Chapter 7 LO12: Assess The Factors That Affect Maximum Energy Production In Wind Turbines Within The Context Kf Cost - Benefit Analysis Flashcards
State 8 Parameters that affect the maximum energy production of a wind turbine.
H - Hub height
A - Altitude
AD - Air Density
SA - Swept Area
T - Temperature
WS - Wind Speeds
COP
O - Obstructions
Describe 5 Parameters that affect the maximum energy production of a wind turbine.
H - Wind speeds tend to be lower near the ground and increase with height above the ground. Although there is only so high you can go until the wind value and wind speed meets an optimum value. So past a certain point there is no point in going higher. This is why a wind monitor station is usually placed before the height of the turbine is decided.
A - If a site location is above 500m then the air density will need to be taken into consideration. As if at 500m the air density is 1.13 kg/m3 and at 1500m above sea level it is 1 kg/m3 then there is no point than going higher than 500m.
SA - Pout is directly proportional to SA. This should mean that the bigger wind turbine you get the better. Although the bigger the size has impacts to the following, the cost of the turbine, price per unit of electrical energy generated, cut in and cut out speeds. to choose the best turbine in terms of maximum energy produced, consideration of the wind profile of the site must be taken into consideration.
WS - Wind speed is the most critical parameter as Pout is directly proportional to v3. Accurate wind speeds for the site location are required to establish if the project will be viable.
COP - It has been established that highly efficient wind turbines have a COP of 0.45 and others with poor designs only reaching app. 0.2. This has a huge impact on the maximum energy that can be generated by the wind turbine and careful selection of the wind turbine is required also considering the TSR. Careful selection means that the wind turbine selected matches best with the site characteristics and offers the highest COP possible to produce maximum energy.
Equation used for the cost benefit analysis (CBA)
Repayment period in years = Project Costs/ Revenue produced in years.
