JP5992176B2 - Wind power generator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a wind turbine generator, and more particularly to a tower internal device and a tower air cooling system that are preferably used in a wind turbine generator installed on the ocean.

  A wind turbine generator is a device that converts wind energy into mechanical energy by a windmill rotor having blades, and converts wind energy into electrical energy by driving a generator with the mechanical energy. Generally, a main bearing, a speed increaser, a generator, and a control panel are installed in a nacelle of a wind power generator. The main bearing rotatably supports the wind turbine rotor. The speed increaser transmits the rotation of the wind turbine rotor to the rotor of the generator while increasing the number of rotations. When the rotor is rotated, the generator generates electric power.

  Various equipment is also installed in the tower of the wind turbine generator. Examples of the equipment provided in the tower include an inverter, a transformer, and a control panel. Inverters and transformers are used to convert the frequency and voltage of power generated by the generator.

  Equipment provided in the tower includes equipment that generates a large amount of heat. For example, since a large current flows through the inverter connected to the generator and the transformer connected to the inverter, the amount of heat generated by the inverter and the transformer is large.

  In order to cool the equipment provided in the tower, generally, outside air is introduced into the tower, and the inside equipment of the tower is cooled using the outside air. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the configuration of the wind turbine generator 101 having such a configuration. The wind power generation apparatus 101 of FIG. 1 is configured to perform offshore wind power generation (offshore wind turbine), and a tower 103 is erected on a tower foundation 102 provided on the sea. A stairs 104 and a tower door 105 that are used for workers to enter the tower 103 are attached to the lower part of the tower 103. Inside the tower 103, a transformer device 111 and an inverter 107 are provided. The transformer device 111 is provided with a transformer coil 106, and the inverter 107 is provided with an IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors) module 121.

  The transformer coil 106 of the transformer device 111 and the IGBT module 121 of the inverter 107 are components that generate a large amount of heat. It is not sufficient to ventilate the surroundings of the device and naturally cool it, and it is necessary to forcibly cool it. In the wind power generator 101 of FIG. 1, the transformer coil 106 and the IGBT module 121 are cooled using outside air taken from outside the tower 103.

  The transformer coil 106 of the transformer device 111 is air-cooled using the outside air taken into the tower 103. Specifically, the housing of the transformer device 111 is provided with an intake port 112 and an exhaust port 113, and a fan 114 is provided inside the housing. When the fan 114 operates, the air inside the tower 103 is taken in from the air inlet 112 and the transformer coil 106 is forcibly cooled.

  On the other hand, the IGBT module 121 of the inverter 107 is forcibly cooled by an antifreeze liquid cooling system 122 that uses an antifreeze liquid as a refrigerant. The antifreeze cooling system 122 includes a heat exchanger 123 and a pump 124. The heat exchanger 123 cools the antifreeze by exchanging heat between the air inside the tower 103 and the antifreeze. The pump 124 supplies the cooled antifreeze liquid to the IGBT module 121. The antifreeze is supplied to the IGBT module 121 so that the IGBT module 121 is cooled. On the other hand, the antifreeze liquid is heated by removing heat from the IGBT module 121. The heated antifreeze is returned to the heat exchanger 123 and cooled again.

  The problem with the cooling technique shown in FIG. 1 is that the outside air contains salt that damages internal equipment. This problem is particularly serious in wind power generators that perform offshore wind power generation. The outside air in the vicinity of wind power generators that perform offshore wind power generation contains a large amount of salt, and the relative humidity is often 60-80% on average, often close to 100%.

  A conventional method for dealing with this problem is to provide a louver 108 and a filter 109 at an intake port for taking in the outside air, and to take the outside air into the tower 103 through the louver 108 and the filter 109. However, the louver 108 cannot completely prevent the intrusion of the seawater splash into the tower 103. The filter 109 used for salt removal needs to be replaced at an appropriate frequency (for example, once or twice a year). This means that regular manned maintenance is required and increases running costs.

  In addition, in the cooling technique of FIG. 1, high-temperature exhaust due to heat radiation from the internal equipment of the tower 103 moves upward from the tower and reaches a nacelle (not shown) at the top of the tower 103. This raises the air temperature in the nacelle, leading to an increase in the temperature of equipment provided in the nacelle, increasing the cooling load of the cooling system in the nacelle, and reducing the equipment life in the nacelle.

