DuPont – protecting the winds of change

	Wind park in Northern Germany using DuPont coating systems (photo Enercon)

Wind parks are able to produce energy without impacting our ecological capital. However, as the parks logically are situated in very windy locations, such as near coasts or in industrial areas, the turbines are exposed to extremely aggressive surroundings. Moisture, salt, acid rain, air pollution and UV radiation all take their toll on the turbine’s tower, the rotor blades, the generator and the electronic equipment.

The challenge
The steel towers on which the generator and blades are mounted can vary in height between 40 and 80 metres. A typical tower is made up of four of these sections. Painting these large components to ensure corrosion protection – and at the same time meet aesthetic requirements and permit low-cost, yet efficient manufacturing processes – was a conundrum that DuPont Protective Coatings solved by drawing on all its years of experience in corrosion protection and functional surface coatings.

The DuPont™ permacor^® solution
The permacor^® coating systems from DuPont Protective Coatings have been designed specifically for long-term corrosion protection of wind energy installations. The tailor-made systems have been tested and approved for use with leading manufacturers in the wind energy markets, including Enercon, Nordex, GE Wind Energy and DeWind. The systems fulfil the highest world wide requirements of corrosion protection standards for steel structures – DIN EN ISO 12944 – and they are also bound by the comprehensive quality assurance system ISO 9001 to ensure continuous high quality.

One section of a tower coated with permacor® coating systems (photo DuPont)

The coating systems consist of three separate layers. The first coat is an epoxy-zinc-rich primer, which provides the highest possible corrosion protection available today. This is followed by an intermediate epoxy layer containing micaceous iron oxide to give maximum protection against the diffusion of moisture and other noxious substances. It offers a high mechanical resistance. Finally, a UV-resistant, polyurethane top coat ensures the exterior coating does not fade or turn chalky.

Up to now the permacor^® systems are helping to protect more than 3,000 wind turbines around the world from the harsh elements in which they have to operate.
 

	Production of generators for wind turbines using DuPont™ Herberts® Electro Impregnating Resin (photo Enercon)
	Installation of the wind turbine starts (photo Enercon)

Protection inside and out
There is more to a wind turbine than meets the eye – internally there is a generator and electronically controlled motors that set the pitch of the blades; this is the heart of the tower as adjusting the blades’ pitch optimises the use of the wind speed. And here, inside the turbine, DuPont is also in evidence with its Herberts^® Electro product range.

The electric insulation of any electric motor, generator or transformer is a vital factor, determining performance and long-term reliability of the complete system. The electrical industry relies on special wire enamels that are combined with impregnating resins to turn the complete wire winding into a solid functional unit – DuPont was the primary driving force behind the development of this technology.

Wire enamels isolate electrically charged conductors in the windings of electrical machines and protect them from mechanical and chemical influences. Modern wire coating equipment calls for continuous improvement of the insulating lacquers used. Impregnating materials, which are key components of modern generator production, endow the system with vital resistance to mechanical forces, which are set free during rotation. The advantages are excellent protection from a wide variety of environmental factors as well as improved heat transfer between wire winding and core.

DuPont Herberts Electro is known to provide comprehensive product ranges to meet the needs not only of the manufacturers of wind energy installations, but also of other industry specifications.

DuPont – a science-based company
DuPont is a science company. Founded in 1802, it delivers today science-based solutions that make real differences in people's lives around the world in areas such as food and nutrition, health care, apparel, safety and security, construction, electronics and transportation. The solutions found for wind energy installations are an excellent example of this.
 

DuPont Protective Coatings and DuPont Herberts^® Electro are product lines of the DuPont Specialty Coatings business unit.

For more information on
DuPont Specialty Coatings
call or fax to:
Tel. +49-221-3706-5141
Fax +49-221-3706-5142

Specific infos on wind turbines:
for Protective Coatings visit www.permacor.dupont.com

for Electro products call or fax to:
Tel. +49 (0)202 529 0
Fax +49 (0)202 529 2800
www.dupont.com/coatings

 

Click here to obtain a copy of RENEWABLE ENERGY 2008