Dynamics and Control of Lateral Tower Vibrations in Offshore Wind Turbines by Means of Active Generator Torque

Lateral tower vibrations of offshore wind turbines are normally lightly damped, and large amplitude vibrations induced by wind and wave loads in this direction may significantly shorten the fatigue life of the tower. This paper proposes the modeling and control of lateral tower vibrations in offshore wind turbines using active generator torque. To implement the active control algorithm, both the mechanical and power electronic aspects have been taken into consideration. A 13-degrees-of-freedom aeroelastic wind turbine model with generator and pitch controllers is derived using the Euler-Lagrangian approach. The model displays important features of wind turbines, such as mixed moving frame and fixed frame-defined degrees-of-freedom, couplings of the tower-blade-drivetrain vibrations, as well as aerodynamic damping present in different modes of motions. The load transfer mechanisms from the drivetrain and the generator to the nacelle are derived, and the interaction between the generator torque and the lateral tower vibration are presented in a generalized manner. A three-dimensional rotational sampled turbulence field is generated and applied to the rotor, and the tower is excited by a first order wave load in the lateral direction. Next, a simple active control algorithm is proposed based on active generator torques with feedback from the measured lateral tower vibrations. A full-scale power converter configuration with a cascaded loop control structure is also introduced to produce the feedback control torque in real time. Numerical simulations have been carried out using data calibrated to the referential 5-MW NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) offshore wind turbine. Cases of drivetrains with a gearbox and direct drive to the generator are considered using the same time series for the wave and turbulence loadings. Results show that by using active generator torque control, lateral tower vibrations can be significantly mitigated for both gear-driven and direct-driven wind turbines, with modest influence on the smoothness of the power output from the generator.