  In order to solve such a problem, a method is desired in which the service life of the equipment provided inside the tower and the cooling of the equipment inside the tower and air are compatible.

  As a method that can be related to the present invention, International Publication WO 2011/0996080 A1, US Pat. Nos. 7,168,251 and 7,748,946 are heat exchangers for exchanging heat between outside air and liquid refrigerant. Is disclosed. Equipment provided inside the tower of the wind turbine generator is cooled by the liquid refrigerant. However, these patents do not teach teaching the cooling of the air inside the tower.

International Publication WO2011 / 0996080A1 US Patent No. 7,168,251 US Pat. No. 7,748,946

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a method capable of achieving both the extension of the life of the equipment provided inside the tower and the cooling of the equipment inside the tower and air.

  In an embodiment of the present invention, a wind turbine generator includes a tower, a first heat exchange unit, a device provided in a device installation space inside the tower, and a second heat exchange unit provided in the device installation space. It has. The first heat exchange unit cools the liquid refrigerant by exchanging heat between the liquid refrigerant and the fluid medium outside the tower. The liquid refrigerant cooled by the first heat exchange unit is supplied to the second heat exchange unit and the device. The second heat exchanging unit cools the air in the device installation space by exchanging heat between the supplied liquid refrigerant and the air in the device installation space of the tower.

  In one embodiment, the tower is provided with a partition wall that separates an upper space and a lower space, and the lower space may be used as an equipment installation space. In this case, it is preferable that the second heat exchange unit is provided in the vicinity of the partition wall. Such a configuration is particularly effective when an air-cooled device is provided in the device installation space.

  In one embodiment, outside air outside the tower is used as the fluid medium for heat exchange with the liquid refrigerant. In this case, in one embodiment, the wind turbine generator is provided with a duct provided so as to pass through the inside of the tower, and the internal space is separated from the equipment installation space. The duct is provided in the interior space and takes in outside air and supplies it to the first heat exchange unit.

  In other embodiments, seawater or fresh water such as lake water, river water, or ground water is used as the fluid medium for heat exchange with the liquid refrigerant.

  In one embodiment, the wind power generator is further provided with a line for supplying liquid refrigerant from the first heat exchange unit to the second heat exchange unit and the device, and the second heat exchange unit is directly connected to the line. It may be configured as a joined plate-like fin member.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the technique which can make the lifetime improvement of the apparatus provided in the inside of a tower and cooling of the apparatus and air inside a tower compatible is provided.

It is a figure which shows the example of the structure of the lower part of the tower of a wind power generator. It is a side view showing composition of wind power generator 1 of one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the structure of the lower part of the tower in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the structure of the lower part of the tower in 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the structure of the lower part of the tower in the modification of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the structure of the lower part of the tower in the modification of 2nd Embodiment.

First embodiment:
FIG. 2 is a side view showing the configuration of the wind turbine generator 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The wind power generator 1 includes a tower foundation 2, a tower 3, a nacelle 4, and a windmill rotor 5.
In the present embodiment, the wind power generator 1 is configured to perform offshore wind power generation, and the tower foundation 2 is provided such that a part thereof is in the sea. The tower 3 is erected on the tower foundation 2. The nacelle 4 is mounted on the upper end of the tower 3 so as to be turnable. The wind turbine rotor 5 includes a hub 6 and a wind turbine blade 7 and is rotatably held by the nacelle 4. Inside the nacelle 4, devices (such as a speed increaser and a generator) that generate electric power from the rotation of the wind turbine rotor 5 are provided. In the vicinity of the lower end of the tower 3, a staircase 8 and a tower door 9 are provided. The stairs 8 and the tower door 9 are used for a worker to enter the inside of the tower 3.

  FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the configuration of the wind turbine generator 1 in the lower part of the tower 3. Inside the tower 3, a transformer device 11 and an inverter 12 are provided. The transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 are used for converting the frequency and voltage of power generated by the generator mounted on the nacelle 4. The transformer device 11 is provided with a transformer coil 13, and the transformer device 11 performs voltage conversion using the transformer coil 13. The inverter 12 is provided with an IGBT module 17 on which a plurality of IGBTs are mounted. The inverter 12 performs frequency conversion using the IGBT module 17.

