Wind Energy

EET 3104
Lecture Topic Reference
1 Introduction to wind energy meteorology and measurements
2 Wind energy generators
3 wind energy application and Electrical conversion systems
4 market developments and status of industry
5 environmental issues
CAT 1
6 Wind farm technology issues
wind turbines: aerodynamics, static and dynamic loading of
7 wind turbines, controls, and designs
8 Wind machines: economics and performance tests
CAT 2
9 modeling of wind machines
Examinations
Lecture 1: Introduction to Wind energy
meteorology & Measurements
Temperature Distribution in the Vertical

In the lowest layer, the troposphere, the temperature decreases with

height at an average of 6.5 degrees C/km (3.5 deg. F/1000 ft). The
air in this layer is well stirred due to vertical convection currents.
Almost all clouds are found in this layer.
The second layer, called the stratosphere, has an upper boundary
of about 50 km. The temperature is relatively constant in the lower
part, but it increases with height in the upper.
The mesosphere is the zone between 50 and 85 km in which the
temperature decreases rapidly with height, reaching about -95 deg.
C at the mesopause (the coldest point in the atmosphere).
In the thermosphere the temperature increases with height.
SOLAR ENERGY
The rate at which energy is
emitted from each square
centimeter of surface as a
function of wavelength is very
Sun
much like that for an ideal or
black body at 6000 K. O.3 - 0.8 mm

Measured in Cal/m2

0.8 - 20 mm
Earth
Absorption of Radiation
UV Infrared

Ozone Hole
Earth’s
Heat
Balance
July Mean Surface T

January
General Circulation of the Atmosphere

The horizontal flow ot the Earths surface is shown in the center of the diagram;
the net meridian circulation, at the surface and aloft is depicted around the
periphery.
The component of the flow along meridians has a speed on average of less
than 0.1 of that along latitude circles
The effect of Corioles force tends to bend streamlines to the right in the
Northern Hemisphere.
Jet streams were only discovered in 1946 and are important drivers of major
weather and air mass systems. They flow at hundreds of MPH and dominate
U.S. weather especially in the winter.
Air in Motion

vv
Wind speed data (m/s)
Typical wind speed histogram

13
Probability Measure

14
Probability Density Function (PDF)

15
Wind Speed PDF

16
Weibull distribution

17
Rayleigh Distribution

18
Power in the wind

19
Average wind speed calculation

20
Average wind speed in probabilistic terms

21
Question 6:

22
Question 6: Answer

23
Wind speed PDF

24
Mathematically

25
Discrete vs. Continuous

26
Wind speed statistics

27
Weibull Distribution

28
Rayleigh Distribution

29
Average wind speed: Rayleigh

30
Average power in the wind : Rayleigh (2)

31
Question 7:

32
Question 7: Alternative answer

33
Impact of Tower Height

34
Wind speed PDF at Altamont Pass, California

35
Standard wind power classification

36
Wind power classification from NREL

37
Wind Energy Potential

38
Summary

39
Wind Power Design

40
Power in the Wind (W/m2)

= 1/2 x air density x swept rotor area x (wind speed)3

 A V3

Density = P/(RxT)
P - pressure (Pa) Instantaneous Speed
R - specific gas constant (287 J/kgK) Area =  r2
T - air temperature (K) (not mean speed)
kg/m3 m2 m/s

41
Wind Energy Natural Characteristics
 Wind Speed
 Wind energy increases with the cube of the wind speed
 10% increase in wind speed translates into 30% more electricity
 2X the wind speed translates into 8X the electricity

 Height
 Wind energy increases with height to the 1/7 power
 2X the height translates into 10.4% more electricity

42
Wind Energy Natural Characteristics
 Air density
 Wind energy increases proportionally with air density
 Humid climates have greater air density than dry climates
 Lower elevations have greater air density than higher elevations
 Wind energy in Denver about 6% less than at sea level

 Blade swept area

 Wind energy increases proportionally with swept area of the blades
 Blades are shaped like airplane wings
 10% increase in swept diameter translates into 21% greater swept area
 Longest blades up to 413 feet in diameter
 Resulting in 600 foot total height

43
Betz Limit
 Theoretical maximum energy extraction from wind =
16/27 = 59.3%
 Undisturbed wind velocity reduced by 1/3
 Albert Betz (1928)

44
WIND RESOURCE IN KENYA
Meteorology: map of Kenya
selected meteorological
stations and elevation from
NREL
Map of mean 80-m wind speeds for year 2000
World wind map – 50 a.g.l.
 Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
WIND POTENTIAL & SITE RANKING
U.S. Department of Energy

