Turbine rotor blades keep getting bigger and bigger. To that end, R&D Test Systems has come up with a test bench to test blades up to 130 meters long for the US-based Massachusetts Clean Energy Center’s Wind Technology Testing Center (WTTC), R&D Test Systems writes in a press release.

With the new test bench, R&D Test Systems has a future-proof test setup in place for the next generation of major wind turbines and given the chance to perform dual-axis blade tests, which provides more accurate scenarios of what the blades are exposed to offshore. 

The new full-scale multi-axis fatigue blade test system will also shorten the test time, as WTTC can use the same setup to test flap- and edge-wise fatigue test without changing the test setup.

Delivering the first blade test setup in this size to the US is a milestone for R&D Test Systems. This is the first commercial dual-axis system that we have delivered. As American owned company by MTS and ITW it is a strategic goal to increase our US activities,” say Key Account Manager Niels Pedersen from R&D Test Systems in the press release.

The test bench was assembled in Denmark and then shipped to Boston and handed over to WTTC, which is already running the first test cycles with the blade exciter.