Design of a Flexible Icing Monitoring Sensor with Dielectric Shift

Micro-topography and micro-meteorological conditions have a significant impact on the operation of wind turbines in winter, especially the issue of blade icing. Icing not only reduces power generation efficiency but also leads to uneven mass distribution of the blades due to the added ice layer, resulting in asymmetric loads. This can trigger mechanical failures and ultimately cause equipment downtime. Currently, assessing the icing condition of blades mainly relies on changes in the power curve of wind turbines under specific climatic conditions and adjusting the operation strategy of the wind turbines. However, since changes in the power curve are influenced by various factors, directly observing the icing condition of the blades is difficult, increasing the risk of misjudgment. To address this issue, this paper proposes a novel icing monitoring sensor for wind turbine blades. The sensor is designed to be installed on the surface of the blades, featuring self-power generation, wireless transmission, and flexibility, enabling real-time monitoring of the increase and decrease of the ice layer on the blade surface.