Rank State
1 North Dakota
2 Texas
3 Kansas
4 South Dakota
5 Montana
6 Nebraska
7 Wyoming
8 Oklahoma
9 Minnesota
10 Iowa
11 Colorado
12 New Mexico
13 Idaho
14 Michigan
15 New York World Class Wind Potential
16 Illinois
17 Source: California
U.S. DOE
Germany’s Potential: 100 GW
North Dakota’s Potential: 250 GW
Source: AWEA
Lecture 2 & 3: Wind generators, wind
energy application and Electrical
conversion systems
 Wind Energy History
• 1 A.D.
• Hero of Alexandria uses a wind machine to power an organ
• ~ 400 A.D.
• Wind driven Buddhist prayer wheels
• 1200 to 1850
• Golden era of windmills in western Europe – 50,000
• 9,000 in Holland; 10,000 in England; 18,000 in Germany
• 1850’s
• Multiblade turbines for water pumping made and marketed in U.S.
• 1882
• Thomas Edison commissions first commercial electric generating stations in NYC and London
• 1900
• Competition from alternative energy sources reduces windmill population to fewer than 10,000
• 1850 – 1930
• Heyday of the small multiblade turbines in the US midwast
• As many as 6,000,000 units installed
• 1936+
• US Rural Electrification Administration extends the grid to most formerly isolated rural sites
• Grid electricity rapidly displaces multiblade turbine uses
53
Change Perceptions…
Early “WINDMILL” in Afghanistan (900AD)
Jacobs Turbine – 1920 - 1960
Smith-Putnam Turbine
Vermont, 1940's
Modern Windmills
Recent Capacity Enhancements
2006
5 MW
600’

2003
1.8 MW
2000 350’
850 kW
265’

62
 Orientation
Turbines can be categorized into two overarching
classes based on the orientation of the rotor
Vertical Axis Horizontal Axis
 Vertical Axis Turbines

Advantages Disadvantages
• Omnidirectional • Rotors generally near ground
– Accepts wind from any where wind poorer
angle • Centrifugal force stresses
blades
• Components can be • Poor self-starting capabilities
mounted at ground
level • Requires support at top of
turbine rotor
– Ease of service • Requires entire rotor to be
– Lighter weight towers removed to replace bearings
• Can theoretically use • Overall poor performance
less materials to and reliability
capture the same • Have never been
amount of wind commercially successful
Lift vs Drag
VAWTs
Lift Device
“Darrieus”
– Low solidity,
aerofoil blades
– More efficient
than drag device
Drag Device
“Savonius”
– High solidity, cup
shapes are
pushed by the
wind
– At best can
capture only 15%
of wind energy
VAWT’s have not been
commercially successful, yet…
Every few years a new
company comes along
promising a revolutionary
breakthrough in wind
turbine design that is low
cost, outperforms
anything else on the
WindStor
market, and overcomes all Mag-Wind
of the previous problems
with VAWT’s. They can
also usually be installed on
a roof or in a city where
wind is poor.
WindTree Wind Wandler
Horizontal Axis
Wind Turbines
• Rotors are usually
Up-wind of tower
• Some machines
have down-wind
rotors, but only
commercially
available ones are
small turbines
Types of Electricity Generating Windmills &
applications

Small (10 kW)

• Homes Intermediate
• Farms (10-250 kW)
• Remote Applications • Village Power
(e.g. water pumping, • Hybrid Systems
telecom sites,
icemaking) • Distributed Power

Large (250 kW - 2+MW)

• Central Station Wind Farms
• Distributed Power
Synchronous Generators
Asynchronous Generator

75
Wind Turbines drive trains

76
Dealing with variable / changing wind speeds

77
Modern Small Wind Turbines:
High Tech, High Reliability, Low Maintenance

• Technically Advanced
• Only 2-3 Moving Parts
• Very Low Maintenance
Requirements
• Proven: ~ 5,000 On-Grid 10 kW
50
• American Companies are kW
the Market and
Technology Leaders
400 W
900 W
(Not to scale)
SouthWest WindPower Sky Stream
Rated Capacity: 1.8 KW

Rotor: 12 feet (3.72 m); 50-325

RPM

Estimated Energy Production:

400 KWh/month at 12 MPH

Tower: Towers from 34-70 feet

COST: 8 - 12K Installed

Net Metering
 10 kW Wind Turbine

24 m (80 ft)
GuyedTower

Safety Cummulative
Switch Production
Meter
Power
Processing AC Load
Unit (Inverter) Center
Large Wind Turbines
• 328’ base to blade
• Each blade 112’
• Span greater than 747
• 163.3 tons total
• Foundation 20’ deep
• Rated at 1.5 megawatt
• Supply at least 350 homes
 10

Nacelle 5
Components

16
17
12
12
1. Hub controller 11. Blade bearing
2. Pitch cylinder 12. Blade
3. Main shaft 13. Rotor lock system
4. Oil cooler 14. Hydraulic unit
5. Gearbox 15. Machine foundation
6. Top Controller 16. Yaw gears
7. Parking Break 17. Generator
8. Service crane 18. Ultra-sonic sensors
9. Transformer 19. Meteorological gauges
10. Blade Hub 87
Wind Farms
Windfarm 2
Off-Shore Windfarms
Middelgrunden
Wind Turbine Perspective
Workers Blade
112’ long

Nacelle
56 tons

Tower
3 sections
 Relative height
of tall human
Wind Power Today:
structures
Relative Height

Empire Eiffel Umass 1.5 MW Medium Farm

State Tower Library Turbine Turbine Turbine
1250’ 986’ 297’ 356’ 212’ 142’
381 m 301 m 90 m 109 m 65 m 43 m
28 stories --------------examples -------------------
 Calculation of Wind Power

•Power
Power inWind
in the the wind
= ½ρAV3
Effect of air density, 
– Effect of swept area, A
– Effect of wind speed, V
R

Swept Area: A = πR2

Area of the circle swept
by the rotor (m2).
Why do windmills
need to be high in
the sky??

