Landscape externalities from onshore wind power

The expansion of renewable energy is a central element of the German Federal Government's climate and energy policy. The target for 2020 is to produce 30% of the electricity from renewable energies. Wind power has been selected to be a major contributor to this change. Replacing old wind turbines by modern ones and building new turbines on land will be crucial in meeting this target. However, the expansion of onshore wind power is not universally accepted. In several regions of Germany residents are protesting against setting up new wind turbines. To determine the negative effects two choice experiments were applied in Westsachsen and Nordhessen, Germany. In both regions the externalities of wind power generation until 2020 based on today's state of technology were measured. The results show that negative landscape externalities would result from expanding wind power generation. Using latent class models three different groups of respondents experiencing different degrees of externalities were identified.     

Integrating power systems for remote island energy supply: Lessons from Mykines,Faroe Islands

This study investigates the challenges and opportunities facing the installation of a hybrid hydrogen-renewable energy system in a remote island area disconnected from any main power grid. Islands with strong wind energy potential have the potential to become self-sufficient energy generating hubs that may even export electricity or hydrogen. This study has tested whether the combination of wind and hydrogen can replace a diesel generator on one of the Faroe Islands, Mykines. The comparison is based on an evaluation of each power system's costs, efficiency, environmental impact and suitability for the Mykines. The findings from this research can help inform those seeking to design 100% renewable energy systems for remote areas, and in particular islands. Furthermore, our comparison has value for those seeking to optimize the integration of wind turbines with hydrogen energy systems.     

Wind resource assessment of the Jordanian southern region

Wind data in terms of annual, seasonal and diurnal variations at Queira, which is located in the southern part of Jordan was studied and analyzed. For this purpose, long-term wind speed data for a period of 12 years (1990–2001) was used. The analysis showed that the seasonal and diurnal pattern of wind speed matches the electricity load pattern of the location. Higher winds of the order of 6 m/s and more were observed during both the summer months of the year (May–August) and peak hours (1100–1500) of the day. The wind duration availability is discussed as the number of hours during which the wind remained in certain wind speed intervals. The possibility of electricity generation from wind power at Queira was carried out using three different wind energy systems of sizes 100, 22 kW rated power, and a wind farm consisting of 25 small wind turbines; each of 4 kW rated power with hub heights of 20, 30, and 40 m. The energy production analysis showed higher production from the wind farm with a 20 m hub height than the production from the other two wind turbines. Similarly, the cost analysis showed that the lowest generation costs of 1 kWh were obtained for the wind farm compared to the other two wind turbines. The possibility of water pumping using the wind farm was also investigated. The results showed that water pumping using wind turbines is an appropriate alternative for the photovoltaic water pumping in the region.     

Estimation of wind energy production in various sites in Australia for different wind turbine classes: A comparative technical and economic assessment

This study examines the effect of different wind turbine classes on the electricity production of wind farms in three areas of Australia, which present low, low to medium, and medium to high wind potential: Gingin, Armidale, and Gold Coast Seaway. Wind turbine classes determine the suitability of installing a wind turbine in a particulate site. Wind turbine data from six different manufacturers have been used. For each manufacturer, at lest two wind turbines with identical rated power (in the range of 1.5 MW–3 MW) and different wind turbine classes (IEC I, IEC II and/or IEC III) are compared. The results show the superiority of wind turbines that are designed for lower wind speeds (higher IEC class) in all three locations, in terms of energy production. This improvement is higher for the locations with lower and medium wind potential (Gingin and Armidale), and varies from 5% to 55%. Moreover, this study investigates the economical feasibility of a 30 MW wind farm, for all combinations of site locations and wind turbine models.     

