EE535: Renewable Energy: Systems, Technology & Economics

Session 6: Wind (1)

Global Wind Resource

Annual global mean wind power at 50m above the surface Ref:

Conversion
Wind energy atmospheric kinetic energy determined by mass and motion speed of the air Utilising wind energy involves installation of a device that converts kinetic energy in the atmosphere to useful energy (mechanical, electrical) Windmills have been used to convert wind energy into mechanical energy for over 3000years

Basic Calculations: Power Density

Kinetic Energy (KE) mV2 For a constant wind speed v, normal cross sectional area A, and given period of time, t, and air density ,
Air mass m = AVt

So, KE = AtV3

Wind power density (per unit area and per second) is: Power = V3

Harvestable power scales with the cube of the wind speed

Power Density
The atmosphere approximates an ideal gas equation in which at the STP (T0 = 288.1K), (P0 = 100.325 Pa),
0 = 1.225kg/m3

Distribution of wind speed

The strength of wind varies, and an average value for a given location does not alone indicate the amount of energy a wind turbine could produce there To assess the frequency of wind speeds at a particular location, a probability distribution function is often fit to the observed data. Different locations will have different wind speed distributions. A statistical distribution function is often used to describe the frequency of occurrence of the wind speed a Weibull or Rayleigh distribution is typically used The wind power density is modified by the inclusion of an energy pattern factor (Epf)

Where Va is the average wind speed

Distribution of Wind Speeds

As the energy in the wind varies as the cube of the wind speed, an understanding of wind characteristics is essential for:
Identification of suitable sites Predictions of economic viability of wind farm projects Wind turbine design and selection Effects of electricity distribution networks and consumers

Temporal and spatial variation in the wind resource is substantial

Latitude / Climate Proportion of land and sea Size and topography of land mass Vegetation (absorption/reflection of light, surface temp, humidity

Distribution of Wind Speeds

The amount of wind available at a site may vary from one year to the next, with even larger scale variations over periods of decades or more Synoptic Variations
Time scale shorter than a year seasonal variations Associated with passage of weather systems

Diurnal Variations
Predicable (ish) based on time of the day (depending on location) Important for integrating large amounts of wind-power into the grid

Turbulence
Short-time-scale predictability (minutes or less) Significant effect on design and performance of turbines Effects quality of power delivered to the grid Turbulence intensity is given by I = / V, where is the standard deviation on the wind speed

Annual and Seasonal Variations

Its likely that wind-speed at any particular location may be subject to slow long-term variations
Linked to changes in temperature, climate changes, global warming Other changes related to sun-spot activity, volcanic eruption (particulates), Adds significantly to uncertainty in predicting energy output from a wind farm

Wind-speed during the year can be characterised in terms of a probability distribution

Weibull Distribution
Weibull distribution gives a good representation of hourly mean wind speeds over a year F(V) = exp(-(V/c)k)
Where F(V) is the fraction of time for which the hourly mean wind speed exceeds V c is the scale parameter and k is the shape parameter which describe the variability about the mean Mean wind speed = V = c(1 + 1/k)

Weibull Distribution
The probability distribution function :
f(V) = -dF(V)/dV = k(Vk-1 / ck) exp(-(V/c)k)
F(U) 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 F(U)

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f(U)

Since mean wind speed is given by:

V = 0 V f(V)dV

0.1 0.09 0.08 0.07 0.06 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.02 0.01 0

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f(U)

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22

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Wind Turbines
Wind energy systems convert kinetic energy in the atmosphere into electricity (or for pumping fluid) Two basic categories
Horizontal axis wind turbine (rotating axis horizontal to ground) Vertical axis wind turbine (rotating axis vertical to ground)

Horizontal Axis

Vertical Axis

Wind -> Mechanical energy -> Electricity

Horizontal axis wind turbine

Most common type of turbine in use Power ratings typically 750kW to 3.5MW (rotor diameters 48m 80m) Usually with 3 aerofoil type rotor blades
Creates aerodynamic lift when wind passes over them Ideal operating conditions : circa 12 14m/s

Rotating shaft connected to gearing box to set suitable speed to drive a generator 3 types:
Constant Speed Turbine
Runs at 1 speed, regardless of windspeed Cheap and robust Prone to noise and mechanical stress Runs at variable speeds Greater dynamic efficiency Reduced mechanical stress and noise generation

Variable speed double feed induction generator

Variable speed direct drive turbine

Runs without gearbox Most expensive capital equipment costs

Power Output
Power output from a wind turbine is given by:
P = Cp A V3
Where Cp is the power coefficient is the air density A is the rotor swept area V is the wind speed

Cp describes the fraction of the power in the wind that may be converted by the turbine into mechanical work

Energy Extracting Mechanism

Actuator disk / Turbine Blades Stream tube

velocity

p+d Vd velocity Vw p pressure

pressure

p-d

Mass Flow
Mass flow rate must be the same everywhere along the tube so,
A V = Ad Vd = Aw Vw (i) refers to conditions far upstream/downstream d refers to conditions at the disk w refers to conditions in the far wake

The turbine induces a velocity variation which is superimposed on the free stream velocity, so:
Vd = V(1 a) (ii) Where a is known as the axial flow induction factor, or the inflow factor

Momentum
The air that passes through the disk undergoes an overall change in velocity (V - Vw), Rate of change of momentum dP
dP= (V - Vw)AdVd = overall change in velocity x mass flow rate (iii)