1 MPH approx. 0.5

m/s

1 foot = 0.3048
meters
 Wind Turbine Technology

North Wind 100 Lagerwey LW58 Enercon E-66 Enercon E-112 Boeing 747
North Wind
rating 100 kW rating: 750 kW rating: 1800 kW rating: 4000 kW wing span: 69.8m
HR3
rotor: 19.1 m rotor: 58 m rotor: 70 m rotor: 112 m length: 73.5 m
rating: 3 kW
rotor: 5 m hub height: 25 m hub height: 65 m hub height: 85 m hub height: 100 m
hub height: 15
m

Comparative Scale for a Range of Wind Turbines

 How Big is a 2.0 MW
Wind Turbine?
This picture shows a
Vestas V-80 2.0-MW wind
turbine superimposed on a
Boeing 747 JUMBO JET

102
Recent Capacity Enhancements
2006
5 MW
600’

2003
1.8 MW
2000 350’
850 kW
265’

103
Wind Turbine Power Curve
2500

Vestas V80 2 MW Wind Turbine

2000

KW 1500

1000

500

0
10 20 30 40 50

MPH 104
 Kenya Wind Energy Challenges
• Best wind sites distant from
– population centers
– major grid connections
• Wind variability
– Can mitigate if forecasting improves
• Non-firm power
– Debate on how much backup generation is required
• NIMBY component
– Cape Wind project met with strong resistance by Cape Cod residents
• Limited offshore sites
– Sea floor drops off rapidly on east and west coasts
• North Sea essentially a large lake
• Intermittent federal tax incentives
105
Future Tech Developments

• Application Specific Turbines

– Offshore
– Limited land/resource areas
– Transportation or construction limitations
– Low wind resource
– Cold climates

106
Wind Disadvantages

107
Market Barriers
 Siting
 Avian
 Noise
 Aesthetics
 Intermittent source of power
 Transmission constraints
 Operational characteristics different from conventional
fuel sources
 Financing

108
Wind Energy and the Grid
 Pros
 Small project size
 Short/flexible development time
 Dispatchability
 Cons
 Generally remote location
 Grid connectivity -- lack of transmission capability
 Intermittent output
 Only When the wind blows (night? Day?)
 Low capacity factor
 Predicting the wind -- we’re getting better 109
Birds - A Serious Obstacle

 Birds of Prey (hawks, owls, golden eagles) in jeopardy

 Altamont Pass – News Update – from Sept 22
 shut down all the turbines for at least two months each winter
 eliminate the 100 most lethal turbines
 Replace all before permits expire in 13 years

110
Wind – Characteristics & Consequences
 Remote location and low capacity factor
 Higher transmission investment per unit output
 Small project size and quick development
time
 Planning mismatch with transmission investment
 Intermittent output
 Higher system operating costs if systems and
protocols not designed properly

111
Balancing Supply & Demand
4500

Gas
4000

Gas/Hydro
3500

Base Load – Coal

3000

112
Energy Delivery
Lake Benton II Storm Lake
Lake Benton & Storm Lake Power
Combined
February 24, 2002
200000

180000

160000

140000

120000
(kW)

100000

80000

60000

40000

20000

0
0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:00

11:00

12:00

13:00

14:00

15:00

16:00

17:00

18:00

19:00

20:00

21:00

22:00

23:00
(HH:MM)
113
Energy Delivery
Lake Benton II Storm Lake
Lake Benton & Storm Lake Power
Combined
July 7, 2003
180000

160000

140000

120000

100000
(kW)

80000

60000

40000

20000

0
0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:00

11:00

12:00

13:00

14:00

15:00

16:00

17:00

18:00

19:00

20:00

21:00

22:00

23:00
(HH:MM)
114
Potential of Wind Energy
Importance of Wind Speed
• No other factor is more
important to the amount
of power available in the
wind than the speed of
the wind
• Power is a cubic function
of wind speed
– VXVXV
• 20% increase in wind
speed means 73% more
power
• Doubling wind speed
means 8 times more
power
Lecture 4: Market development & status of
industry
 Current wind Market Status – Kenya
Wind Farm Name / Proponent Cost Installed capacity
KES. 1.6 billion (US$
Ngong Hills wind farm I 18 million) 5.1 MW
Expansion of Ngong Hills wind farm I phase 2 13.6 MW
KES. 70 billion
Lake Turkana Wind power (LTWP) (US$800 million) 300 MW
Ngong Hills wind farm II 6.8 MW
Isiolo Wind 150 MW
Marsabit Wind 50 MW
KES 12.9 billion (US$
Aeolus - Kinangop wind park 150 million) 60.8 MW
Kes 25.8 billion (US$
Kipeto energy limited, Kajiado county 300) 100 MW

Aiming by 2030 to have an installed capacity of 2, 036 MW (current 687 MW)

Transmission Problems

•65 million customers

• 330+ generating units
• Over 8,000 miles of
transmission lines
• 11 Interconnections
• 28,100 MW of capacity
• Peak demand:
22,544MW
Key Issues facing Wind Power
Tax Credits
 No Government Incentives for Small Wind Large
 Grid connected Wind turbines Supported with
Feed in Tariffs
 For grid connected wind turbines, tax
exemptions given
Proposal for Residential Small Wind Incentives

