Terminology in Wind Energy

Question 1

What is wind shear or wind gradient?

Answer 1

Wind Shear: Change in wind direction with altitude.
Wind Gradient: Change in wind speed with altitude. Wind gradient is sometimes known as shear. The closer to the Earth’s surface, the slower the wind. This is due to the friction between the wind and the Earth’s surface. Wind shear is also sometimes used to refer to the change in wind direction deriving from altitude. Just as wind speeds may be affected by a variety of factors influencing turbine performance, such as geography and climate, wind shear is an integral consideration when calculating the output of wind power systems.

Question 2

What is SOV?

Answer 2

SOV: Service Operation Vehicle

Ships used to build offshore wind turbines. Example: The company Seajacks

Question 3

What is LPS?

Answer 3

Wind turbines are typically equipped with lightning protection systems (LPS). These are usually comprised of copper conductors in the blades that transmit the charge to earth

Question 4

What is Dunkelflaute
(dunk-el-flout-eh)

Answer 4

Dunkelflaute
(dunk-el-flout-eh)
A period of time in which little to no energy can be generated with the use of wind and solar power.