  The transformer device 11 is placed on the floor 18, and the inverter 12 is provided on the floor 19 located above the floor 18. The floor 19 is provided with a large number of openings so that air can flow between the upper side and the lower side. A partition wall 20 is provided above the floor 19. The partition wall 20 is provided so as to divide the internal space of the tower 3 into a space above it and a space below it. A device installation space is formed inside the tower 3 by the floor 18 and the partition wall 20, and the transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 are provided in the device installation space. However, the partition wall 20 is not configured to be completely airtight between the space below and the space above because there are parts that pass therethrough such as a power cable and a ladder.

  As described above, the transformer coil 13 of the transformer device 11 and the IGBT module 17 of the inverter 12 are components that generate large amounts of heat and need to be forcibly cooled. In the wind power generator 1 of this embodiment, the transformer apparatus 11 and the inverter 12 are forcibly cooled using outside air outside the tower 3 as a low-temperature fluid medium. However, in this embodiment, the transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 are forcibly cooled without taking outside air outside the tower 3 into the tower 3. Hereinafter, a cooling system used for forced cooling of the transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 will be described.

  The transformer device 11 is a mold transformer using an epoxy resin or the like as an insulating material, and is air-cooled using air inside the tower 3. Specifically, the housing of the transformer device 11 is provided with an intake port 14 and an exhaust port 15, and a fan 16 is provided inside the housing. When the fan 16 operates, air inside the tower 3 is taken in from the air inlet 14 and the transformer coil 13 is forcibly cooled.

  In addition, a duct 21 that connects the outside air inlet 23 and the outside air outlet 24 is installed inside the tower 3, and an integrated heat exchanger 22 is provided inside the duct 21. Thus, since the integrated heat exchanger 22 is installed in the tower and is not exposed to the outside air containing a large amount of salt, corrosion of the heat exchanger and the fan motor provided in the heat exchanger is suppressed. Therefore, the lifetime can be extended as compared with the case where the integrated heat exchanger 22 is disposed outside the tower. The duct 21 is provided so as to pass through the inside of the tower 3. The duct 21 is a pipe line that takes in outside air from the outside air inlet 23 and supplies the outside air to the integrated heat exchanger 22, and discharges air from the integrated heat exchanger 22 from the outside of the tower 3 through the outside air outlet 24. Here, it should be noted that the internal space of the duct 21 (the space in which the integrated heat exchanger 22 is provided) is separated from the internal space of the tower 3.

  The integrated heat exchanger 22 is provided with an antifreeze liquid line 25, which is a conduit for supplying the antifreeze liquid to the IGBT module 17 and returning the antifreeze liquid from the IGBT module 17 to the integrated heat exchanger 22. The integrated heat exchanger 22 performs heat exchange between the antifreeze liquid flowing in the antifreeze liquid line 25 and the outside air to cool the antifreeze liquid. The antifreeze liquid flowing through the antifreeze liquid line 25 is used as a liquid refrigerant for cooling the IGBT module 17.

  The antifreeze liquid line 25 is provided with an antifreeze liquid pump 27 and a heat exchanger 28 in the tower. The air temperature in the tower is generally around 50 to 60 ° C. because it is in the vicinity of the electrical product, and must be controlled to a temperature lower than that of the IGBT. For this reason, it is desirable to arrange the tower heat exchanger on the upstream side (integrated heat exchanger side) of the IGBT module and supply a refrigerant having a temperature lower than that of the IGBT module 17. The antifreeze liquid pump 27 pumps the antifreeze liquid output from the integrated heat exchanger 22 to the heat exchanger 28 in the tower. In FIG. 3, the antifreeze pump 27 is provided between the integrated heat exchanger 22 and the tower heat exchanger 28, but the antifreeze pump 27 may be provided at any position on the antifreeze line 25. The heat exchanger 28 in the tower is attached to the lower part of the partition wall 20 in the vicinity of the partition wall 20. The tower heat exchanger 28 has a function of performing heat exchange between the antifreeze supplied to the tower and the air inside the tower 3 to cool the air in the space below the partition wall 20.