May 1, 2002

Tax Incentives Buydown* Net Metering Local Option Tax Tax Incentives & *Contact your utility to see if you
qualify for the Renewable Energy
Only Incentives** Buydown Resources Program.
Net Tax Incentives, Tax Incentives Net Metering & Local ** Contact your city or county to see
Metering & Net Metering & & Net Metering Option Tax Incentives** if they offer tax incentives for small
Buydown Buydown wind systems.
Site identification and siting
 Photosimulation
of Wind Plant

Actual
Wind Plant
Predicting Power Output
eWind Day-Ahead Hourly Forecast
Reported eWind Forecast

140
120
Power Output (MW)

100
80
60
40
20
0
2/5 2/6 2/7 2/8 2/9 2/10 2/11
Date
What does it take to install a Turbine?
• Utility Engineers
• Geophysical Engineers
• Concrete/Structural Engineering
• Turbine Engineering (ME/EE/Aerospace)
• Site/Civil Engineering
• Microelectronic/Computer Programming
• Business Expertise (Financial)
• Legal Expertise
• Meteorologists
 Wind Energy Storage
• Pumped hydroelectric
– Pump water uphill at night or when wind energy production exceeds demand
– Flow water downhill through hydroelectric turbines during the day or when wind energy production is less
than demand
– About 70 - 80% round trip efficiency
– Raises cost of wind energy by 25%
– Difficult to find, obtain government approval and build new facilities
• Compressed Air Energy Storage
– Using wind power to compress air in underground storage caverns
• Salt domes, empty natural gas reservoirs
– Costly, inefficient
• Hydrogen storage
– Use wind power to electrolyze water into hydrogen
– Store hydrogen for use later in fuel cells
– 50% losses in energy from wind to hydrogen and hydrogen to electricity
– 25% round trip efficiency
– Raises cost of wind energy by 4X

130
Future Cost Reductions
• Financing Strategies
• Manufacturing Economy of Scale
• Better Sites and “Tuning” Turbines
for Site Conditions
• Technology Improvements

131
Lecture 5: Environmental issues
Impacts of Wind Power: Noise
• Modern turbines are relatively quiet
• Rule of thumb – stay about 3x hub-height
away from houses
• the noise emitted can be divided into two
categories according to its origins:
mechanical and aerodynamic.
• The first type is produced by the moving
mechanical parts (gear box, electrical
generator, bearings, etc.)
• The second type is caused by the revolutions
of the blades.
Impacts of Wind Power: electromagnetic
interference
• the transmission from radio or television broadcast frequencies
(mainly FM broadcast frequencies) is influenced by obstacles
between the transmitter and the receiver.
• the moving blades which can result in signal variations due to deflection. This
effect was more of a problem with first generation wind turbines which had
metal blades. The blades of modern wind turbines are made exclusively of
synthetic materials which have a minimal impact on the transmission of
electromagnetic radiation.
Impacts of Wind Power: Bird populations
• Flying birds sometimes run into buildings and other permanent
structures. Wind turbines, however, do not cause a particular
problem as has been demonstrated by studies done in other
European countries, such as Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark
and England
• Specifically, it was calculated that out of the total number of birds killed in a
year, only 20 deaths were due to wind turbines (for an installed capacity of
1000MW), while 1500 deaths were caused by hunters and 2000 caused by
collisions with vehicles and electricity transmission lines (they are almost
“invisible” for birds).
• Of course, the protection of birds in ecologically sensitive and protected areas
must be taken into consideration in the planning and location of a wind farm
Advantages of Wind Power

• Environmental
• Economic Development
• Fuel Diversity & Conservation
• Cost Stability

137
Environmental Benefits

• No air pollution
• No greenhouse gasses
• Does not pollute water with mercury
• No water needed for operations

138
Lecture 6: Wind farm technology issues
Wind Farm Development

140
Inconsistent Policy  Unstable Markets

141
Source: American Wind Energy Association
Closing the Deal

• Small developers utilize a “partnership flip”

– Put the deal together
– Sell it to a large wind owner
• e.g. Florida Power & Light, AEP, Shell Wind Energy, PPM – Scottish
Power
• Shell and PPM jointly own Lamar wind farm
– Large wind owner assumes ownership and builds the wind farm

142
Wind Farm Development

• Financing
– Once all components are settled…
• Wind resource
• Zoning/Public Approval/Land Lease
• Power Purchase Agreements (PPA)
• Connectivity to the grid
• Turbine procurement
• Construction costs
– …Take the deal to get financed
143
Wind Farm Development

• Key parameters
– Wind resource
– Zoning/Public Approval/Land Lease
– Power purchase agreements
– Connectivity to the grid
– Financing
– Tax incentives

144
Wind Farm Development
• Wind resource
– Absolutely vital to determine finances
• Wind is the fuel
– Requires historical wind data
• Daily and hourly detail
– Install metrological towers
• Preferably at projected turbine hub height
• Multiple towers across proposed site
– Multiyear data reduces financial risk
• Correlate long term offsite data to support short term onsite data
– Local NWS metrological station 145
Wind Energy Variability

