Dynamometer Test Facilities

NREL's 7,500-square-foot dynamometer facility offers wind industry engineers a unique opportunity to conduct lifetime endurance tests on a wide range of wind turbine drivetrains and gearboxes at various speeds, using low or high torque. It includes a powerful 3,350-hp electric motor coupled to a 2.5 megawatt (MW), three-stage epicyclic gearbox that can produce variable speeds from 0 to 146 revolutions per minute (rpm) and run at torque levels up to 9.6 million inch-pounds to simulate the effects of various wind conditions. Its flexible design allows it to couple with the shaft position of any wind turbine system from 100 kilowatts (kW) to 2 MW in size. A 50-ton electric bridge crane operates 30 feet (9.1 meters) above the test table to move the large drivetrains into test position.

A few months of endurance testing on NREL's 2.5-MW dynamometer can provide engineers with an equivalent of 30 years of use and a lifetime of braking cycles to help them determine which components are susceptible to wear. Because these endurance tests require several months of continuous unattended operation, the dynamometer test facility includes a sophisticated Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system that monitors the critical test parameters and can stop the test if abnormal conditions are detected.

Small Turbine Testing

NREL's 225-kW dynamometer, located in the NWTC's Building 251 high bay, is suitable for testing wind turbine components from the smallest turbines up to those rated at nearly 200 kW. Typical turbine components include subsystems, generators, gearboxes, mechanical or electro-dynamic brakes, power electronics, control systems, and software. The facility is capable of 225-kW peak power and shaft speeds up to 4,140 rpm.

For more information on NREL's dynamometer test capabilities, see our Capabilities section.