Numerical and experimental analysis of the lightning transient behavior of electric heating deicing control system of wind turbine blade

• The electric heating material on the blade surface will lead to lightning strike fault in the electric heating control system. • The control system needs to pay attention to the influence of induction lightning. • In this paper, we established a lightning transient simulation model for a wind turbine with an electric heating deicing system. • The signal line with shielding layer and surge protective devices can effectively reduce the induced overvoltage. To minimize ice accretion-related shutdowns, the current method involves the installation of electric heating materials on the blade surfaces for deicing. However, the use of electric heating materials on the blades increases the likelihood of lightning strikes, leading to failures in the electric heating control system. Currently, the lightning transient response characteristics and protection methods of the blade electric heating control system are not clear. To address these issues, in this paper, we established a lightning transient simulation model for a wind turbine with an electric heating deicing system. We calculated the amplitude-frequency response characteristics of lightning overvoltage at the ports of the electric heating deicing control system, analyzed the effects of signal line shielding methods, lengths and types of surge protective devices on the overvoltage at the deicing control system ports, and verified the findings experimentally. The results show that the main frequency of lightning-induced voltage on the signal lines under lightning strikes is 0.5–1.8 MHz. With a 100 kA lightning current, the overvoltage amplitude at the port of the unshielded deicing control circuit reaches 807 V, far exceeding the withstand voltage of the components. After employing dual shielding layers with double-end grounding for the signal lines, the overvoltage amplitude at the control circuit port is limited to 87 V, effectively reducing the overvoltage at the deicing system port. This can serve as an important method of induced lightning protection for the deicing control circuit of wind turbine blade.