How to Calculate Moment and Shear for a Wind Turbine Spar Design

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SUMMARY

This discussion focuses on calculating moment and shear forces for a wind turbine spar design with an elliptical cross-section, hollow structure, and linearly tapered wall thickness. The user seeks to resolve the weight of the tower segment above a specific cross-section to determine the moment about the centroid and the shear force acting on the cross-section. The proposed method involves using the center of mass of the tower segment to calculate these forces accurately. The approach is confirmed as correct by other participants in the discussion.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of mechanics of materials, specifically moment and shear force calculations.
  • Familiarity with structural analysis concepts, including centroid and center of mass determination.
  • Knowledge of wind turbine design principles and load distribution.
  • Proficiency in using engineering software for structural modeling (e.g., AutoCAD or SolidWorks).
NEXT STEPS
  • Research methods for calculating centroid and center of mass for complex shapes, particularly elliptical cross-sections.
  • Learn about the principles of load distribution in tapered structures.
  • Explore software tools for simulating shear and moment in structural designs, such as ANSYS or MATLAB.
  • Investigate best practices for wind turbine spar design and optimization techniques.
USEFUL FOR

Mechanical engineers, structural analysts, and students involved in wind turbine design projects will benefit from this discussion, particularly those focusing on moment and shear calculations in complex geometries.

mechanosauras
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Hi guys,
I am working on designing a wind turbine spar for a second year mech project. The spar has an elliptical cross section, is hollow and linearly tapered with a linearly varying wall thickness. The entire tower reaches upwards at angle.

My question is:
if I want to find out the moment and shear at some cross-section at an arbitrary height L due to the weight of the tower, how do I best resolve these to a point load acting at the centroid of the cross-section?

My initial idea was to resolve the weight of the segment of tower above the cross-section to the center of mass of that segment, then determine the moment about the centroid of the cross-section. The shear would be the component of the weight acting along the face of the cross-section...

PS: I have my axes set such that the positive y-axis is concentric with the axis of the spar.

Any input would be great. Thanks!
 
Engineering news on Phys.org
Your approach sounds correct.
 

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