agreement includes the purchase of HP-RTM processing equipment and production scale demonstration tooling to enable the development of commercial thermoset composite applications. Extensive FEA and Moldflow analysis will be conducted in such applications as Battery Cases and Structural components with a goal to quantify the expected superior performance and processing advantages of Proxxima^TM resin systems versus traditional thermosets used in these applications. To accelerate the adoption of thermoset composites in mobility applications, a key focus of the project will be to significantly improve part manufacturing efficiency (e.g. cycle time).

ExxonMobil and Fraunhofer look forward to collaborating and involving members of the composite development community at the ICT facility.   

To learn more about Proxxima^TM products, The Next Generation of High Performance Polyolefin Thermosets please visit www.materia-inc.com or to learn more about collaboration opportunities in the Mobility market contact Daniel Bien: Daniel.x.bien(at)exxonmobil.com

To learn more about Fraunhofer ICT and its broad core competencies, capabilities and facilities available please visit  www.ict.fraunhofer.de/en.html

After years of use, many traction batteries still have a residual capacity of between 70 and 80 percent. While this may be too little for further use in vehicles, some cells could still serve well in large storage systems for households, businesses, or utility providers. Shredding used modules or entire high-voltage storage systems would thus waste valuable resources. By repairing and remanufacturing these batteries, not only can precious resources be preserved, but the lifespan of the components can also be extended. Cells that have been specifically refurbished and repurposed for new applications can be ready for long-term use again. Dr. Rico Schmerler and his team at Fraunhofer IWU, in collaboration with EDAG Production Solutions, are investigating how components and cells from traction batteries can be extracted efficiently and cost-effectively in a new project.

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Kanazawa, Japan / Augsburg, Germany - With the Fraunhofer Innovation Platform for Fibers, Processing and Recycling Solutions at Innovative Composite Center FIP-MIRAI@ICC, the Fraunhofer Institute for Casting, Composite and Processing Technology IGCV and the Innovative Composite Center (ICC), Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT) in Kanazawa area are setting new standards in the circular economy. With a total budget of 2 million euros - half funded by the Fraunhofer-Society and half by the ICC - the platform aims to develop solutions to global challenges in the field of composite recycling. A Fraunhofer Innovation Platform (FIP) is a temporary research unit hosted and operated by a research institution abroad, which is set up in close cooperation with one or more Fraunhofer Institutes in Germany. With “Mirai”, the Japanese word for “future”, the FIP-MIRAI@ICC sends out a clear signal: Waste is seen as a valuable resource and reused through new technologies. The aim is to create a forward-looking circular economy that guarantees sustainability for future generations. At the heart of the five-year cooperation (2025-2029) is a central location in Kanazawa area, which brings together researchers from the Fraunhofer IGCV and the ICC with companies, universities and customers.

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The longer the rotor blade, the greater the amount of adhesive required to bond the two blade shells together. Rotor blade manufacturers currently require around one tonne of adhesive for a rotor blade that is around 80 metres long, resulting in high costs. The scientists at Fraunhofer IWES have therefore utilised their experience from a decade of research into the manufacture of rotor blades and developed a solution that simplifies and improves the adhesive application process: the Variable Glue Applicator (VGA).

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Thanks to the support of WINDnovation GmbH, scientists now have access to a 13.4 m long mold for rotor blades at the BladeMaker research center for rotor blade production at the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES in Bremerhaven.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES is now able to produce prototypes of rotor blades with a length of 13.4 m, 31 m and 40 m to meet different requirements and budgets.

The research rotor blade production offers three main use cases:

1) Manufacturing rotor blades with artificial defects (e.g. folds) to study the impact of these imperfections on the structural behavior.

2) Development of automation solutions for rotor blade production.

3) Supporting material suppliers in the market introduction of new materials (e.g. core materials or resin systems).

The Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES makes its facilities available for research blade construction both for commercial R&D activities (contract research) and for publicly funded research projects.

