Flatback slat for wind turbine

Abstract

An aerodynamic slat (30F) having a flatback trailing edge (44F) extending along and spaced proximate an inboard portion of a wind turbine blade (22). At least the leading edge (42F) of the slat may be disposed within a zone (48) of airflow that is generally parallel to the suction side (40) of the wind turbine blade over a range of air inflow angles. A splitter plate (52) may extend aft from the flatback trailing edge to reduce vortex shedding and extend the effective chord length of the slat. Vortex generators (60) may be attached to the slat. Flatback slats may be retrofitted to a wind turbine rotor (20) by attaching them to the spar caps (56) of the blades or to the hub spinner (28). The flatback slat provides lift on low-lift inboard portions of the wind turbine blade over a range of angles of attack of the inboard portion.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.