Fossil fuel reduction potential in Germany's transport sector by wind-to-hydrogen

Wind-to-hydrogen (WH) is a promising option for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector. Therefore, the reduction potential of fossil fuels by WH was estimated taking meteorological, geographical, and technical constraints into account. The wind resource estimation is based on the application of the high-resolution (200 m × 200 m) wind speed-wind shear model (WSWS). Together with the power curves of the six most frequently installed wind turbines in 2017, WSWS was used to assess Germany's technical wind energy potential. The WH and fossil fuel reduction potentials were calculated based on proton exchange membrane electrolysis. Results from the wind resource assessment demonstrate that in addition to the currently realized wind energy (89 TWh/yr in 2017), which is directly used for electricity generation, Germany's technical onshore potential for WH is 780 TWh/yr. This amount of renewable energy available for WH could replace 80.1% of the fossil fuels currently used in the transport sector.     

Performance investigation of an integrated wind energy system for co-generation of power and hydrogen

In this paper, a wind turbine energy system is integrated with a hydrogen fuel cell and proton exchange membrane electrolyzer to provide electricity and heat to a community of households. Different cases for varying wind speeds are taken into consideration. Wind turbines meet the electricity demand when there is sufficient wind speed available. During high wind speeds, the excess electricity generated is supplied to the electrolyzer to produce hydrogen which is stored in a storage tank. It is later utilized in the fuel cell to provide electricity during periods of low wind speeds to overcome the shortage of electricity supply. The fuel cell operates during high demand conditions and provides electricity and heat for the residential application. The overall efficiency of the system is calculated at different wind speeds. The overall energy and exergy efficiencies at a wind speed 5 m/s are then found to be 20.2% and 21.2% respectively.     

Electricity generation from the first wind farm situated at Ras Ghareb, Egypt

Egypt is one of the Red Sea and Mediterranean countries having windy enough areas, in particular along the coasts. The coastal location Ras Ghareb on the Red Sea has been investigated in order to know the wind power density available for electricity generation. To account for the wind potential variations with height, a new simple estimating procedure was introduced. This study has explicitly demonstrated the presence of high wind power density nearly 900 kW/m² per year at 100 m of altitude for this region. Indeed, the seasonal wind powers available are comparable to and sometimes higher than the power density in many European cities for wind electricity applications like Vindeby (Denmark) and also America.New technical analysis for wind turbine characteristics have been made using three types of commercial wind turbines possessing the same rotor diameter and rated power to choice the best wind machine suitable for Ras Ghareb station. As per the decreasing the cut-in wind speed for the wind turbine used, the availability factor increases for a given generator. That it could produce more energy output throughout the year for the location.The aim of this research, was to predict the electrical energy production with the cost analysis of a wind farm 150 MW total power installed at Ras Ghareb area using 100 wind turbines model (Repower MD 77) with 1.5 MW rated power. Additionally, this paper developed the methodology for estimating the price of each kWh electricity from the wind farms. Results show that this wind park will produce maximum energy of 716 GWh/year. The expected specific cost equal to 1.5 € cent/kWh is still less than and very competitive price with that produced from the wind farms in Great Britain and Germany and at the international markets of wind power. The important result derived from this study encourages several wind parks with hundreds of megawatts can be constructed at Ras Ghareb region.     

Comparative simulation of wind park design and siting in Algeria

In this paper, five typical regions of Algeria where wind is strong enough are selected. These regions usually intended for traditional agriculture are, centred around the towns of Guelma, El Oued, Tindouf, Touggourt and Tamanrasset. To make wind energy conversion available as an alternative energy source for the populations living in such countries, nine types of small and medium wind turbines constructed by American and European manufacturers are studied for their suitability. To account for the wind variations with height, four possible heights of the pylon holding the turbines are considered: 10, 20, 40 and 60 m. In each of the five locations and at each pylon height, wind energy converted by the turbines, is cumulated over the year and computed. Depending on the site and their size, most of these turbines are found to produce about 1000–10,000 MWh of electricity per year at 60 m of altitude and can easily satisfy the electricity need in irrigation and its household applications in rustic and arid regions. A quick glance of the results of the above computation shows that the choice of pylons of 20 m height yields a trade-off between the production of electrical energy and the requirements of economy. Owing to the sporadic wind variations, wind energy conversion systems can only be used as an auxiliary source. In particular, these systems can advantageously be coupled to stand-alone photovoltaic conversion systems in remote locations or connected to the electric mains in urban zones.     

