Do Wind Turbines Amplify the Effects of Lightning Strikes? A Full-Maxwell Modelling Approach

Wind turbines (WTs) can be seriously damaged by lightning strikes and they can be struck by a significant number of flashes. This should be taken into account when the WT lightning protection system is designed. Moreover, WTs represent a path for the lightning current that can modify the well-known effects of the lightning discharge in terms of radiated electromagnetic fields, which are a source of damage and interference for nearby structures and systems. In this paper, a WT struck by a lightning discharge is analyzed with a full-wave modelling approach, taking into account the details of the WT and its interactions with the lightning channel. The effects of first and subsequent return strokes are analyzed as well as that of the rotation angle of the struck blade. Results show that the lightning current along the WT is mainly affected by the ground reflection and by the reflection between the struck blade and the channel. The computed electromagnetic fields show that, for subsequent return strokes, the presence of a WT almost doubles their magnitude with respect to a lightning striking the ground. Such enhancement is emphasized when the inclined struck blade is considered.