Dutch energy company Eneco is testing two new types of innovative serrated edges at Blaakweg Wind Farm in Oude-Tonge. Tests will prove whether (one of) these could further reduce noise emission from wind turbines.
One of the main noise sources in a wind turbine is the rear edge of the blade. The addition of owl feathers to the blade reduces the noise. Serrated edge are being added to the blade change to change noise emission. These edges are copied from nature. Owls have special feathers that allow them to approach their prey almost silently.
Serrated edges have been applied on wind turbines for some time, but development is not standing still. Eneco is testing two types of new, innovative serrated edges at the onshore wind farm Blaakweg in Oude-Tonge, which Eneco owns together with Coöperatie Deltawind. Blaakweg Wind Farm was completed at the end of 2020 and comprises 3 Nordex wind turbines.
For this purpose, the parties made one wind turbine available to Nordex. Two blades will each be fitted with one of the innovative owl feathers, while the third blade will remain unchanged. The new serrated edges are from MuTech and Nordex Group. During the test phase, it will be investigated whether these new serrated edges give better results than conventional ones. TNO and Delft University of Technology are also involved.
In the coming months, measurements will be taken at the park in all kinds of weather conditions. Depending on the outcome of the test, all three wind turbines in the wind farm will be equiped with innovative serrated edges. Further testing under different weather conditions will follow to test the total accoustic pressure of the wind turbine. Eneco and Deltawind ultimately hope that this will make the wind turbines a little quieter. Watch the video about this from Eneco.