146
Source: Garrad Hassan America, Inc.
Wind Farm Development

• Zoning/Public Approval/Land Lease

– Obtain local and state governmental approvals
• Often includes Environmental Impact Studies
– Impact to wetlands, birds (especially raptors)
• NIMBY component
– View sheds
– Negotiate lease arrangements with ranchers, farmers, Native
American tribes, etc.
• Annual payments per turbine or production based

147
Wind Farm Development
• Power Purchase Agreements (PPA)
– Must have upfront financial commitment from utility
– 15 to 20 year time frames
– Utility agrees to purchase wind energy at a set rate
• e.g. 4.3¢/kWh
– Financial stability/credit rating of utility important aspect of obtaining wind farm financing
• PPA only as good as the creditworthiness of the uitility
• Utility goes bankrupt – you’re in trouble

148
Wind Farm Development

• Connectivity to the grid

– Obtain approvals to tie to the grid
• Obtain from grid operators – WAPA, BPA, California ISO
– Power fluctuations stress the grid
• Especially since the grid is operating near max capacity

149
Wind Farm Development

• Financing
– Once all components are settled…
• Wind resource
• Zoning/Public Approval/Land Lease
• Power Purchase Agreements (PPA)
• Connectivity to the grid
• Turbine procurement
• Construction costs
– …Take the deal to get financed
150
Wind Economics

151
Wind Farm Design Economics

• Key Design Parameters

– Mean wind speed at hub height
– Capacity factor
• Start with 100%
• Subtract time when wind speed less than optimum
• Subtract time due to scheduled maintenance
• Subtract time due to unscheduled maintenance
• Subtract production losses
– Dirty blades, shut down due to high winds
• Typically 33% at a Class 4 wind site
152
Wind Farm Financing

• Financing Terms
– Interest rate
• LIBOR + 150 basis points
– Loan term
• Up to 15 years

153
Cost of Energy Components
• Cost (¢/kWh) =
(Capital Recovery Cost + O&M) / kWh/year
– Capital Recovery = Debt and Equity Cost
– O&M Cost = Turbine design, operating
environment
– kWh/year = Wind Resource

154
Costs Nosedive  Wind’s Success

38 cents/kWh
$0.40

$0.30

$0.20

$0.10 3.5-5.0 cents/kWh

$0.00
1980 1984 1988 1991 1995 2000 2005

Levelized cost at good wind sites in nominal dollars,

not including tax credit

155
Construction Cost Elements
Design &
Financing & Legal Engineering
Fees 2%
3% Land
Development Transportation
Activity 2%
4%
Interconnect/
Subsation Turbines, FOB
4% USA
49%
Interest During
Construction
4%
Towers
(tubular steel)
10%
Construction
22%

156
Wind Farm Cost
WindComponents
Farm Component Costs

100%

80%
Balance of System
Transportation
60%
Foundations
Tower
40% Control System
Drive Train Nacelle
20% Blades and Rotor

0%
750 kW 1500 kW 3000 kW
157
Wind Farm Economics

• Capacity factor
– Start with 100%
– Subtract time when wind speed < optimum
– Subtract time due to scheduled maintenance
– Subtract time due to unscheduled maintenance
– Subtract production losses
• Dirty blades, shut down due to high winds
– Typically 33% at a Class 4 wind site

158
Siting a Wind Farm
• Winds
– Minimum class 4 desired for utility-scale wind farm (>7 m/s at hub height)
• Transmission
– Distance, voltage excess capacity
• Permit approval
– Land-use compatibility
– Public acceptance
– Visual, noise, and bird impacts are biggest concern
• Land area
– Economies of scale in construction
– Number of landowners

159
Wind Power Classes
10 m (33 ft) 50 m (164
ft)
Wind Speed Speed
Power m/s m/s
Class (mph) (mph)
0 0
1
4.4 (9.8) 5.6 (12.5)
2
5.1 (11.5) 6.4 (14.3)
3
5.6 (12.5) 7.0 (15.7)
4
6.0 (13.4) 7.5 (16.8)
5
6.4 (14.3) 8.0 (17.9)
6
7.0 (15.7) 8.8 (19.7)
7
9.4 (21.1) 11.9 (26.6)
Wind speed is for standard sea-level conditions. To maintain the same power density, speed
increases 3%/1000 m (5%/5000 ft) elevation.

160
Lecture 7:
wind turbines: aerodynamics, static & dynamic
loading of wind turbines, controls, & designs
Wind turbines Aerodynamics
• How does the
rotor turn?
Force on a Rotor Blade
Rotor speed along the blade
Angle of attack and stall
Force on a Rotor blade
Wind turbines blades
Power in the wind
Power in the wind (2)
Power in the wind
Power density
Power vs. Wind speed
Power vs. Swept area
Observations from power equation (1)
Observations from the power equation (2)
Air Density
Ideal gas law
Air density vs. Temperature
Air Density vs. Altitude
Air density vs. Altitude (2)
Air pressure vs. Altitude
Temperature and altitude corrections
Impact of Tower Height
Extrapolation of wind speeds to higher heights
Friction coefficient
Roughness class
Wind speed and power ratio
Summary
Question 1
Question 1: Answer
Question 2
Question 2: Answer
Question 3
Question 4
Albert Betz’s Formulation
Power extracted from the wind
Power extracted from the wind
Maximum rotor efficiency
Betz’s law
Tip-speed ratio
Question 5:
Question 5: Answer
Question 5: Answer
Variable rotor speed
Pole changing induction generator
Multiple gearbox
Variable slip induction generator
Indirect grid connection systems
• Lecture 8 ….
Lecture 8: Wind machines: Economics and
performance tests
1-1 Total investment cost
• Total investment of wind turbine is divided to:
– Turbine manufacturing (ex-work)
– Construction like foundation, building and engineering
– Connecting to grid

