Life Cycle Environmental Impact Assessment Of Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

As a clean energy,wind power is developing rapidly in China,and the number of wind turbines is also increasing with the rapid development.Although the process of wind power generation has little impact on the environment,the wind turbine will have an impact on the environment in its life cycle,so it is necessary to carry out a systematic life cycle assessment of wind turbine.The analysis of the assessment results will clarify the causes of environmental impact and provide suggestions for the green design of wind turbines.Taking the large horizontal axis wind turbine as the research object,according to the material and manufacturing process of its main parts,a component feature model oriented to life cycle assessment was established to integrate the material and process data of wind turbine components.Based on the analysis of the material and manufacturing stage,installation stage,maintenance and operation stage,disassembly stage,disposal and recycling stage and transportation stage of wind turbine life cycle,the data collection process of wind turbine life cycle inventory is established through literature research and reasonable assumptions.Taking 2MW doubly fed induction wind turbine as the research object,the environmental impact is evaluated by using life cycle assessment method.The results show that the environmental impact of material and manufacturing stage is the largest;the prominent indicators of environmental impact of wind turbine are non-renewable energy consumption,global warming and respiratory inorganic;among the parts,the steel parts of gearbox contribute the greatest impact on the environment.Considering the location,working environment and rated capacity,three representative wind turbines are selected.The life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of three wind turbines are calculated.The results of the equivalent emissions of greenhouse gas carbon dioxide produced by 1k Wh power generation and the recovery time of greenhouse gases are obtained.Analyze the components,materials and life cycle stages,the results show that the difference of emission results between the two onshore wind turbines is due to the different average utilization hours of wind power in their provinces,and the difference between offshore and onshore wind turbines plays a decisive role in the results;the composite materials of metal materials and blades can provide considerable amount for onshore and offshore wind turbines to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.