Structural collapse of a wind turbine blade. Part A: Static test and equivalent single layered models

The overall objective is a top-down approach to structural instability phenomena in wind turbine blades, which is used to identify the physics governing the ultimate strength of a generic wind turbine blade under a flap-wise static test. The work is concerned with the actual testing and the adoption of a phenomenological approach, and a discussion is conducted to assess and evaluate the wind turbine blade response during loading and after collapse by correlating experimental findings with numerical model predictions. The ultimate strength of the blade studied is governed by instability phenomena in the form of delamination and buckling. Interaction between both instability phenomena occurs causing a progressive collapse of the blade structure.