Region Power (kWe) Turbine cost (US$ per kWe)

United states[1] 200 1000 - 1200

European community[2] 100 - 400 1000 – 1300

The Netherlands[3] 250 800

• Approximately % 75 - 80 of total investment is related to turbine (reported

by USA and the Netherlands )
•The total investment is about 900 – 1300 US$ per kWe
•Making the turbine should be more cost effective than construction but
connecting to grid are increasing
1-2 Effective life time of system

• For economic considering, wind turbines often have 20 years

economic life time and this time is equal to system design
• Although we should notice that the best turbines have proven
life time around 10 to 15 years
1-3 Operation / Maintenance Cost
• O & M costs are often considering as a percentage of total investment or electricity production
cost per kilowatt hour:
O & M Cost
Region
US cent/kWh
Europe ( scientific experiences)[2] 0.5
European community study 1
US department of energy & SERI[1] 1
0.6 (for first 2 years)
Danish energy agency (1990) [3] 0.8 (for next 3 years)
1 (after 5 years)
• The percentage of the total investment attributed to operation and
maintenance costs rises as wind turbines become older
• Operation and maintenance costs are divided into parts such as:
• services
Machine Size Year 1-2 Year 3-5 Year 6-10 Year 11-15 Year 16-20
• consumables
150 kW 1.2 2.8 3.3 6.1 7.0
• repair
300 kW 1.0 2.2 2.6 4.0 5.0
• insurance
500-600 kW 1.0 1.9 2.2 3.5 4.5
• administration
Annual operational and maintenance costs in % of the investment in the wind turbine
• lease of site (Danish Energy Agency, 1999, p.19)
1-4 Physical properties of wind and wind turbine output energy

Average output energy per square meter of rotor swept per year is the below
form:
E  b(v 3 ) KWh/m2/yr
b: efficiency Coefficient (this factor is an efficiency quality of wind turbines, is
not constant around the world and depends on average velocity of wind in
a year and wind distribution)
v: velocity average in a year

Efficiency Factor

4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991
Year

Improvement of efficiency factor of wind turbines [4] Distribution function of wind velocity [4]
1-5 Technical availability
• System availability is the portion of a year that turbine can produce energy.
A turbine may not produce energy all the year because of maintenance,
unpredictable events and repairing.
Technical Avaiability %

120
100

80
60
40

20
0
1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
Year

Technical availability of best US wind turbines [5]

• There are no records or reported experiences about unavailability

• Only US (as figure 5-1) showed that:
• Medium sized wind turbines (250 KWe) probably reached to desired availability
• Large scale wind turbines (> 300 KWe) are in first steps
• The best wind turbines in US reaches to %95 availability level after 5 years operation.
Sample Wind Farm Costs
For example an indicative capital cost for a "turn-key" contract to
supply, install and commission a large wind farm, as shown in the
table, based on 400 kW wind turbines (and UK experience), is about
A$850 - $1,050 per square metre of rotor swept area or A$1.8 - $2.7
million per MW
Project Initiation Financing 1% project cost
Planning Consent $10,000 to $50,000
Project development/ management $50,000

Capital Costs Ex-factory cost of machines $550/sq.m swept area

Install and commission 15% ex-factory cost
Infrastructure & connect 45% ex factory cost

Annual costs Operation and maintenance 1.5% of capital cost

Metering 0.64 c/kVArh
reactive power 0.5% of capital cost
Insurance 1.5% of gross revenue
Land rental Rates $13 per installed kW
Wind Energy Project Analyses (Data from Renewable Energy Technology Screen case studies, Canada), [11]

Remote Wind farm Green Power Grid-Connected Large Wind Offshore Isolated Island Wind Power on Grid-Connected
Project name Unit
Community Repowering Production Wind farm Turbines Wind farm Community Hydro Central-Grid Wind Farm

Yukon, Alberta, Alberta, Andhra Pradesh, Niedersachsen, Copenhagen, Newfoundland, Kennewick, Wigton,
Project location ---
Canada Canada Canada India Germany Denmark Canada WA Jamaica

Annual average wind speed m/s 6 6.5 6.2 6.2 6.4 7.2 6.5 6.6 8.3

Grid type --- Isolated-grid Central-grid Central-grid Central-grid Central-grid Central-grid Isolated-grid Central-grid Central-grid

Number of turbines --- 1 32 1 80 6 20 6 49 23

Wind plant capacity kW 150 19200 600 20000 9900 40000 390 63700 20700

Unadjusted energy production MWh 585 65375 1933 43022 18848 110599 908 181128 82133

