Morphing structural materials used in wind turbine blades

With growing demands for cleaner and more sustainable energy, there has been rapid development in the wind energy industry. This trend has led to an increase in the size of wind turbines, which could cause drawbacks such as increased stresses, more complex control systems, and more costly manufacturing and transportation. Due to their high aerodynamic efficiency, light weight, and structural simplicity, morphing structures have become of great interest in the renewable energy industry. Morphing structures are structural systems capable of shifting their geometric form across two or more stable configurations to achieve targeted engineering functionalities. Despite having many advantageous characteristics, there is a significant challenge with designing morphing structures; that is, the structure must be compliant to demand low actuation force, while being stiff for load-carrying purposes. One approach to addressing this issue is using composite materials with anisotropic properties or bistable/multistable behavior. Through an extensive review of the recent literature, this study aims to provide insights into the underlying structural concepts and mechanical properties of morphing structural materials and their viability and sustainability for wind turbine blade applications. • Geometric characteristics and mechanical properties of morphing structures are reviewed and analyzed. • The viability and sustainability of morphing structures for wind turbine blade applications are investigated. • Structural materials and composites commonly used in modern turbine blades are described and discussed.