  The cooling system configured as described above has the following advantages. First, the equipment can be cooled without introducing outside air into the tower 3. The outside air of the wind power generator 1 that performs offshore wind power generation as in this embodiment includes a large amount of salt, and the relative humidity is 60 to 80% on average, sometimes close to 100%, and higher than the land. In this embodiment, since the cooling of the equipment can be realized without introducing such outside air into the tower 3, the equipment inside the tower 3 is prevented from being corroded and damaged, and the life of the equipment is extended and the reliability is improved. It is effective for.

  Furthermore, if a salt-resistant heat exchanger is employed as the integrated heat exchanger 22, there is no need to arrange a louver and a filter for removing salt particles and salt water contained in the outside air on the intake port 23 side of the duct 21. Therefore, it is effective in reducing maintenance costs.

  In addition, in the configuration of the cooling system of the present embodiment, the air inside the tower 3 is cooled by the heat exchanger 28 in the tower, so that the cooling load of the air cooling system provided inside the tower 3 and the nacelle 4 is reduced. be able to. At this time, natural convection is generated by cooling the air below the partition wall 20 by the heat exchanger 28 in the tower, in particular, an air cooling device (in this embodiment, provided in a space below the partition wall 20). This is useful for improving the cooling efficiency of the transformer device 11). Natural convection causes the air in the space below the partition 20 to flow, and lowers the temperature of the air taken into the air-cooling device below the partition 20. This is beneficial for improving the cooling efficiency of air cooling equipment such as a control panel (not shown) provided in the equipment installation space below the partition wall 20.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the partition wall 20 is generated when the air heated by the device (the transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 in the present embodiment) located below the partition wall 20 moves upward on the nacelle side. Block air sensible heat transport. Thereby, the fall of the cooling efficiency of the apparatus located above the partition 20 inside the tower 3, and the apparatus mounted in the nacelle 4, and the increase in the cooling load of the cooling system in a nacelle can be suppressed. For this reason, it is desirable that the heat exchanger 28 in the tower is installed on the upper end side so as to promote the flow of air by natural convection in the equipment installation space in the tower.

Second embodiment:
FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing the configuration of the wind turbine generator 1 in the lower part of the tower 3 in the second embodiment of the present invention. Note that in FIG. 4, the same components as those in FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals. As shown in FIG. 4, in the second embodiment, the equipment provided inside the tower 3 is cooled using seawater instead of outside air.

  More specifically, the wind power generator 1 is provided with a seawater line 31, an integrated heat exchanger 32, a filter 33, a seawater pump 34, and a biofouling prevention device 35. The seawater line 31 is a pipeline that takes in seawater from a water intake 36 in the sea, supplies the seawater to the integrated heat exchanger 32, discharges the seawater from the integrated heat exchanger 32 from the discharge port 37, and returns it to the sea. The filter 33 and the seawater pump 34 are provided between the inlet of the integrated heat exchanger 32 and the water intake 36. The filter 33 protects the seawater line 31, the integrated heat exchanger 32, and the seawater pump 34 by removing foreign substances contained in the seawater. The seawater pump 34 pumps the seawater taken from the intake 36 to the integrated heat exchanger 32. The biofouling prevention device 35 supplies a seawater line 31, an integrated heat exchanger 32, a filter 33, and a seawater pump 34 by supplying a chemical (for example, hypochlorous acid) for preventing the adhesion of a living organism to the seawater line 31. Prevents organisms from attaching to the

  In the present embodiment, the integrated heat exchanger 32 performs heat exchange between the antifreeze liquid flowing in the antifreeze liquid line 25 and the seawater to cool the antifreeze liquid. Similar to the first embodiment, the antifreeze liquid flowing through the antifreeze liquid line 25 is used as a liquid refrigerant for cooling the IGBT module 17. In addition, the antifreeze liquid flowing through the antifreeze liquid line 25 is used to cool the air inside the tower 3 in the heat exchanger 28 in the tower. Also in the second embodiment, the tower heat exchanger 28 is attached to the lower part of the partition wall 20 in the vicinity of the partition wall 20.

  In the second embodiment, since seawater is used as a low temperature source, the equipment can be cooled without introducing outside air into the tower 3. Cooling the equipment without introducing outside air into the tower 3 is effective for suppressing the corrosion and damage of the equipment inside the tower 3 and extending the life and reliability of the equipment. Also in the configuration of the cooling system of the present embodiment, the air inside the tower 3 is cooled by the heat exchanger 28 in the tower, so that it is provided inside the tower 3 and the nacelle 4 as in the first embodiment. The cooling efficiency of the air cooling device can be improved.

