Study by AerE’s Hu confirms impact of ice on wind turbine blades

Author: John Burnett-Larkins

Hu with equipment with ice accrual in lab — Hu is shown with an example of ice accrual on a mechanical component, which he studies in the Department of Aerospace Engineering’s Icing Wind Tunnel

Wind turbines have become a staple of power generation. But ice accumulating on their blades during adverse winter weather can reduce their energy production by as much as 80%.

That’s the finding of a new field study just released by Department of Aerospace Engineering Martin C. Jischke Professor Hui Hu. Read more about how Hu’s team, which includes Department of Aerospace Engineering alumnus Linyue Gao, went about determining these important findings.

You can also find a detailed discussion about the problem of wind turbine blade icing in a just-released interview with Dr. Hu on The Conversation

Study by AerE’s Hu confirms impact of ice on wind turbine blades

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