WES Technical

The WES turbine is a durable and reliable midsize wind turbine that requires little maintenance and has a long life expectancy. The robust mechanical design of the turbine dates back to 1983. The electrical part (power conversion and control) has been fully upgraded since 2005 with the newest technology available. Key to the successful WES turbine design is the well balanced combination of technology with specific characteristics:

•    Two bladed rotor with passive pitch
•    A-synchronous generator
•    IGBT converter

The WES wind turbine does not need motors and/or computers driving the pitching or flapping angle of the rotor blades. In the WES turbine all blade angle and pitch adjustments are handled by a 100% mechanical control mechanism that uses proven spring and suspension technology. As a result the position of the WES turbine rotor blades is constantly optimized for the actual wind conditions. This is preferable, since wind is not constant not even on heights. The flapping technology of the blades reduces significantly the loads on the whole system of blades, rotor and gearbox, reducing the wear and tear to a minimum. The system works a bit like the springs and suspension in an car. Regardless of the road conditions, the springs and suspension make sure contact between a car and road is optimal.

The only electromotor in the nacelle of the WES wind turbine is the yaw motor. The yaw motor will steer the nacelle in the wind for maximum performance or steer the nacelle 120 degrees out of the wind ( parking position ) when the system is stopped.

The WES turbine generates electricity using an a-synchronous generator, the electricity is passed on to the grid through an IGBT converter. As a result, even short fluctuations in wind speed are used to generate electricity. At all times the WES wind turbine controls what frequency is offered to the grid. The WES wind turbine is designed to deliver its electrical energy to any ( weak ) grid and can even improve the power factor of the local grid.

Overall the WES turbine is a high performance, robust and reliable wind turbine that uses fluctuations in wind speed to produce even more electricity. The WES wind turbine has a mechanical design that significantly reduces forces and loads to tower, bearings, gearbox, rotor and blades. Because of this the WES turbine has a long life expectancy and needs little and simple maintenance.

The combination of successful mechanical design and state of the art IGBT technology make the WES wind turbine a high performance and extremely stable platform that outperforms any other turbine in this class.

Two bladed rotor with passive pitch.

A-synchronous generator ABB.

IGBT converters.