  In this embodiment, seawater is used as a low-temperature source, but the type of water is not limited, and fresh water such as lake water, river water, and groundwater may be used as a low-temperature source.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been specifically described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be implemented with various modifications. For example, in the above-described embodiment, various devices having a function of performing heat exchange can be used as the heat exchanger 28 in the tower. More specifically, the tower fin 28 </ b> A may be attached to the antifreeze liquid line 25 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. For example, a metal pipe (for example, a steel pipe) is used as the antifreeze line 25, and the tower fin 28A is preferably formed as a metal plate-like fin member directly connected to the pipe. According to such a configuration, a heat path is formed from the fins 28A in the tower to the antifreeze liquid by the metal member that is a good heat conductive material, so that heat can be effectively transferred from the antifreeze liquid to the fins in the tower. The cooling efficiency of internal air can be improved. Moreover, since the heat exchanger in a tower is not used, cost reduction is also possible.

  In the above-described embodiment, the cooling system that cools the transformer device 11 and the inverter 12 is described. However, the present invention is applicable to an arbitrary device such as an electric control panel or an operation panel provided in the tower 3. Applicable for cooling.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the antifreeze liquid is used as the liquid refrigerant, but other liquid refrigerant, for example, oil may be used for cooling the equipment provided in the tower 3.

  Moreover, although the wind power generator 1 which performs offshore wind power generation was described in the above-mentioned embodiment, this invention may be applied to wind power generators other than the wind power generator which performs offshore wind power generation.

1: Wind power generator 2: Tower foundation 3: Tower 4: Nacelle 5: Windmill rotor 6: Hub 7: Windmill blade 8: Stairs 9: Tower door 11: Transformer device 12: Inverter 13: Transformer coil 14: Inlet 15: Exhaust Port 16: Fan 17: IGBT module 18, 19: Floor 20: Partition 21: Duct 22: Integrated heat exchanger 23: Outside air inlet 24: Outside air outlet 25: Antifreeze liquid line 27: Antifreeze pump 28: Heat exchanger in the tower 28A: Tower fin 31: Seawater line 32: Integrated heat exchanger 33: Filter 34: Seawater pump 35: Biofouling prevention device 36: Inlet 37: Outlet 101: Wind power generator 102: Tower foundation 103: Tower 104: Staircase 105: Tower door 106: Transformer coil 107: Inverter 108: Galerie 109: Filter 111: Transformer 112: air inlet 113: outlet 114: Fan 121: IGBT module 122: antifreeze cooling system 123: heat exchanger 124: Pump

Claims (7)

Tower and
A first heat exchange section;
Equipment provided in the equipment installation space inside the tower,
A second heat exchange unit provided in the device installation space,
The first heat exchange unit cools the liquid refrigerant by exchanging heat between the liquid refrigerant and a fluid medium outside the tower,
The liquid refrigerant cooled by the first heat exchange unit is supplied to the second heat exchange unit and the device,
The second heat exchange unit cools the air in the device installation space by exchanging heat between the supplied liquid refrigerant and the air in the device installation space of the tower. The wind turbine generator according to claim 1,
The tower is provided with a partition wall that divides the space above and below the space,
The lower space is used as the device installation space,
The second heat exchange unit is a wind power generator provided in proximity to the partition wall. The wind power generator according to claim 1 or 2,
The wind turbine generator further provided with an air cooling device in the device installation space. The wind power generator according to claim 1 or 2,
A wind turbine generator in which the fluid medium is outside air outside the tower. The wind power generator according to claim 4,
Furthermore,
Comprising a duct provided to pass through the interior of the tower;
The internal space of the duct is separated from the equipment installation space,
The first heat exchange part is provided in an internal space of the duct,
The duct is a wind turbine generator that takes in the outside air and supplies the air to the first heat exchange unit. The wind power generator according to claim 1 or 2,
The wind power generator wherein the fluid medium is seawater or fresh water such as lake water, river water, and groundwater. A wind turbine generator according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
Furthermore,
A line for supplying the liquid refrigerant from the first heat exchange unit to the second heat exchange unit and the device;
The said 2nd heat exchange part is a wind power generator comprised as a plate-shaped fin member joined directly to the said line.

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