Pressure adjustment coefficient --- 0.84 0.9 0.9 0.93 1 1 0.98 0.96 0.89

Temperature adjustment coefficient --- 1.08 1.03 1.03 0.96 1.02 1.02 1.04 1.03 0.98

Gross energy production MWh 530 60603 1792 38410 19225 112811 926 179100 71637

Losses coefficient --- 0.88 0.94 0.95 0.9 0.9 0.89 0.87 0.9 0.77

Renewable energy delivered MWh 469 57044 1704 34679 17372 99839 562 161842 55235

Renewable energy delivered GJ 1687 205360 6134 124845 62540 359422 2022 582630 198846

Base case GHG emission factor tCO2/MWh 0.472 0.513 0.491 0.559 0.861 0.898 0.925 0.559 1.019

Net annual GHG emission reduction tCO2 210 25772 770 17045 13767 82513 494 79547 47044

Initial Costs

Feasibility Study % 5 0.1 2.9 0.3 0.5 1.3 2.4 0.3 0

Development % 4.6 0.2 4.5 0.8 3.5 4.1 4 1.1 0

Engineering % 6.9 0.2 4.5 0.6 0.3 0 7.2 0.8 11.3

Energy Equipment % 38.4 81.6 63.9 77.5 69.4 49.8 50.6 74.6 69.6

Balance of Plant % 36.5 12.2 16.3 11.8 21.5 41.7 30 12.1 10.1

Miscellaneous % 8.5 5.7 7.9 9.1 4.8 3.1 5.7 11.1 9

Feasibility Study $ 4 3,500 1 9,100 3 5,300 47413 36487 548804 30,000 245,200 -

Development $ 4 0,000 5 4,700 5 4,900 132604 281631 1735190 50,000 835,500 -

Engineering $ 5 9,800 5 9,300 5 4,600 112578 24334 - 90,000 610,500 195,000

Energy Equipment $ 331,750 2 4,250,400 7 82,200 13607274 5539156 21064398 632,040 59,275,016 1,206,192

Balance of Plant $ 315,000 3 ,635,000 2 00,000 2071877 1716806 17626301 375,000 9,638,000 175,500

Miscellaneous $ 73,576 1 ,702,904 9 6,437 1595178 386016 1299375 71,211 8,829,119 156,093

Initial Costs - Total $ 863,626 29,721,404 1,223,437 17566925 7984431 42274068 1,248,251 79,433,335 1,732,785

O&M Annual Costs - Total $ 26,074 81968 47662 319831 230 725 22.071 2,557,215 50,050

Simple Payback yr 41.6 11.4 13.8 6.3 7.4 7.3 7.2 11.3 7

Year-to-positive cash flow yr more than 25 20.1 15.6 7.6 6.8 7.1 6.9 immediate 5.4

Annual Life Cycle Savings $ 69489 464025 2 ,012 1220962 253446 1472728 2861 1,229,164 37,231

Benefit-Cost (B-C) ratio --- 1.15 0.47 1.04 3.18 1.45 1.34 0.98 - 1.34

Avoided cost of energy $/kWh 0.1 0.06 0.08 0.0901 0.075 0.046 0.19 0.0439 0.0033
1-6 Total Production cost
SERI / DOE [3] EC [1,2] DEA [3]

400 – 500 US$/m2 = 400 – 600 US$/m2 = 5680 DKK/KWe =

Total investment cost 1000 – 1200 US$/KWe 900 – 1100 US$/KWe 770 US$/KWe

Average of wind velocity 6.6 m/s in 25 m height - 6.5 m/s in 30 m height

Total gained energy per year 800 – 1070 KWe / m2 - 1000 KWe / m2

Capacity factor - % 28.5 % 22.3

Availability % 95 %95 -

Total energy loss % 23 - -

1 - 2 years : % 1.4
O&M 1 cent / KWh % 2 of total investment per year 3 – 5 years : % 2
6 – 20 years : % 2.5

Substitution cost of turbines 27000 – 40000 $

- -
(after 8th & 20th yrs) ( for 200 KWe wind turbine)

Lifetime 30 yrs 20 yrs 20 yrs

Interest rate 0.061 - -

Fixed cost rate 0.102 - -

Investment (real) rate of return - % 5 per year % 7 per year

Total Cost 6.8 US cent/KWh 3.5 – 7 US cent/KWh 4.5 US cent/KWh

1-6 Total Production cost ( Cont’d)
• EC capacity factor almost considered high and in US long lifetime
• Generally Danish study seems more realistic.
• As a result, we can conclude total production cost is about 5 – 10 US cent / KWh.
• In general, the initial investment for a 1MW wind turbine project is about 1.1 million
EUR (S.E.I., 2004, p.4).
• As shown in the below table, the most expensive part of the investment is the costs of
turbines, accounting for 80 % of the total installation cost.
Average cost of a typical 600 kW turbine project (Danish Energy Agency, 1999)

Component Average DKK (600kW)

Turbine ex-works5 3 146 000
Foundation 149 000
Grid connection 288 000
Electrical Installation 20 000
Tele communication 14 000
Land 103 000
Roads 39 000
Consulting 36 000
Finance 20 000

Insurance 94 000
Total 3 909 000
1-7 Cost Comparison with Other Energy Sources
(A.W.E.A., 2002, p.1)