Wind energy development in Pakistan

Pakistan has a very limited fossil fuel resource base. The poor economy does not allow the import of fossil fuels, particularly oil, on a large scale. Moreover, too much reliance on imported oil is critical from energy security point of view. A large fraction of the population lives in remote areas and is still waiting to be connected to the national electricity grid. To help these remote communities in particular, and to overcome energy shortages in general, Pakistan needs to develop its indigenous energy resources like hydropower, solar and wind. More than 1000 km long coastline in south and some places in northern mountainous areas provide an excellent resource of wind energy. This vast potential can be exploited to produce electricity on both community and wind farm scales. Applications other than electricity production, such as water pumping, also have vast applications. This article discusses the past, the present and the future of wind energy use in Pakistan. The efforts for the utilization of wind energy in the country are presented as well, along with barriers to its development. It is concluded that the potential exists, but significant efforts are needed to effectively make use of this cheap renewable energy source.     

Empowering the electric grid: Can SMES coupled to wind turbines improve grid stability?

The transition to a low carbon energy portfolio necessitates a reduction in the demand of fossil-fuel and an increase in renewable energy generation and penetration. Wind energy in particular is ubiquitous, yet the stochastic nature of wind energy hinders its wide-spread adoption into the electric grid. Numerous techniques (improved wind forecasting, improved wind turbine design and improved power electronics) have been proposed to increase the penetration of wind energy, yet only a few have addressed the challenges of wind intermittency, grid stability and flexibility simultaneously. The problem of excess wind energy results in wind curtailment and has plagued large scale wind integration. NREL's HOMER software is used to show that a strong negative correlation exists between the cycles to failure of a storage device and the excess wind energy on the system. A 1 MJ magnesium-diboride superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) system is designed to alleviate momentary interruptions (lasting from a few milli-seconds to a few minutes) in wind turbines. The simulation results establish the efficacy of SMES coupled with wind turbines improve output power quality and show that a 1 MJ SMES alleviated momentary interruptions for ∼50 s in 3 MW wind turbines. These studies suggest that SMES when coupled to wind turbines could be ideal storage devices that improve wind power quality and electric grid stability.     

Residents' perceptions of wind turbines: An analysis of two townships in Michigan

Wind energy development has become a ‘hot topic’ across Michigan as this state seeks to achieve 10% of energy delivered to consumers from renewable sources (Huron County Planning Commission, 2005). The focus of this effort to generate renewable energy has centered around wind energy. Wind turbines have been constructed at numerous locations across the state. The lower peninsulas' eastern counties near Lake Huron and Saginaw Bay were designated by the Wind Energy Resource Zone board as one such area of strong sustained wind in the state. Turbines have been constructed in ‘pockets’ across this ‘thumb’ region, yet half a decade after the first turbines were constructed, negative perceptions are still attributed to wind turbines. This paper examines residents of wind farm locations as a whole and independently as groups (those in opposition and in support of development) to identify what, if any similarities and differences, exist between the residents' perceptions. Qualitative analysis on stated negative perceptions unveiled common issues with residents: increased price of electricity with wind energy, noise from the turbine rotation and uncertainty surrounding the long term effects of wind turbines. These areas of concern seem to persist years after construction was completed.     

