Wind energy potential in Tunisia

The purpose of this paper is to constitute a database for the users of the wind power. It presents the study of 17 synoptic sites distributed on all the territory of Tunisia. From the meteorological data provided by the Meteorology National Institute (INM), two statistical methods (meteorological and Weibull) are presented to evaluate the wind speed characteristics and the wind power potential at a height of 10 m above ground level and in an open area. An extrapolation of these characteristics with the height is also carried out. The results obtained give a global vision of the distribution of the wind potential in Tunisia and define the most windy zones.     

Wind potential assessment of Quebec Province

The paper presents the development of a comprehensive wind atlas of the Province of Quebec. This study differs from previous studies by 1) use of a standard classification index to categorize the wind resource, 2) extensive review of surface and upper air data available for the Province to define the wind resource, and 3) integration of available wind data with the topography of the Province.The wind resource in the Province of Quebec is classified using the scheme proposed by Battelle—Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL). The Battelle—PNL classification is a numerical one which includes rankings from Wind Power Class 1 (lowest) to Wind Power Class 7 (highest). Associated with each numerical classification is a range of wind power and associated mean wind speed at 10 m and 50 m above ground level. For this study, a classification for 30 m above ground level was interpolated and used.A significant amount of wind data was gathered for the Province. These data were obtained from Atmospheric Environment Service (AES), Canada, from wind project developers, and from climatological summaries of surface and upper air data. A total of 35 primary data sites were selected in the Province. Although a number of wind data sites in the Province were identified and used in the analysis, large areas of the Province lacked any specific wind information.The Province was divided into grid blocks having dimensions of 1/4° latitude by 1/3° longitude. Each grid block is assigned a numerical Wind Power Class value ranging from 1 to 7. This value is based on the integration of the available wind data and the topography within the square. The majority of the Province was classified as 1 or 2. Coastal locations and topographic features in the interior of the Province typically have Wind Power Class 3 or higher.     

Wind characteristics and wind energy potential in Morocco

The wind characteristics of 11 sites in the windy regions in Morocco have been analysed. The annual average wind speed for the considered sites ranged from 5 m/s to 10 m/s and the average power density from 100 W/m² to 1000 W/m², which might be suitable for electrical power production by installing wind farms. On an annual scale the observations of the distribution of hourly wind speed are better fitted by the Weibull hybrid distribution in contrast to the Weibull distribution.The wind power is estimated to be 1817 MW, that is to say, the exploitable wind energy is 15198 GWh, which represents theoretically 11% of the total consumed energy in Morocco in 1994.     

Wind shear coefficients and energy yield for Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

This study presents calculated values of wind shear coefficients (WSE) using measured values of wind speed at 20, 30, and 40 m above ground level (AGL), for Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The study also includes the air density estimated using measured air temperature and surface pressure and effect of wind shear coefficient on energy yield from a wind farm of 60 MW installed capacity developed using 40 wind turbines of 1500 kW size. The data used in the determination of wind shear coefficient covered a period of almost 5 years between 4 October 1995 and 30 November 2000.The study suggests a value of 0.189 of wind shear coefficient for the calculation of wind speed at different heights if measured values are known at one height. No regular seasonal trend was observed in the values of wind shear coefficients. In case of diurnal variation, higher values were observed during nighttime and early hours of the day and comparatively smaller values during day light hours. The air density, calculated using measured temperature and pressure was found to be 1.18 kg/m³. The energy yield obtained using RetScreen software, showed that the actual wind shear coefficient presented in this paper produced around 11–12% more energy compared to that obtained using 1/7 power law. Accordingly, 2–3% higher plant capacity factors were achieved using actual site-dependent wind shear coefficient instead of 1/7th wind power law exponent for the calculation of wind speed at hub-height.     

Wind energy and assessment of wind energy potential in Turkey

In this study, the potential of wind energy and assessment of wind energy systems in Turkey were studied. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the wind energy potential and future wind conversion systems project in Turkey. The wind energy potential of various regions was investigated; and the exploitation of the wind energy in Turkey was discussed. Various regions were analyzed taking into account the wind data measured as hourly time series in the windy locations. The wind data used in this study were taken from Electrical Power Resources Survey and Development Administration (EIEI) for the year 2010. This paper reviews the assessment of wind energy in Turkey as of the end of May 2010 including wind energy applications. Turkey's total theoretically available potential for wind power is around 131,756.40 MW and sea wind power 17,393.20 MW annually, according to TUREB (TWEA). When Turkey has 1.5 MW nominal installed wind energy capacity in 1998, then this capacity has increased to 1522.20 MW in 2010. Wind power plant with a total capacity of 1522.20 MW will be commissioned 2166.65 MW in December 2011.     

