Wind turbine rotor blade with passively modified trailing edge component

A wind turbine rotor blade, comprising:

• a root portion;
• an airfoil portion extending from said root portion and defined by a leading edge and a trailing edge;
• said airfoil portion further comprising a main foil section and a trailing edge section that is pivotally connected to said main foil section along a span-wise extending hinge line, said hinge line delineating said main foil section from said trailing edge section;
• a passive torsion element coupled between said main foil section and said trailing edge section, said torsion element biased to a neutral position wherein said trailing edge section is pivoted chord-wise to a low wind speed position relative to said main foil section;
• said trailing edge section being self-actuating from said low wind speed position to an increased wind speed position relative to said main foil section as a function of the biasing force of said passive torsion element and wind seed over said airfoil section;
• and
• wherein said resilient member is a strip member that extends span-wise between said trailing edge section and said main foil section.

A wind turbine, comprising:

• a plurality of rotor blades, each said rotor blade having a root portion connected to a rotor hub and an airfoil portion extending radially outward from said root portion and defined by a leading edge and a trailing edge;
• said airfoil portion further comprising a main foil section having a pressure side surface and a suction side surface, and a trailing edge section that is pivotally connected to said main foil section along a span-wise extending hinge line interface;
• a passive torsion element coupled between said main foil section and said trailing edge section, said torsion element biased to a neutral position wherein said trailing edge section is pivoted chord-wise to a low wind speed position towards said pressure side surface of said main foil section;
• and
• said trailing edge section being self-actuating from said low wind speed position to an increased wind speed aerodynamic position relative to said main foil as a function of the biasing force of said passive torsion element and wind speed over said airfoil section;
• and
• wherein said hinge line interface comprises a rounded face defined on said trailing edge section that is nested within a rounded recess defined in said main foil section.