Module 3

Renewable Energy Engineering

BIJESH R
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
GEC Thrissur
Syllabus
Wind Energy- classification of wind turbines and power performance curve,
Energy in wind, calculation of energy content, Power coefficients, Betz limit theory, , tip speed ratio,
solidity of turbine’ power control strategies,
Basic principles of Wind Energy Conversion Systems (WECS), Classification of WECS, Parts of WECS

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Course outcome

CO 3
To explain the different types of wind power
machines and control strategies of wind turbines

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Wind
Wind energy is a source of renewable power which comes from air current
flowing across the earth's surface
Wind energy is a form of solar energy
Wind = air in motion; caused by the uneven heating of the earth‘s surface by
the sun

Wind is called a renewable energy source because the wind will blow as long as
the sun shines
The electricity produced from wind power is said to be "clean" because its
generation produces no pollution or greenhouse gases

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Why Wind Energy?
Wind is the renewable energy resource/technology of choice “Free” resource

A “clean” resource due to:

Replacement of a “dirty” energy source (coal) and,
No emissions associated with its use

Can be utilized on underutilized land or on lands currently in commodity crop

production (“harvest” on the surface and “harvest” above the surface)

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Wind energy generation
Wind power generation capacity in India has significantly increased in recent
years.
 As of 30 June 2018 the total installed wind power capacity was 34.293 GW, the
fourth largest installed wind power capacity in the world.
 Wind power capacity is mainly spread across the South, West and North
regions
55 MW production of wind power is installed in Kerala. The first wind farm of
the state was set up 1997 at Kanjikode in Palakkad district

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 Principle of wind energy conversion
system

A wind energy conversion system is a machine that, powered

by the energy of the wind, generates mechanical energy that
can be used to directly power machinery (mill, pump,) or to
power an electrical generator for making electricity.

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Advantages of Wind Energy
Wind blows day and night, which gives wind turbines the ability to
produce electricity at all hours of the day.
No fuels required
Clean: Wind energy is a renewable source of energy that generates no
pollution.
No waste generation
Less cost for land as it is mostly installed at remote locations including
offshore locations
Farmers can continue to use the land due to the turbines only taking
up a fraction of the land
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Disadvantages of Wind Energy
Efficiency of a wind turbine depends on the wind speed.
It depends on location, season etc.
The technology requires a higher initial investment than fossil-fueled
generators
Power density is low, hence a large number of wind mills are requires to
produce modest amount of power
Locations are far away from load centers
Very difficult to control
Environmental problems
Noise Problems
Kills birds
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Wind Turbine
A wind turbine then produces electricity by converting the force of the wind ultimately
charging a generator through the rotation of the wind turbine’s rotor blades.

Wind pushes blades

Blades attached to a hub together called the rotor
Rotor spins drive shaft
Gearbox makes shaft faster
Drive shaft turns generator to make energy

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Wind Turbine Basic Parts & Functions
Anemometer – is a tool that measures wind speed.
Blades – are the main electricity-generating parts of the turbine. Once wind passes
through it, they will rotate thereby causing a series of reaction which will eventually
lead to electricity production.
Brake – as with any other break, this is used to stop the turbines in emergency
cases. This could be a mechanical, electrical, or hydraulic break.
Controller – this dictates the wind speed at which turbines start and stop.
Generator – produces electricity usually at 60 cycles.
Shaft – signals the generator to conduct electricity.
Tower – is a place where turbines may be placed to get more wind.
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Classification of Wind Turbines

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Types of Wind Turbines

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Horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT)
A horizontal Axis Wind Turbine is the most common wind turbine
design. In addition to being parallel to the ground, the axis of blade
rotation is parallel to the wind flow.

◦ Mono blade
◦ Double blade
◦ Triple blade
◦ Multiple blade

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Horizontal Wind Turbines

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Horizontal Axis Turbines

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Vertical Axis Turbines
A vertical axis machine has its blades rotating on an axis
perpendicular to the ground.

◦ Savonius Wind Turbine

◦ Darrieus Wind Turbine
◦ Giromill Wind Turbine
◦ Flapping Panel Wind Turbine

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Vertical Wind Turbines

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Power Performance Curve
The power curve of a wind turbine is a graph that indicates how large the electrical
power output will be for the turbine at different wind speeds.
IT is useful when identifying possible sites for wind farms

If you know the typical range of wind speeds at your site, and you have a wind power
curve for the turbine you are considering, you should be able to get a reasonable
estimate of its annual output and know whether this is likely to be sufficient for your
needs.
To plot a power curve, you would normally use an anemometer sited close to the turbine in order to
measure the wind speed at various times, and at the same time, measure the corresponding electrical
power output of the wind turbine.