Economics of off-shore/on-shore wind energy systems in Qatar

This work presents an assessment of the potential and economical feasibility of adopting off-shore/on-shore wind energy as a renewable source of energy in Qatar. An analysis is presented for the long term measured on-shore wind speed (1976–2000) at Doha International Airport. A similar analysis is presented for the measured off-shore wind speed at the Qatari Haloul Island. For the on-shore measurements, the average annual wind speed (at 20 m height) was found to be about 5.1 m/s. On the other hand, for the off-shore measurements at Haloul, the average annual wind speed was found to be about 6.0 m/s. This result indicates the suitability of utilizing small to medium-size wind turbine generators, efficiently. Such generators can be implemented for water pumping and to produce sufficient electricity to meet vital, limited needs of remote locations, such as isolated farms, which do not have access to the national electricity grid. An economical assessment is presented which takes into consideration the interest recovery factor, the lifetime of the wind energy conversion system (WECS), the investment rate and operation and maintenance costs. The results indicate that the cost of electricity generation from the wind in Qatar compares favorably to that from fossil fuel resources. The feasibility of utilizing off-shore wind turbine systems to meet the power requirements of the island of Haloul and possibly provide additional power for nearby on-shore areas is discussed.     

Evaluation of hydrogen production by wind energy for agricultural and industrial sectors

Wind power potential by itself is not a good indicator of the suitability of a region for wind power generation for different purposes. Economic attractiveness is a better indicator in this regard as it stimulates the involvement of private businesses in this sector. Naturally, the shorter is the payback period or the time required to reach profitability, the more attractive will be the project. Considering the high wind energy potential of some regions of Iran, this study evaluates the wind energy available for generating electricity as well as hydrogen by industrial and agricultural sectors in four cities of Ardebil province, namely Ardebil, Khalkhal, Namin, and Meshkinshahr, and then conducts an econometric analysis accordingly. Wind power potentials are evaluated using the energy pattern factor and Weibull distribution function based on 5-year meteorological data of the studied regions. Economic evaluations are performed based on the present worth of incomes and costs, which are estimated for two models of wind turbines with 3.5 and 100 KW rated power. Results indicate that the cities of Namin and Ardebil with wind power densities of respectively 261.68 and 258.99 W/m² have the best condition. The economic analysis conducted for turbines shows that for Ardebil, installation of the 3.5 KW and 100 KW turbines will have a payback period of 13 and 5 years, respectively. For Khalkhal, Namin, and Meshkinshahr, the only feasible option is installation of the 100 KW turbine, which would result in a payback period of respectively 10.2, 6.1 and 8.7 years. Then it is investigated how much hydrogen can be gained if these private sectors invest in producing hydrogen using nominated wind turbines.     

Investigation of wind characteristics and assessment of wind-generation potentiality in Uludağ-Bursa,Turkey

In this study, wind characteristic and wind energy potential of the Uluda? skinning which is located in the south Marmara region of Turkey were analyzed using the wind speed data collected during the period 2000–2006. The wind speed distribution curves of Uluda?-Bursa were obtained by using the Weibull and Rayleigh probability density functions. The average Weibull shape parameter k and scale parameter c were found as 1.78 and 7.97 m/s for the period 2000–2006. The yearly mean wind speed in Uluda?-Bursa was obtained as 7.08 m/s for period of 7 years. A technical and economic assessment has been made of electricity generation from four wind turbines having capacity of (600, 1000, 1500 and 2000 kW). The yearly energy output, capacity factor and the electrical energy cost of kW h produced by the three different turbines were calculated. The cost of each kW h produced using the chosen wind turbines in Uluda?-Bursa were found to between 0.255 and 0.306 $/kW h.     

Island wind-hydrogen energy: A significant potential US resource

Islands offer the advantages of notional deep ocean wind stations without the problems of mounting wind turbines in a hostile marine environment. In principle, island wind-power stations could take advantage of rich (up to Class 7) wind resources. Because connection to an electricity grid will be difficult for most island-based systems, electrical energy could be converted into hydrogen (by electrolyzing seawater) and stored for use on the island or shipped to the mainland. To attain the benefits of high-speed wind-turbine systems, several technical and policy issues, dealing with wind resources, specialized wind-turbine equipment, and the political and economic potential of island wind stations, need to be addressed. Until such multifaceted research can be completed, the technical potential for island-based wind turbines will remain just that—potential.     