Wind energy potential assessment for the Sultanate of Oman

Wind data analysis for the Sultanate of Oman is carried out in this study. The results are presented mainly in the form of contour maps, in addition to tabulated data and figures for average wind speed and direction as well as wind availability and power density spanning a period of ten years. The analysis covers diurnal, seasonal and height variations on wind parameters. The data used in the analysis were obtained from NASA Langley Research Center. This analysis provides a needed reference for the spatial distribution of wind characteristics for the whole of Oman from which possible locations for the deployment of wind-based energy conversion systems may be identified.     

Wind energy potential in Syria

Both wind energy potential and the electricity that could be generated by the wind for the Syrian land have been evaluated. An appropriate computer program was especially prepared and designed to perform the required calculations, mainly the wind energy potential and the generated electricity, using the available meteorological data provided by the Syrian Atlas. The program is capable of processing the wind data for any specific area, that is of course, in accordance with the needed requirements in fields of researches and applications.Moreover, calculations show that a huge energy potential is available for direct exploitation and as much as twice the current electricity consumption in Syria can be generated by the wind resource.     

Wind energy resources on Phuquoc Island,Vietnam

This study analyzes the wind energy resources on Phuquoc Island, Vietnam. Daily wind data are collected from 2005 to 2011 in this study. The annual mean speed and power density are 6 m/s and 355 W/m², respectively. Results show that more than 35% of the wind energy comes from the northwest. In this study, a 75 MW wind farm with 25 wind turbines is simulated by using the WAsP 10 program. The wind farm can produce over 189.636 GWh annually. In addition, the effects of wind disturbance and three-phase short circuit of the grid are analyzed using the ETAP 7.0 program.     

Validity analysis of maximum entropy distribution based on different moment constraints for wind energy assessment

Knowing about wind speed distribution for a specific site is very essential step in wind resource utilizations. In this paper, a probability density function with the maximum entropy principle is derived using different algorithm from previous studies. Its validity considering various numbers of moment constraints is tested and compared with the conventional Weibull function in terms of computation accuracy. Judgment criterions include the Chi-square error, root mean square error, maximum error in cumulative distribution function as well as the relative error of wind power density between theoretical function and observation data. Wind sample data are observed at four wind farms having different weather conditions in Taiwan. The results show that the entropy quantities reveal a negative correlation with the number of constraints used, regardless of station considered. For a specific site experiencing more stable weather condition where wind regimes are not too dispersive, the conventional Weibull function may accurately describe the distribution. While for wind regimes having two humps on it, the maximum entropy distributions proposed outperform a lot the Weibull function, irrespective of wind speed or power density analyzed. For the consideration of computation burden, using four moment constraints in calculating maximum entropy parameters is recommended in wind analysis.     

Wind energy resource assessment for five locations in Saudi Arabia

The analysis of recently collected wind data at five sites in Saudi Arabia namely, Dhulum, Arar, Yanbu, Gassim and Dhahran is presented. The five sites represent different geographically and climatologically conditions. The data collected over a period spanned between 1995 and 2002 with different collection periods for each site. Daily, monthly and frequency profiles of the wind speed at the sites showed that Dhulum and Arar sites have higher wind energy potential with annual wind speed average of 5.7 and 5.4 m/s and speeds higher than 5 m/s for 60 and 47% of the time, respectively. The two sites are candidates for remote area wind energy applications. The costal site's, i.e. Yanbu and Dhahran wind speed data indicated that the two sites have lower annual wind speed averages and wind blows at speed higher than 5 m/s during afternoon hours. That makes the two sites candidates for grid connected wind systems for electrical load peak shaving. The data of Gassim site showed that the site has the lowest wind energy potential compared to the others. The annual energy produced by a Nordex N43 wind machine is estimated to be 1080, 990, 730, 454 and 833 MWh for Dhulum, Arar, Yanbu, Gassim and Dhahran, respectively. The analysis showed that the estimated annual energy produced by the machine based on 10 min averaged data is 2.5% higher than the estimated energy based on 30 min averaged data.     

