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https://reneweconomy.com.au/stronger-and-lighter-wooden-towers-to-be-used-for-bigger-wind-turbines/>
"Leading European timber technology companies have made headlines this week
with plans for new wooden wind turbine towers that will be capable of
supporting turbines from 4.2MW to 6.4MW.
Swedish company Modvion announced that its latest wooden wind turbine tower,
which had been engineered to support a V162 – 6.4MW turbine from the Vestas
Enventus platform, had been evaluated by independent certification body TÜV SÜD
and received a design evaluation conformity statement.
Utilising Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL), which uses thicker walls to deliver
greater strength per weight and cost compared to steel, Modvion’s wooden
turbine towers deliver surprising upsides over traditional steel towers.
Wood actually has a higher specific strength, enabling lighter construction,
whereas tall steel towers need extra reinforcement so as to carry their own
weight. Similarly, modular steel towers are fitted together using thousands of
steel bolts which subsequently need regular inspection, while modular wooden
towers need only glue.
Moreover, at the end of the turbine’s lifespan, the wooden towers can be
dismantled and reused as high-strength beams for the building industry.
The new tower was designed to demonstrate that Modvion’s wooden wind turbine
tower technology can be scaled up to support the most powerful onshore wind
turbines.
Having secured independent certification, Modvion will now turn its attention
to adapting the design for series production before beginning production on
wooden towers that can support hub heights of up to 219 metres."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
