WIND POWER PLANT

INTRODUCTION TO RENEWABLE SOURCES. NEED OF WIND POWER PLANT. SITE SELECTION OF WIND P.P. OPERATING PRINCLIPLE. WORKING & POWER GENERATION. PROS & CONS. PRESENT SCENARIO & FUTURE.

Introduction:
Why wind power??
Wind power has always given the necessary propulsive force to sailing ships and has been also used to run windmills. Then, this type of energy has fallen into disuse due to the spreading of electric power and thanks to the availability of low cost machines supplied by fossil fuel. However, the recent attention paid to climate changes, the demand to increase the amount of green energy and fear of a decrease of oil fuel in the future have promoted a renewed interest in the production of electrical energy from renewable sources and also from the wind power. This type of energy, with respect to other renewable energies, requires lower investments and uses a natural energy source usually available everywhere and particularly usable in the temperate zones, that is where most of the industrialized countries are. During the last decade of the Twentieth century, different models of wind turbines have been built and tested: with vertical and horizontal axis, with variable number of blades, with the rotor positioned upstream or downstream of the tower, etc. The horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) with upstream three-blade rotor has resulted to be the most suitable typology and consequently has found a remarkable development, characterized both by a quick grow in size and power, as well as by a wide spread.

 PHYSICS OF WIND GENERATION:

The earth continuously releases into the atmosphere. The heat received by the sun, but unevenly. In the areas.where less heat is released (cool air zones) the pressure of atmospheric gases increases, whereas where more heat is released, air warms up and gas pressure decreases. As a consequence, a macro-circulation due to the convective motions is created: air masses get warm, reduce their density and rise, thus drawing cooler air flowing over the earth surface. This motion of warm and cool air masses generates high pressure and low pressure areas permanently present in the atmosphere and also influenced by the rotation of the earth. Since the atmosphere tends to constantly re-establish the pressure balance, the air moves from the areas where the pressure is higher towards those where it is lower;therefore, wind is the movement of an air mass, more or less quick, between zones at different pressure.The greater the pressure difference, the quicker the air flow and consequently the stronger the wind. In reality, the wind does not blow in the direction joining the centre of the high pressure with that of the low pressure, but in the northern hemisphere it veers to the right , circulating around the high pressure centers with clockwise rotation and around the low ressure ones in the opposite direction. In the practice, who keeps his back to the wind as on his left the low pressure area B and on his right the high pressure area A. In The southern hemisphere the opposite occurs. On a large scale, at different latitudes, a Circulation of air masses can be noticed, which is cyclically influenced by the seasons. On a smaller scale, there is a different heating between the dry land and the water Masses, with the consequent formation of the daily sea and earth breezes.

SITE SELECTION OF WIND POWER PLANT:

Location plays a vital part in the performance and efficiency of a wind turbine so get it wrong and it could be disastrous - but get it right and you and your turbine will have a long, happy and profitable future together.

Turbines work at the best when on high, exposed sites. Coastal sites are especially good. Town centers and highly populated residential areas are usually not suitable sites for wind turbines. Avoid roof mounted turbines as there is no guarantee that these devices will not damage your property through vibration. The further the distance between your turbine and your power requirement, the more power you will lose in the cable. The distance of the cabling will also impact the overall cost of the installation. Turbulence disrupts the air flow which can wear down the blades and reduce the lifecycle of the turbine. We recommend that you only consider installing a wind turbine when the distance between the turbine and the nearest obstacle is more than twice the height of the turbine, or when the height of the turbine is more than twice the height of the nearest obstacle. Smaller turbines require an average wind speed of over 4.5m/s to produce an efficient level of electricity. You will require planning permission before you can install your wind turbine. If your location is next to a listed building, in a conservation area, or in an area of natural beauty (AONB), you might experience difficulties when trying to obtain planning permission, so contact your local authority at the very early stages of your project to avoid disappointment. If your site is in a remote location, you may find trying to connect your turbine to the national grid very expensive and it may be worth considering an off-grid connection instead using battery storage.

Working Principle of Wind Power Plant: Wind turbines operate on a simple principle. The energy in the wind turns two or three propeller-like blades around a rotor. The rotor is connected to the main shaft, which spins a generator to create electricity. Wind turbines are mounted on a tower to capture the most energy. At 100 feet (30 meters) or more above ground, they can take advantage of faster and less turbulent wind. Wind turbines can be used to produce electricity for a single home or building, or they can be connected to an electricity grid for more widespread electricity distribution. Wind turbines harness the power of the wind and use it to generate electricity. Simply stated, a wind turbine works the opposite of a fan. Instead of using electricity to make wind, like a fan, wind turbines use wind to make electricity.

