Damping of Offshore Wind Turbine Tower Vibrations by a Stroke Amplifying Brace

The potential of installing dampers inside the tower of an offshore wind turbine is investigated through simulations. Dampers are installed at the bottom to act on the curvature of the tower, and it is shown that dampers installed in suitable braces have the potential to increase the critical damping ratio of the two lowest tower modes by 1 percent. By using a toggle-brace system, damper stroke is increased, while the damper force is reduced. Finally, by installing the dampers in a symmetric configuration, tuning for maximum damping is approximately independent of the orientation of the rotor, thereby making this installation of dampers feasible.