Abstract: A rotor blade assembly of a wind turbine includes a rotor blade having an aerodynamic body with an inboard region and an outboard region. The inboard and outboard regions define a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge. The inboard region includes a blade root, whereas the outboard region includes a blade tip. The rotor blade also defines a chord and a span. Further, the inboard region includes a transitional region of the rotor blade that includes a maximum chord. Moreover, a unitless first derivative of the chord with respect to the span of the rotor blade in the transitional region ranges from about ?0.10 to about 0.10 from the maximum chord over about 15% of the span of the rotor blade. In addition, the unitless first derivative of the chord with respect to the span a slope of a change in the chord in is greater than about ?0.03 at an inflection point of the chord in the outboard region.

Abstract: A rotor blade assembly for a wind turbine is presented. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade having a surface, where the surface of the rotor blade includes an inclined groove. The rotor blade assembly further includes at least one add-on element mounted on the surface of the rotor blade via a bonding interface downstream of the inclined groove such that particulate matter in an airflow upstream of the at least one add-on element is deflected away from the bonding interface between the surface of the rotor blade and the at least one add-on element. The wind turbine having the rotor blade assembly is also presented.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to methods for attaching a plurality of surface features to a rotor blade of a wind turbine. Such methods may include direct molding of the surface features to the rotor blade, bonding arrays of connected components to the rotor blade and subsequently removing connections between components, as well as using a flexible template with or without a tinted adhesive.

Abstract: A rotor blade assembly of a wind turbine includes a rotor blade having an aerodynamic body with an inboard region and an outboard region. The inboard and outboard regions define a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge. The inboard region includes a blade root, whereas the outboard region includes a blade tip. The rotor blade also defines a chord and a span. Further, the inboard region includes a transitional region of the rotor blade that includes a maximum chord. Moreover, a chord slope of the rotor blade in the transitional region ranges from about ?0.10 to about 0.10 from the maximum chord over about 15% of the span of the rotor blade. In addition, a slope of a change in the chord in the outboard region at a peak from concave to convex or vice versa is greater than about ?0.

Abstract: A rotor blade assembly of a wind turbine includes a rotor blade having an aerodynamic body with an inboard region and an outboard region. The inboard and outboard regions define a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge. The inboard region includes a blade root, whereas the outboard region includes a blade tip. The rotor blade also defines a chord and a span. Further, the inboard region includes a transitional region of the rotor blade that includes a maximum chord. Moreover, a chord slope of the rotor blade in the transitional region ranges from about ?0.10 to about 0.10 from the maximum chord over about 15% of the span of the rotor blade.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to methods for attaching a plurality of surface features to a rotor blade of a wind turbine. Such methods may include direct molding of the surface features to the rotor blade, bonding arrays of connected components to the rotor blade and subsequently removing connections between components, as well as using a flexible template with or without a tinted adhesive.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to methods for attaching a plurality of surface features to a rotor blade of a wind turbine. Such methods may include direct molding of the surface features to the rotor blade, bonding arrays of connected components to the rotor blade and subsequently removing connections between components, as well as using a flexible template with or without a tinted adhesive.

Abstract: Vortex generators for wind turbine rotor blades having noise-reducing features are mounted within a laminar flow region on either the pressure side or the suction side of the rotor blade and have a base portion with at least one airflow modifying element extending therefrom. The base portion has a leading edge and a trailing edge extending in a first direction. Further, the base portion includes one or more edge features formed within either or both of the leading or trailing edges. Moreover, the edge features are non-parallel with respect to the first direction so as to reduce laminar boundary layer instability noise.

Abstract: A method for reducing noise of a wind turbine includes monitoring, via one or more sensors, a wind speed at the wind turbine. The method also includes determining, via a turbine controller, a nominal wind direction for producing rated power of the wind turbine. Further, the method includes determining a pitch angle of at least one rotor blade of the wind turbine. As such, the method includes determining a yaw offset for a nacelle of the wind turbine based on the wind speed and/or the pitch angle. Thus, the method further includes changing a yaw angle of the nacelle by the yaw offset when the wind speed exceeds a predetermined threshold so as to reduce noise of the wind turbine.

Abstract: A method for mitigating noise during high wind speed conditions of a wind turbine includes providing a backward twist to the outboard region of the rotor blade having an angle of less than 6°. The method may also include reducing a tip chord taper within at least a portion of the outboard region of the rotor blade. Further, the method may include increasing a local tip chord length of the rotor blade. In addition, the method may include increasing a torsional stiffness of the outboard region of the rotor blade. As such, a combination of one or more of the blade properties described above are configured to reduce noise associated with high wind speed conditions.

Abstract: A method for reducing noise of a wind turbine includes monitoring, via one or more sensors, a wind speed at the wind turbine. The method also includes determining, via a turbine controller, a nominal wind direction for producing rated power of the wind turbine. Further, the method includes determining a pitch angle of at least one rotor blade of the wind turbine. As such, the method includes determining a yaw offset for a nacelle of the wind turbine based on the wind speed and/or the pitch angle. Thus, the method further includes changing a yaw angle of the nacelle by the yaw offset when the wind speed exceeds a predetermined threshold so as to reduce noise of the wind turbine.

Abstract: A rotor blade assembly for a wind turbine is presented. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade having a surface, where the surface of the rotor blade includes an inclined groove. The rotor blade assembly further includes at least one add-on element mounted on the surface of the rotor blade via a bonding interface downstream of the inclined groove such that particulate matter in an airflow upstream of the at least one add-on element is deflected away from the bonding interface between the surface of the rotor blade and the at least one add-on element. The wind turbine having the rotor blade assembly is also presented.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to vortex generators for wind turbine rotor blades having noise-reducing features. For example, the vortex generators are mounted within a laminar flow region on either the pressure side or the suction side of the rotor blade and have a base portion with at least one airflow modifying element extending therefrom. The base portion has a leading edge and a trailing edge extending in a first direction. Further, the base portion includes one or more edge features formed within either or both of the leading or trailing edges. Moreover, the edge features are non-parallel with respect to the first direction so as to reduce laminar boundary layer instability noise.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to methods for attaching a plurality of surface features to a rotor blade of a wind turbine. Such methods may include direct molding of the surface features to the rotor blade, bonding arrays of connected components to the rotor blade and subsequently removing connections between components, as well as using a flexible template with or without a tinted adhesive.