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Power Curve

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Power Curve
Cut-in speed
The speed at which the turbine first starts to rotate and generate power is called the cut-in speed and is
typically between 3 and 4 meters per second.

Rated output power and rate output wind speed

This limit to the generator output is called the rated power output and the wind speed at which it is
reached is called the rated output wind speed.

Cut-out speed
As the speed increases above the rate output wind speed, the forces on the turbine structure continue to
rise and, at some point, there is a risk of damage to the rotor.
As a result, a braking system is employed to bring the rotor to a standstill. This is called the cut-out
speed and is usually around 25 meters per second.

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Wind Energy Formula
The power in the wind is given by the following equation:

Power (W) = 1/2 x ρ x A x v3

Where:
ρ = density of the air in kg/m3 (usually about 1.2 kg/m3)
A = cross-sectional area (Swept Area) of the wind in m2 ( R2) ; R- Radius of turbine
v = velocity of the wind in m/s

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The power coefficient
It is the ratio (Cp) of the power extracted by the rotor to the power available in the wins stream

𝑃𝑒
Cp = 1
2
𝐴 𝑉𝑓3

Pe = Power extracted by the rotor

A= Swept frontal area of the machine
Vf= Free stream wind spead

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The Lift Co-efficient
It is the ratio of the lift force on the blade to the power available in the wind stream

𝐹𝐿
CL = 1
2
𝐴𝑏 𝑉𝑓3

Ab = Projected area of the blade facing the wind

FL = Lift force

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The Drag Co-efficient
It is the ratio of the drag force on the blade to the power available in the wind stream

𝐹𝐷
CL = 1
2
𝐴𝑏 𝑉𝑓3

Ab = Projected area of the blade facing the wind

FL = Lift force

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Tip Speed Ratio
It is the ratio of speed of blade tip to the free stream wind speed

𝑅
=
𝑉𝑓
= angular velocity of rotor
R = Tip radius
 For vertical axis machine, the peripheral speed at the middle of the blade
length is to be used in the numerator

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Solidity
 It is the blade area to the swept frontal area(face area) of a machine

ϒ = N c/  R
 N = Number if blades
C= Mean chord of blades

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Betz Limit Theory
The Betz limit is the theoretical maximum efficiency for a wind turbine, conjectured by German
physicist Albert Betz in 1919.

 Betzconcluded that this value is 59.3%, meaning that at most only

59.3% of the kinetic energy from wind can be used to spin the
turbine and generate electricity.
“Theoretical limit of rotor efficiency is 59%”

In reality, turbines cannot reach the Betz limit, and common efficiencies are in the 35-45%
range

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Power Coefficient, Cp

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Betz Limit

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Betz Limit

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Power Control of Wind Turbines
Wind Turbine(WT)s are typically designed to withstand extreme weather conditions but they are
not designed for extreme speeds or rotational torques.
 At very large aerodynamic torques or rotational speeds, the force on the blades of the WT is
enormous and can tear the turbine apart.
To avoid this, WTs are always designed with a cut-out speed above which brakes will slow the
turbine to a halt.
However, there is s range of wind speeds before the cut-out speed where the WT employs various
control strategies to deal with high wind speeds that would otherwise pose a threat to the
turbines.
All WTs are therefore designed with a kind of power control technique.

 This can either be stall control or pitch control.

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Pitch and Yaw of wind Turbines

Pitch control Yaw Control

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Power Control strategies
Passive Stall Control

Active Stall Control

Pitch Control

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Wind power control strategies

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Passive Stall Control
Passive stalled controlled WTs have their blades bolted to the hub at a
fixed angle.
The geometry of the rotor blade profile is aerodynamically designed
to ensure that in high wind speed conditions, it creates turbulence on
the side of the rotor blade which not facing the wind.
 This stall prevents the lifting force of the rotor blade from acting on
the rotor.
This is a very simple and low cost technique which does not require
the installation of additional actuators

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Active Stall Control
The active stall control of WTs is popular with larger WTs rated at 1 MW
Active stall controlled WTs are fitted with active power control mechanisms and pitchable
blades similar to pitch controlled WTs.
 In order to prevent the overloading of the WT generator at its rated power, the active stall
controlled WT increases the angle of attack of the rotor blades in order to make the blades go
into a deeper stall rather than decreasing the angle of attack to reduce the lift and rotational
speed of the blades
 In comparison to the passive stall, active stall control enables power output control more
accurately to avoid overshooting the rated power of the WT at the beginning of a wind gust .
Another advantage of active stall control over passive stall control is the possibility of running
the WT almost exactly at rated power at all high wind speeds.

