JIP led by DNV changes the blade standard for larger wind turbines

Offshore workers

HABOUTVIK, Norway — DNV has updated its rotor blade standard DNV-ST-0376 in line with the development of wind turbines.

It is the result of joint industry collaboration to meet the evolving needs of wind turbine developers, owners and operators focused on improving reliability and performance.

The program addressed requirements for large, flexible blades for multi-megawatt turbines.

“Not all wind turbine blades are created equal,” said Christopher Harrison, DNV principal engineer and service line leader for component certification in the Energy Systems division. “Different design assumptions and methods, along with varying performance during validation testing, can result in different blade performance over their lifetime.”

Twenty-six companies, including manufacturers, operators and certification bodies, participated in the study to help refine and revise the standard. Main results include

• Increased reliability thanks to stringent requirements and approach;
• Alignment with international standards, supporting streamlined certification;
• Introducing new concepts such as fault tolerance to raise safety standards; AND
• Greater emphasis on design for manufacturing and understanding the relationship between manufacturing quality and reliability.

In addition, DNV has revised the blade standard to address the real-world failure modes and defects of large, flexible blades in multi-megawatt turbines, and has sought to align the standard’s requirements with IEC 61400-5, where possible, with input from other certification bodies.

“Our goal was to provide wind turbine stakeholders with the tools and knowledge necessary to deal with the complex issues associated with blade development,” Harrison said.

May 29, 2024