Patent ID: 8137074

Claim:
A wind turbine lightning protection system (LPS) comprising a glass-reinforced fiber or carbon-reinforced wind turbine blade comprising a suction side, a pressure side, a root, a tip, and a tip portion separated a predetermined distance from the root, wherein the suction side and pressure side of the wind turbine blade are each configured with a conductive or semi-conductive material only between the predetermined distance from the root and the tip of the wind turbine blade to provide an electric field control region disposed on or within the tip portion and completely encapsulating the suction side and pressure side of the wind turbine blade only between the predetermined distance from the root and the tip of the wind turbine blade to increase the emission of lightning streamers and leaders in the electric field control region and force a lightning discharge to attach to the tip portion, the electric field control region in electrical communication with a wind turbine blade down conductor disposed within the wind turbine blade, wherein the electric field control region and the down conductor together operate to protect the wind turbine blade from damage due to a lightning strike at the tip of the wind turbine blade by controlling an electric field at the tip portion caused by the lightning strike.