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Pitch control
Pitch controlled WTs use an electronic controller to sense the output power of the WT several times per
second.
 An electronic signal is generated which pitches the turbine blades out of the wind when the power level
goes above the prescribed safe level.
The turbine blades are pitched or turned back into the wind at an optimal angle of attack to catch the wind
when the power level gets lower.
Pitch controlled WTs have an active control system which varies the pitch angle of the turbine blades to
decrease torque and rotational speed in WTs.
This type of control is usually employed in high wind speeds only where high rotational speeds and
aerodynamic torques can damage the equipment.
The difference in mode of operation is the turning of the WT blades.
While pitch control turns the blade away from the wind in order to reduce the lift force on the turbine
blades, the active stall control of the WT turns the turbine blades into the wind.

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Wind Energy Conversion Systems
WECS is a system that converts wind energy into another form of energy, such as electricity,
that can be used to power homes and businesses.

There are two main types of WECS: those that use wind turbines to generate electricity and
those that use windmills to pump water.

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1.Rotational Axis
There are two types of rotational axis: horizontal and vertical.
A horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) is the most commonly used type. The rotor blades are
mounted on a horizontal shaft perpendicular to the ground.
A vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) has its rotor blades mounted on a vertical shaft parallel to
the ground. VAWT is less common than HAWT because it is more expensive and complicated to
build and is not as efficient in converting wind energy into electricity.

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2. Turbine
Turbines can also be classified by their electrical output. The size of the wind farm is determined by
its production power. The current turbine system technology may be categorized into three groups
based on the following:
Low Power turbines: These are turbine systems with a maximum output of 30 kW on average. These
devices are used in distant areas to meet home electrical needs and charge batteries. They're also
employed in emergencies to lessen reliance on primary power sources.
Medium Power turbines: This category includes turbines with 30 to 300 kW outputs. They are,
however, primarily utilized to provide electricity to houses in small communities. They are used with
other renewable energy sources or power storage systems.
High Power turbines: These are systems in which a considerable amount of power is produced.
These are integrated into large-scale wind farms connected to the power systems that transmit
electricity across towns.

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3.Power Control
The wind energy converted by the turbine must be managed appropriately to maintain a
constant output of power. The two main ways to control power are active and reactive power
control.

Active power control is the most common type of power control, and it involves regulating the
amount of wind that goes through the turbine blades. This is accomplished by using a pitch
control mechanism, which regulates the angle of the blades.
Reactive power control is less common, and it involves regulating the amount of electricity
generated by the turbine. This is done using a generator, which converts mechanical energy into
electrical energy.

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4. Rotational Speed Control Criteria
The wind speed controls the speed of the turbine blades. The higher the wind speed, the faster
the blades will spin. Two main ways to control the turbine's rotational speed are fixed speed and
variable speed WECS.

Fixed speed WECS are the most common type, and they use a device called a governor to
control the speed of the turbine. The governor is a mechanical device that is attached to the
turbine blades. It prevents the blades from spinning too fast, damaging the turbine.
Variable speed WECS are less common, using an inverter device to control the turbine's speed.
The inverter is an electronic device that converts direct current (DC) into alternating current
(AC). It also regulates the speed of the turbine blades.

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Mechanical Components
Rotor: It is the most important component of a WECS. It is a large wheel that has blades attached to it. The
rotor is what captures the wind and turns it into mechanical energy.
Main Shaft: The main shaft is the shaft attached to the rotor. It is made of steel or aluminum and connected
to the gearbox.
Gearbox: The gearbox is a device that increases the rotational speed of the rotor. It is made of gears, and it
is located in the nacelle.
Mechanical Breaks: Mechanical breaks are used to stop the rotor from spinning. They are located in the
nacelle and activated when the wind speed is too high.
Nacelle: The nacelle is the housing that contains all of the electrical and mechanical components of the
WECS. It is located at the top of the turbine, and it is made of steel or aluminum.
Pitch and Yaw Drives: Pitch and yaw drives are used to adjust the angle of the blades. They are located in
the nacelle, and a computer operates them.
Wind Measuring Equipment: Wind measuring equipment is used to measure wind speed and direction. It is
located in the nacelle and consists of anemometers and wind vanes.

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Electrical Components
Generator: A device that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. It is located in the
nacelle and is connected to the main shaft.
Power Converter: The power converter is a device that converts DC into AC. It is located in the
nacelle, connected to the generator.
Step-up Transformer: The step-up transformer is a device that increases the voltage of the
electricity. It is located in the nacelle, connected to the power converter.
Wind Farm Collection Points or Point of Common Coupling: Are used to collect the electricity from
the turbines. They are located at the turbine's base, and they are connected to the power converter.

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THANK YOU

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