Wind power potential and characteristic analysis of the Pearl River Delta region, China

Wind power potentials of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region have been statistically analyzed based on the hourly measured wind speed data in four islands. The hourly and monthly wind speed and wind power density are assessed to have remarkable variations, and the Weibull distribution function has been derived from the available data with its two parameters identified. The wind power and operating possibilities of these locations have been studied based on the Weibull function. The wind power potentials of these sites were found to be encouraging; however, the wind power at different site varies significantly, so attention should be paid to the wind conditions as well as the site terrains in choosing the wind farm sites.     

The assessment of actual wind power availability in ireland

Data on actual wind energy availability in Ireland are sparse. This is because (a) relatively little data on wind speeds have been collected in Ireland at sites of interest for wind exploitation, and (b) such data need in any case to be integrated with the characteristics of actual windmills which respond more efficiently to certain wind speed than to others. This paper describes a methodology for performing such an integration, and offers tables of specific output for windmills of different characteristics located at different sites in Ireland. the variations in this specific output are discussed.     

Wind energy resource map of Labrador

In this paper a wind energy resource map of Labrador, Canada is presented. Surface data collected from weather stations located throughout Labrador has been collected and extrapolated for height and surface condition adjustments. Several mesoscale wind maps have been obtained from the NCEP/NCAR and COADS databases, along with the generation of a couple of mesoscale wind maps with information from a NASA database. By combining the global data based maps and the modified ground data, a wind resource map indicating various classes of wind potential has been developed. This wind resource map indicates that wind speed is strongest in the southeast portion of Labrador in the Battle Harbor region. It has also been found that wind speed gradually decreases from the coastal regions the interior, in addition to a decreasing wind speed moving northward along the coast. Suggestions for future work and development of a complete wind map are also provided.     

对福建省陆地风能资源的评估

对我国福建省福州和厦门2座城市进行了风能开发潜力的评估.基于对该地区近15年的日平均风速的统计分析,计算了各月的风能密度,拟合出了Weibull分布密度函数的特征参数.用Weibull分布密度函数预测了各月的风能密度.并与实测值进行了对比及相关性分析,结果证明了Weibull函数对实测数据有很好的拟合性,同时也表明福建省陆地风力资源的不足,对该地区风力资源的调查重点应放在沿海滩涂及浅海.     

Wind energy potential in Antakya and skenderun regions, Turkey

The aim of this study is to establish the potential and the feasibility basis for the wind energy resources in some locations of East Mediterranean region of Turkey and provide suitable data for evaluating the potential wind power. For this purpose, hourly wind data, which were observed between the years 1997 and 2001 at the meteorological stations of Antakya and skenderun regions, were used. The dominant wind directions, the mean values, wind speeds, wind potential and the frequency distributions were determined. The results were classified according to the height above the ground level. Finally, the wind atlas of these regions in the form of contours of constant wind speed and wind potential was produced.     

Wind energy potential assessment for the offshore areas of Taiwan west coast and Penghu Archipelago

The average wind speed and wind power density of Taiwan had been evaluated at 10 m, 30 m and 50 m by simulation of mesoscale numerical weather prediction model (MM5). The results showed that wind energy potential of this area is excellent. Taiwan has offered funds to encourage the founding of offshore wind farms in this area. The purpose of this study is to make a high resolution wind energy assessment for the offshore area of Taiwan west coast and Penghu archipelago by using WAsP. The result of this study has been used to the relative financial planning of offshore wind farm projects in Taiwan. The basic inputs of WAsP include wind weather data and terrain data. The wind weather data was from a monitoring station located on a remote island, Tongi, because that all of weather stations in the area of Taiwan west coast are affected by urbanization. SRTM was selected to be used as terrain data and downloaded from CGIAR-CSI for voids problem. The coverage of considered terrain area in this assessment work is about 300 km × 400 km that made some difficulties to run wind energy assessment of the whole area with a high resolution of 100 m. So the interested area of this study is divided into 19 areas for the wind energy assessment and mapping. The assessment results show the Changhua area has best wind energy potential in the area of Taiwan west coast which power density is above 1000 W/m² height and the areas of Penghu archipelago are above 1300 W. These results are higher than the expected from NWP. 180 of 3 MW wind turbines were used in the study of micro sitting in the Changhua area.The type and number of the wind turbines and the layout of the wind farm is similar to the prior study of Taipower Company for demonstrating the reliability of this study. The assessment result of average net annual energy production (AEP) of the wind farm is about 11.3 GWh that is very close to the prior study. The terrain effect is also studied. The average net annual energy production will decrease about 0.7 GWh if the wind turbines were moved eastward 3600 m closer to the coast because of terrain effect. As the same reason, the average net annual energy production would be increased to 11.392 GWh if the wind farm is moved westward 3600 m away from the coast.     