PARTS OF WIND TURBINE : Anemometer: Measures the wind speed and transmits wind speed data to the controller. Blades: Lifts and rotates when wind is blown over them, causing the rotor to spin. Most turbines have either two or three blades. Break: Stops the rotor mechanically, electrically, or hydraulically, in emergencies. Controller: Starts up the machine at wind speeds of about 8 to 16 miles per hour (mph) and shuts off the machine at about 55 mph. Turbines do not operate at wind speeds above about 55 mph because they may be damaged by the high winds. Gear box: Connects the low-speed shaft to the high-speed shaft and increases the rotational speeds from about 30-60 rotations per minute (rpm), to about 1,000-1,800 rpm; this is the rotational speed required by most generators to produce electricity. The gear box is a costly (and heavy) part of the wind turbine and engineers are exploring "direct-drive" generators that operate at lower rotational speeds and don't need gear boxes. Generator: Produces 50-cycle AC electricity; it is usually an off-the-shelf induction generator. High-speed shaft: Drives the generator. Low-speed shaft: Turns the low-speed shaft at about 30-60 rpm. Nacelle: Sits atop the tower and contains the gear box, low- and high-speed shafts, generator, controller, and brake. Some nacelles are large enough for a helicopter to land on. Pitch: Turns (or pitches) blades out of the wind to control the rotor speed, and to keep the rotor from turning in winds that are too high or too low to produce electricity. Rotor: Blades and hub together form the rotor. Tower: Made from tubular steel (shown here), concrete, or steel lattice. Supports the structure of the turbine. Because wind speed increases with height, taller towers enable turbines to capture more energy and generate more electricity. Wind direction: Determines the design of the turbine. Upwind turbineslike the one shown hereface into the wind while downwind turbines face away. Wind vane: Measures wind direction and communicates with the yaw drive to orient the turbine properly with respect to the wind. Yaw drive: Orients upwind turbines to keep them facing the wind when the direction changes. Downwind turbines don't require a yaw drive because the wind manually blows the rotor away from it. Yaw motor: Powers the yaw drive.

 WORKING OF WIND Power Plant:

Wind turbines harness the wind's energy to generate electricity. Here, in short, is how they do it:

The wind passes over the blades and makes them turn (kinetic energy) The blades turn a shaft within the nacelle (the box at the top of the turbine) Traditionally, the shaft connects to a gear box which increases the rotational speed enough for the generator. However, some turbines utilize a direct drive, gearless technology. The generator then converts the rotational energy into electrical energy. The power output then goes into an inverter which converts the DC (direct current) electricity coming out of the generator into AC (alternating current) electricity. A transformer is used to convert the electricity to the right voltage for the local distribution network, typically 11,000 V - 33,000 V. The electricity is then exported to the local electricity grid or can be used on site.

 PROS & CONS OF WIND POWER PLANT:

PROS :
Energy available is free of cost. Pollution free and clean. Vast wind energy is available on earth about 10 million mw. Helps in supplying electric power to remote areas. Economically competitive. Wind energy can be used for obtaining mechanical power for grading, pumping etc.

CONS. :
Low energy density. Wind energy is irregular, unsteady, and most in constant speed. Direction of wind is not constant. Small units have more reliable but have higher capital cost. Wind farms can be located only in vast open areas in location of favourable wind. Such locations are genrally away from load centers. Complex desings due to several variable stresses.

Present Scenario:
The development of wind power in India began in the 1990s, and has significantly increased in the last few years India has the fifth largest installed wind power capacity in the world. In 2009-10 India's growth rate was highest among the other top four countries. As of 31 Jan 2013 the installed capacity of wind power in India was 19779.15 MW.

State-level Wind Power: Tamil Nadu - 7158 MW

With peak wind power generation at close to 7000 MW, Tamil Nadu is one of the wind power hubs of South Asia. Tamil Nadu generates 40% of India's wind power. Major districts with wind farms are Coimbatore, Kanyakumari, Thirunelveli, and Tiruppur.

Gujarat (3,187 MW)

Gujarat governments focus on tapping renewable energy has led to sharp rise in the capacity to generate power using wind energy in the last few years. According to official data, wind power generations capacity in the state has increased a staggering ten times in just six years. As per C-WET data, the total installed capacity in Gujarat stood at 3093 MW.

Maharashtra (2976 MW)

Maharashtra is third only to Tamil Nadu and Gujarat in terms of generating in India.In Satara a Company named Suzlon Energy Ltd. has its wind power plant.

Rajasthan (2355 MW)

2356 MW as per the news reported by Times of India, Dated 31.3.2012.

Future:
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has fixed a target of 10,500 MW between 200712, but an additional generation capacity of only about 6,000 MW might be available for commercial use by 2012 The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has announced a revised estimation of the potential wind resource in India from 49,130 MW assessed at 50m Hub heights to 102,788 MW assessed at 80 Hub heights. The wind resource at higher Hub heights that are now prevailing is possibly even more.