Data from 1996 comparing the Levelized Plant Fuel Type USD cents/kWh
(Include all capital, fuel, and operating Coal 4,8 - 5,5
and maintenance costs associated with
the plant over its lifetime and divides that Gas 3,9 - 4,4
total cost by the estimated output in kWh Hydro 5,1 - 11,3
over the lifetime of the plant)
Biomass 5,8 - 11,6
Nuclear 11,1 - 14,5
Wind 4,0 - 6,0

Production cost External cost Total cost

Fuels
Production, external and total costs ( EUR cents/kWh) ( EUR cents/kWh) ( EUR cents/kWh)

of different energy fuels (Belgian Nuclear 3.1 0.1 3.2

Ministry of Energy and Sustainable Gas (CHP) 3.2 1.0 4.2
Development: Pauwel and Streydio,
Coal 3.4 2.4 5.8
2000, p.18).
Wind onshore/inland 7.8 0.3 8.1

Wind onshore/on coast 4.5 0.1 4.6

Wind offshore 5.8 0.1 5.9

Conclusion

It appears that Wind Energy cannot compete in the

market with traditional energy sources without the
help of financial support.
But if we consider climate change, global warming
and GHG emissions, wind energy will be financially
feasible.

Thank You
2- Project Development

2-1 Initial site selection

2-2 project feasibility assessment
2-3 the Measure-Correlate-Predict technique
2-4 site investigation
2-5 Public investigation
2-6 Preparation and submission of planning application
2-1 Initial site selection
• The mean power production for a wind turbine is given by:
E T  P(U ) f (U ) dU
– P (U): power curve of wind turbine is available from turbine suppliers
– f (U): probability density function of the wind speed may be obtained from wind atlas (European wind
atlas, 1989)
– T: time period

• Energy yield of a wind turbine can be estimated as shown in below by combining the wind speed
distribution with the power curve:
i n

– H (ui): number of hours in wind speed E   H (u

i 1
i ) P (u i )
– P (ui): power output at the wind speed

• Road access for transporting the turbines and other related equipment such as main
transformer
• A review of the main environmental considerations, the important constraints includes special
consideration of areas
– Ensuring that no turbine is located so close to domestic dwellings
– Avoiding area of particular ecological value as well as any locations of particular archaeological or
historical interest
– Noise
– Visual domination
– Light shadow flicker
• In parallel with the technical and environmental assessments it is normal to open discussion
with local civic or planning authorities to identify and agree the major potential issues.
2-2 project feasibility assessment

• Once a potential site has been identified then more detailed, and
expensive, investigations are required in order to confirm the feasibility
of project
• The wind farm energy output, and the financial viability of the scheme,
will be very sensitive to the wind speed over the life of the project
• To establish a prediction of the long term wind resource, it is
recommended to use the measure-correlate-predict (MCP) technique.
(Derrick, 1993, Mortimer, 1994)
2-3 the measure-correlate-predict technique
• MCP approach: linear regression is used to establish a relationship between the
measured site wind speed and long term meteorological wind speed data of the form:

Usite = a + b Ulong-term
• Coefficients are calculated for some directional sectors and the correction for the site
applied to the long term data record of meteorological station

• Thus, MCP requires the installation of cup anemometers and wind vane at the wind
farm site and one anemometer at the hub height of wind turbine

• Measurements are made over at least 6 month period and correlated with
measurements made concurrently at the meteorological station

• Estimate what the wind speed at the wind farm site would have been over the last 20
years (as a prediction of the wind speed during the life of the project )

• Difficulties:
1. with modern wind turbines, high site meteorological masts are necessary also with planning
permission
2. availability of suitable meteorological station within 50-100 km
3. the gaps and quality of meteorological station
2-4 site investigation

• A careful assessment of existing land use

• How best the wind farm may be integrated with e.g. agricultural
operations
• The ground conditions for ensuring turbine foundations, access roads
and construction areas
• Local ground conditions for position of turbines
• Hydrological study for determining whether spring water supplies of
wind farm
• More detailed investigation like bend radii, width, gradient and any
weigh restrictions on approach roads
• Discussion with local electricity utility concerning the connection to
distribution network
2-5 Public investigation

• Prior the erection of the site anemometer the wind farm

developer may initiate some form of informal public
consultation like local community organizations, environmental
societies and wildlife trusts.
 2-6 Preparation and submission of planning application

• The purpose of wind farm environmental statement (that is an

expensive and time consuming and requires the assistance of various
specialists) may be summarized:
1. physical characteristics of wind turbines and their land use requirement
2. environmental character of proposed site and surrounding area
3. environmental impacts of the wind farm
4. measures which mitigate any adverse impact
5. need for the wind farm and allowance for planning authority and general public
decision on the application
 2-6 Preparation and submission of planning application

• Topics covered in environmental statement will typically include the following (BWEA, 1994)
– policy framework
– site selection
– designated areas
– visual and landscape assessment
– noise assessment
– ecological assessment
– archaeological and historical assessment
– hydrological assessment
– interference with telecommunication systems
– aircraft safety
– safety
– traffic management and construction
– electrical connection
– economic effects on the local economy
– decommissioning
– mitigating measures
– non-technical summary
230