Wind power potential in Turkey and Akhisar case study

Wind energy potential in various parts of Turkey is becoming economical due to reductions in the wind turbine costs, and in fossil fuel atmospheric pollution. The global change program imposes restrictions for use of alternative renewable and environmentally friendly energy sources. Wind energy is among such energy potentials and its practical and economical use gain significance day by day. The first wind energy turbine site investigation and wind power application possibility have been presented for the Akhisar area within the eastern provinces of Turkey. Different wind turbine technologies are assessed according to the local wind speed variations. Locally and technologically suitable wind turbines are selected. Finally their locations are decided by expert views and field measurements with the usage of well known WASP software. It is calculated that a minimum of 31436 MWh/year wind can be generated in this site. In the calculations 10% error possibility is allowed.     

Wind energy potential assessment at four typical locations in Ethiopia

The wind energy potential at four different sites in Ethiopia – Addis Ababa (09:02N, 38:42E), Mekele (13:33N, 39:30E), Nazret (08:32N, 39:22E), and Debrezeit (8:44N, 39:02E) – has been investigated by compiling data from different sources and analyzing it using a software tool. The results relating to wind energy potential are given in terms of the monthly average wind speed, wind speed probability density function (PDF), wind speed cumulative density function (CDF), and wind speed duration curve (DC) for all four selected sites. In brief, for measurements taken at a height of 10 m, the results show that for three of the four locations the wind energy potential is reasonable, with average wind speeds of approximately 4 m/s. For the fourth site, the mean wind speed is less than 3 m/s. This study is the first stage in a longer project and will be followed by an analysis of solar energy potential and finally the design of a hybrid standalone electric energy supply system that includes a wind turbine, PV, diesel generator and battery.     

Wind energy potential of the region of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Portugal

The main objective of this paper is to present a study on the wind energy potential that is being developed in the Region of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro. This study started in July 1996 and will continue until the end of 1998.In order to have an adequate characterisation of the wind energy potential in this region it is necessary to measure the wind speed and direction in several places. At this moment the data are being collected at nine places. Due to lack of space, only four places will be addressed in this article.The Region of Douro and Alto Trás-os-Montes has an area of 12,235 km². It is located in the Northeast part of Portugal and represents 57.7% of the North Region.Other projects refer to this region as having great potential in the field of renewable energies. From the analysis of the collected data, it seems that wind energy in Marão and Alvão mountains is one of the most interesting renewable energies.     

Estimation of wind energy potential using different probability density functions

In addition to the probability density function (pdf) derived with maximum entropy principle (MEP), several kinds of mixture probability functions have already been applied to estimate wind energy potential in scientific literature, such as the bimodal Weibull function (WW) and truncated Normal Weibull function (NW). In this paper, two other mixture functions are proposed for the first time to wind energy field, i.e. the mixture Gamma–Weibull function (GW) and mixture truncated normal function (NN). These five functions will be reviewed and compared together with conventional Weibull function. Wind speed data measured from 2006 to 2008 at three wind farms experiencing different climatic environments in Taiwan are selected as sample data to test their performance. Judgment criteria include four kinds of statistical errors, i.e. the max error in Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, root mean square error, Chi-square error and relative error of wind potential energy. The results show that all the mixture functions and the maximum entropy function describe wind characterizations better than the conventional Weibull function if wind regime presents two humps on it, irrespective of wind speed and power density. For wind speed distributions, the proposed GW pdf describes best according to the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test followed by the NW and WW pdfs, while the NN pdf performs worst. As for wind power density, the MEP and GW pdfs perform best followed by the WW and NW pdfs. The GW pdf could be a useful alternative to the conventional Weibull function in estimating wind energy potential.