Contact at Fraunhofer IWES: Dr. Steffen Czichon, Head of Department Rotor Blades. steffen.czichon@iwes.fraunhofer.de

Large and heavy components of land vehicles are to be made lighter and more sustainable in the future. This is the aim of the "ECO2-LInE" research project, which is being funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) as part of the Lightweight Construction Technology Transfer Program (TTP LB). Here, metal constructions are partially replaced by lightweight, natural fiber-reinforced plastic components. Experts from the Fraunhofer LBF have developed their own manufacturing process for the compounds in order to be able to produce them with long-term stability and weather resistance. It is a natural fiber-reinforced compound with special properties in terms of hydrophobicity and temperature stability, so that it can not only be processed in the SEAM process, but the components are also suitable for outdoor use.

The research team will be showing more about this at HANNOVER MESSE, Fraunhofer joint stand Hall 2, Stand B24.

Fiber-reinforced plastics or composites are widely used due to their lightweight construction potential, especially in the #automotive, #rail vehicles, #shipbuilding, #aviation and #wind energy sectors. The manufacturing process is demanding. A standardized process for quality assurance within the production and maintenance of composite components is therefore crucial.

The @Fraunhofer IFAM initiated a first step towards increasing composite quality by forming a consortium, which was registered and supported by DIN and developed a set of rules for the "Quality requirements for #fiber composite plastic processes" along the entire composites process chain.

Similar to the established welding and bonding standards, DIN SPEC 35255 also contains the three core elements: the classification of composite components according to safety requirements, the requirements for personnel competence and the safety proof that acting stresses do not exceed maximum bearable stresses.

Further information can be found here

Rolling bearings are installed wherever something is in rotation. The wide range of applications extends from large wind turbines to small electric toothbrushes. These bearings, which consist of steel components, must be carefully selected and tested with regard to their quality and the application in question. The grain size has a crucial effect on the mechanical properties of the steel. Up to now, the size of the microscopic crystallites has been assessed by metallographers by way of visual inspection — a subjective and error-prone method. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM, in collaboration with Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co. KG, have developed a deep learning model that enables objective and automated assessment and determination of the grain size.

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The Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES began its research into automated rotor blade production ten years ago with the launch of the "BladeMaker" project. The subsequent "BladeFactory" project will be completed this October and serves as an important occasion for the project team to look back on the results and identify future trends in rotor blade production together with project partners and guests from the wind energy industry and research. The BladeMaker project was funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) with around 8 million euros, the BladeFactory project with 9 million euros. The final conference took place on Tuesday with around 40 guests at ENIQ on the EUREF campus in Berlin.

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The Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck, the Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte, President of the Senate of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, and the Senator for Science and Ports of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Claudia Schilling, today inaugurated the new 115m+ rotor blade test rig at the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES in Bremerhaven. The new rotor blade test rig, the only one of its kind in the world, offers extensive testing facilities for rotor blades of over 115 meters. The construction of the test rig was funded by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Action (BMWK) with around 18 million euros and by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the state of Bremen and the European Regional Development Fund ERDF with around five million euros.

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The second location of the Fraunhofer IGCV in the Augsburg Innovation Park has now been inaugurated: around 140 guests from politics, industry and science celebrated the inauguration of the "Green Factory Augsburg". Regular research operations have been running there since February 2020. Postponed several times due to coronavirus, the ceremony finally took place on May 24, 2023 - and the main initiator, Prof. Gunther Reinhart, was given a fitting farewell.

Research abroad - expanding knowledge and maintaining international contacts:

Fraunhofer IGCV employees regularly conduct research as guests at renowned foreign universities and research institutions. In addition to academic networking, these lifelong contacts can also be very valuable for international project acquisition.

Everyone involved benefits from a stay abroad at international research institutions: the scientists, who network even more closely in their field; the host institution, which obtains specific expertise for a relevant field of research; and the Fraunhofer IGCV, which further expands its international profile and worldwide contacts through cooperation with renowned universities. After these stays could not take place in 2021 due to the pandemic, some doctoral students took the opportunity again in 2022 to spend several months on a research stay for further education and training purposes.

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Additive manufacturing of tools using a laser powder bed fusion process offers a great number of advantages: It is economical, precise and allows for customized solutions. That said, it can be difficult to determine the optimal process parameters, such as the scan speed or power of the laser. For the first time, researchers at Fraunhofer are now simulating the process at the microstructure level in order to identify direct correlations between the workpiece properties and the selected process parameters. To do this, they are combining a number of different simulation methods.

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