Technology mix alternatives with high shares of wind power and photovoltaics—case study for Spain

The shift to a low carbon society is an issue of highest priority in the EU. For electricity generation, such a target counts with three main alternatives: renewable energies, nuclear power and carbon capture and storage. This paper focuses on the renewables’ alternative. Due to resource availability, a technology mix with a high share of PV and wind power is gaining increasing interest as a major solution for several EU member states and in part for the EU collectively to achieve decarbonization and energy security with acceptable costs. Due to their intermittency, the integration of high shares of PV and wind power in the electricity supply is challenging. This paper presents a techno-economic assessment of technology mix alternatives with a high share of PV and wind power in Spain, as an example. Thereby, the focus is on the option of increasing wind curtailment versus substituting rigid baseload generation in favor of the more flexible gas turbines and combined cycle gas turbines.     

Economic analysis of wind-generated electricity in remote areas of South Africa

Costs of wind-generated electricity from a stand-alone wind generator with a two-day autonomous battery storage are compared with costs of diesel-generated and grid electricity for a remote outpost in a game reserve in South Africa. Comparative inflationary costs for diesel and wind were 53 and 33c/kWh, respectively. The cost of connecting to the national electricity grid were estimated to be 248c/kWh. Analysis of the availability of the wind and related power output of a selected wind generator revealed that the wind speeds fell between cut-in and cut-out speeds for approximately 80% of the time. In the light of the positive nature of these preliminary computations it is contended that a combined wind-diesel system, in which the diesel would act as backup storage, would be an economically viable mode of electricity generation in a remote area.     

Analysis of wind climate and wind energy potential of regions in Turkey

Investments in wind plants have increased rapidly as a result of changes to legal regulations in Turkey over the last five years. This has also led to an increase in the number of wind potential analyses in various regions of the country. This study analyzes the wind climate features of three regions in Turkey and their energy potential. In order to determine the features of wind in these regions, a five-layer Sugeno-type ANFIS model established under the MATLAB-Simulink software was used and the relationship between wind speed and other climate variables determined. In the second phase, WASP software was used to complete the wind energy potential analyses using wind speed data. The final phase includes calculations of the amount of electricity to be obtained technically and capacity usage rates of the installed turbines if wind farms are established in the selected areas. The comparative tables and graphics of the said areas were obtained. In conclusion, the selected areas are well located for the installation of parallel-connected wind plants to the national network in terms of the reliability of wind, the dispersion of wind potential and capacity usage rates.     

On the energy output estimation of wind turbines

During the operation of the German test field for small Wind Energy Conversion Systems (WECS) on the island of Pellworm five wind turbines were tested following recommendations of the International Energy Agency (IEA) expert group. Possible errors in the estimation of a tested wind turbine's total energy output at a potential installation site are investigated. Different wind speed frequency distributions (the measured one, the Rayleigh and the two-parameter Weibull distribution) are used to calculate the total energy output. The differences between the various distributions are mostly below 10 per cent. An improvement of the energy output estimate by a Weibull-instead of a Rayleigh distribution was not found. It is also shown that the use of the recommended 10 min averages or any other average overestimates the WECS' efficiency, up to 14 per cent on average depending on turbulence intensity. Wind power instead of wind speed is the appropriate parameter for power performance testing. Spectra of wind power and electrical power output show three areas of different correlation. A resistance length for wind turbines is shown to be dependent on the WECS operation status.     

Wind energy potential evaluation for power generation in selected districts of Jharkhand

This study evaluated the availability of wind energy for electricity production at different locations, i.e., Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Devghar, Lohardaga, and Chaibasa, in Jharkhand, India. Due to the rapidly rising demand for power in Jharkhand, there is a requirement of an alternative renewable source of energy to lower the dependence on its limited fossil fuel resources. The studied locations were found to be unsuitable for wind to electricity generation on a large scale at 10 m height above the ground. However, small-scale wind turbines can be used to extract energy from low-speed wind, preferably at a height above 10 m from the ground.