How to protect electronics from corrosion in harsh environments. On the example of wind energy

Wind power is one of the most popular renewable energy sources. There are two types of wind energy - onshore and offshore. Onshore wind power is now more common. However, in recent years, offshore wind energy has grown rapidly and is becoming an important renewable energy source of the future.

Features of the use of electronics in wind energy

Offshore wind power  has many advantages over onshore wind power. Wind speeds at sea are usually higher than on land, resulting in more power generated per wind turbine.

However, there are challenges in the construction of offshore wind farms, including the cost and design complexity of wind turbines. The offshore wind turbine and HVDC converter station must be durable because they operate in harsh environments such as high humidity, corrosive environment, high wind speed, etc.

Offshore wind farm and HVDC converter station
Offshore wind farm and HVDC converter station

Fiber optic components, electronic components and printed circuit boards are key components commonly found in control equipment for wind turbines and HVDC converters.

It is technically difficult for fiber optic and electronic components  to withstand harsh environmental conditions such as high humidity and salt pollution, which can be highly corrosive.

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1. IEC 60068-2-11

2. GR-63-. CORE 5.5.

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Coated PCB after corrosion tests (left) and uncoated PCB after corrosion tests (right)
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 Fast Ethernet SFP / SFF (AFBR-57E6APZC / AFBR-59E4APZC) DC-50MBd SFP (AFBR-57B4APZC)  .

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2. HVDC

- HVDC, VBE .

Fiber optic communication lines in the HVDC converter station.
- HVDC.

When using such a DC-50MBd conformal coated SFP product (AFBR-57B4APZC) in a marine HVDC converter station, the fiber optic transceiver is  more corrosion resistant  than using a transceiver that does not have a conformal coating on the PCB.




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