The force causing this change in momentum is due to pressure difference across turbine so,
(p+d p-d)Ad = (V - Vw)AdV( 1-a) (iv)

Bernoullis Equation
Bernoullis equation states that, under steady state conditions, the total energy in a flow, comprising kinetic energy, static pressure energy, and gravitational potential, remains the same provided no work is done on or by the fluid So, for a volume of air,
V2 + p + gh = constant (v)

Axial Speed Loss

Upstream:
V2 + p + g h = d Vd2 + p+d + dghd (vi)

Assuming = d and h = hd
V2 + p = d Vd2 + p+d V2 + p = d Vd2 + p-d (vii) (viii)

Similarly downstream Subtracting,

(p+d p-d) = (V2 - Vw2)

From (iv),
(V2 - Vw2) Ad = (V - Vw)AdV( 1-a) Vw = (1 -2a)V (ix) (x)

Power Coefficient
From earlier, Force F
F = (p+d p-d)Ad = 2AdV2( 1-a)

Rate of work done by the force at the turbine = FVd Power = FVd = 2AdV3( 1-a)2 Cp (Power Coefficient) = ratio of power harvested to power available in the air Cp = (2AdV3( 1-a)2 ) / ( AdV3) Cp = 4a(1 a)2

The Betz Limit

The maximum value of Cp occurs when dCp/da = 4(1-a)(1-3a) = 0 Which gives : a = 1/3 Therefore, CPmax = 16/27 = 0.593
This is the maximum achievable value of Cp

No turbine has been designed which is capable of exceeding this limit

The Thrust Coefficient

The force on the turbine caused by the pressure drop can be expressed as CT, the coefficient of Thrust CT = Power / ( AdV2) CT = 4a(1-a)

Variation of Cp and CT with Axial Induction Factor a

1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 a 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 CT Cp

Variation of windspeed with Height

Principal effects governing the properties of wind close to the surface (the boundary layer) include:
The strength of the geostrophic wind The surface topography / roughness Coriolis effects due to the earths rotation Thermal effects

Most interesting for us is that the boundary layer properties are strongly influenced by surface roughness therefore site selection is critical

Variation of windspeed with Height

Taller windmills see higher wind speeds Ballpark: doubling the height increases windspeed by 10% and thus increases power density by 30% Wind shear formula from NERL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory):
v(z) = v10(z / 10m) Where v10 is the speed at 10m, typically around 0.143

Wind shear formula from the Danish Wind Energy Association:

v(z) = vref log(z/zo) / log(zref/z0) Where z0 is a parameter called the roughness length, vref is the speed at a reference height zref

Variation of windspeed with Height

Type of Terrain Cities, forests suburbs, wooded countryside Villages, countryside with trees and hedges Open farmland, few trees and buildings Flat grassy plains Flat desert, rough sea Roughness Length z0 (m) 0.7 0.3 0.1 0.03 0.01 0.001

Typical Surface Roughness Lengths (from Wind Energy Handbook, pg 10

Example Windmill Power

A windmill has a diameter d = 25m, and a hub height of 32m. The efficiency factor is 50%. What is the power produced by the windmill if the windspeed is 6m/s? Power of the wind per m2 v3 = 1.3kg/m3 x (6m/s)3 = 140W/m2 Power of the windmill = Cp x power per unit area x area = 50% x v3 x (/4)d2 = 50% x 140W/m2 x (/4)(25m)2 = 34kW

Windmill Packing Density

As it extracts energy from the wind, the turbine leaves behind it a wake characterised by reduced wind speeds and increased levels of turbuence A turbine operating in the wake of a turbine will produce less energy and suffer greater structural loading Rule of thumb is that windmills cannot be spaced closer than 5 times their diameter without losing significant power

Windmill Packing Density

Power that a windmill can generate per unit land area = Power per windmill / land area per windmill = (Cp x v3 x (/4)d2) / (5d)2

d 5d

Example Power per unit land area

A wind farm utilizes windmills with a diameter d = 25m, and a hub height of 32m. The efficiency factor is 50%. What is the power per unit area harvested by the wind farm if the windspeed is 6m/s?

Capacity Factor
Since wind speed is not constant, a wind farm's annual energy production is never as much as the sum of the generator nameplate ratings multiplied by the total hours in a year Capacity factor = actual productivity / theoretical maximum Typical capacity factors are 2040%, with values at the upper end of the range in particularly favourable sites Unlike fueled generating plants, the capacity factor is limited by the inherent properties of wind. Capacity factors of other types of power plant are based mostly on fuel cost, with a small amount of downtime for maintenance

Resource & Market Status

Ireland has an exceptional wind energy resource, with an estimated technical resource of 613 TWh / year Wind is intermittent & unpredictable challenging integration into the national grid Back-up and storage solutions necessary Wind energy resource in Ireland is 4x European average As of 2007, Ireland had circa 800MW installed wind capacity : 1 offshore and 35 on-shore wind energy sites Market has become larger and more stable Current cost of wind generated electricity is approximately on a par with fossil fuel generated electricity (5.7 cent per kHh large wind energy >5MW), (5.9cent per kWh small wind energy < 5MW) Cost of wind electricity generation is dependant on many factors including: location, wind speeds, electrical grid connections

Barriers
Major issues restricting the development of wind energy include:
Lack of robust technical information has lead to opposition to wind farms being developed in certain areas Environmental concerns including noise, shadows, flickering, wildlife (birds), visual impact, electromagnetic interference Financial incentives and taxation from government are inadequate Grid connection and axis not fairly provided