Self-Erecting, In-Situ Manufactured, Wind Energy Tower, Development of Nacelle Assembly Lifting System

Large utility scale wind turbines are getting so large that transportation limitations are driving final, onsite assembly costs.  To address this problem, this project will design an apparatus for placing wind turbine components ¿ the nacelle, generator, gear box, rotor, and blades ¿ on top of an in situ fabricated, self-erecting tower, without using an external crane. The self-erecting tower itself, known as UltraTall, is the result of project funded by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The current project builds on UltraTall ¿ in which a (1/15) reduced scale, 5.3 meter tall, 4 section, self-erecting tower was fabricated and tested ¿ thereby demonstrating the feasibility of in situ fabrication and self-erection. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: An enabling technology for the production of self-erecting towers should lower the costs of wind energy will be lower cost by 20% or more. This will accelerate the implementation of wind energy and speed progress toward the renewable energy goals of the United States.