Components of wind turbines are subjected to asymmetric loads caused by variable wind conditions. Carbon brushes are critical components of the wind turbine generator. Adequately maintaining and detecting abnormalities in the carbon brushes early is essential for proper turbine performance. In this paper, data-mining algorithms are applied for early prediction of carbon brush faults. Predicting generator brush faults early enables timely maintenance or replacement of brushes. The results discussed in this paper are based on analyzing generator brush faults that occurred on 27 wind turbines. The datasets used to analyze faults were collected from the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems installed at the wind turbines. Twenty-four data-mining models are constructed to predict faults up to 12 h before the actual fault occurs. To increase the prediction accuracy of the models discussed, a data balancing approach is used. Four data-mining algorithms were studied to evaluate the quality of the models for predicting generator brush faults. Among the selected data-mining algorithms, the boosting tree algorithm provided the best prediction results. Research limitations attributed to the available datasets are discussed.
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May 2012
Research Papers
Fault Monitoring of Wind Turbine Generator Brushes: A Data-Mining Approach
Anoop Verma,
Anoop Verma
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 3131 Seamans Center,
The University of Iowa
, Iowa City, IA 52242–1527
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Andrew Kusiak
Andrew Kusiak
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 3131 Seamans Center,
e-mail: andrew-kusiak@uiowa.edu
The University of Iowa
, Iowa City, IA 52242–1527
Search for other works by this author on:
Anoop Verma
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 3131 Seamans Center,
The University of Iowa
, Iowa City, IA 52242–1527
Andrew Kusiak
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 3131 Seamans Center,
The University of Iowa
, Iowa City, IA 52242–1527e-mail: andrew-kusiak@uiowa.edu
J. Sol. Energy Eng. May 2012, 134(2): 021001 (9 pages)
Published Online: February 27, 2012
Article history
Received:
January 6, 2011
Revised:
December 6, 2011
Online:
February 27, 2012
Published:
February 27, 2012
Citation
Verma, A., and Kusiak, A. (February 27, 2012). "Fault Monitoring of Wind Turbine Generator Brushes: A Data-Mining Approach." ASME. J. Sol. Energy Eng. May 2012; 134(2): 021001. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4005624
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