Europe's largest windfarm shut down after 14-tonne turbine blade snaps

Daily Mail ^ | 3/23/10 | Daily Mail Reporter

[Nachum]

Europe's largest windfarm was shut down after a blade snapped off one of the huge turbines, operators said today.

All 140 turbines at the Whitelee windfarm on Eaglesham Moor near Glasgow are being inspected by engineers following Friday's incident.

ScottishPower Renewables said mechanical failure or a lightning strike could be to blame for the breakage, which it described as 'highly unusual'.

The 150ft, 14-tonne, fibreglass blade broke off in the early hours in windy conditions and landed at the base of its tower.

[chipper dave]

Did it happen “expectantly”? lol

[mom4melody]

bump to read later

[familyop]

"Scotland is part of Europe? Dang."

The whole UK is an official member of the European Union.

[quantim]

[FastCoyote]

[ScottishPower Renewables said mechanical failure or a lightning strike could be to blame for the breakage, which it described as ‘highly unusual’. ]

I should hope 14 tonne blades spinning off into oblivion would be ‘highly unusual’. And somehow I also think mechanical failure was involved at some level, maybe it’s just me.

[familyop]

It’s a different story for those of us who live in windy places and exercise our property rights to build small turbines that are tougher than the manufactured ones. Eastern gapers, shut up, and go back to where you belong!

10 ft Otherpower.com Wind Turbine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RwaTll4guE

Otherpower 10’ Wind Turbine Flying in Springport
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3-VnWOacVg

Otherpower.com’s large homebrew wind turbine on a breezy day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZ2VyfzJYnI

[MinuteGal]

Madame Guillotine now ensconced across the Channel.

Leni

[familyop]

"I understand that it gets pretty ‘interesting’ when these blades ‘shed’ ice in the winter. Imagine how far & how fast the ice gets slung (flung? flinged?) Whatever..."

Not at all on small, homebuilt turbines (only up to 20' rotors for 3kw) at high elevations on the Rockies. ...too cold for ice to collect on 'em. The warmth of the big alternators mounted on trailer hubs also tend to keep them dried off.

They are mysterious to lazy folks, though. Socialist, NIMBY hags and HOA queens can be frightened by them and the technically inclined, "arrogant males" who built them from a mile away.

[NVDave]

Siemens.

[Repeal The 17th]

The correct word is “flang”.

[Past Your Eyes]

It’s my understanding that Brits do not consider themselves “European”.

[familyop]

...cultural identities? One could get lost in that topic. ;-)

Are We All Europeans Now? Local, National and Supranational Identities of Young Adults
by Sue Grundy and Lynn Jamieson[1]
University of Edinburgh
http://www.socresonline.org.uk/cgi-bin/perlfect/search/search.pl?q=identities&showurl=%2F10%2F3%2Fgrundy.html