United Technologies Corporation

William Mandelbaum

Robert Sherman

Edward A Rothman

A large wind turbine rotor blade having a filament wound composite spar securely mounted to a support structure in a manner by which blade loads are transmitted via redundant load paths. Concentric inner and outer metallic adapter sleeves are bonded to the inboard end of the blade spar, and the adapter sleeves and blade spar are joined by a first series of shear bolts and nuts which pass radially through the spar. A second series of radially extending bolts and nuts join the inner and outer sleeves slightly inboard of the end of the spar. The end of the spar is of slightly reduced diameter forming a conical surface which interacts with the inner and outer sleeves to produce a positive lock when the blade is subject to centrifugal loads. The outer sleeve is adapted to be connected to the support structure by conventional techniques such as by a plurality of bolts which extend axially into the butt end of the outer sleeve.

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Bloomfield, CT, United States of America

William Mandelbaum